On Jan. 9, 1942—84 years ago today—an Exchange officer was appointed for the V Army Corps, effectively establishing the first Exchange for the European Theater of Operations in World War II before any goods had left New York Harbor.
At the Exchange officer’s instructions, a headquarters was set up temporarily at the New York Port of Embarkation, where contact could easily be maintained with port authorities and the Buying Division of Army Exchange Service (AES) in New York. This facilitated a flow of PX supplies to early contingents sent to the British isles.
An assistant exchange officer sailed with one of the early contingents to establish AES headquarters in Belfast, Northern Ireland, where the first U.S. troops to cross the Atlantic after the U.S. declared war arrived on Jan. 26, 1942. At that time, there was no service organization to support the troops, so they relied on the British for many supplies.
The earliest supply ships arrived on Feb. 8, and on March 18, the assigned U.S. troops ate American rations for the first time.
Although U.S. exchanges in the United Kingdom existed in World War I, they were operated by civilian agencies such as the YMCA. The World War II Exchanges in England are the root of the modern Exchange system in the United Kingdom, where the Exchange currently operates stores at more than a half-dozen military installations.
Here’s a look at some of the historic Exchanges, via the Exchange History album on Flickr:
American GIs line up at an unidentified post exchange in England for their weekly rations of candy, toiletries and more. A specific year wasn’t available for this World War II era photo.
Sources: One Hundred Years of Service: A History of the Army and Air Force Exchange Service; Exchange History on Flickr.
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