The War Finance Committee, a special wartime government agency charged with financing the war effort, directed war bond campaigns. By the end of 1945 the committee had raised and deposited into the U.S. Treasury $185.7 billion from war bond sales. Buying war bonds allowed individual Americans to express their patriotism and contribute to the war effort. By the end of the war more than eighty-five million Americans had invested in bonds. Not only did Americans aid in financing the war, they also derived a great moral boost by helping in the march to victory. The government and private industry continuously praised Americans for buying bonds.

Bonds could be purchased in two ways, through a Payroll Savings Plan or during a War Bond Loan campaign. Employees participating in the Payroll Savings Plan had a certain amount of money deducted from each paycheck and put toward the...