Description
Full color 9 1/2″ x 13 1/2″ ad with a drawing that shows soldiers just off of the front lines working to repair a tank for a return to battle. The ad headline tells us that “To keep the battle machines slugging Harvester men form maintenance battalion to serve the battle line”. The text reminds us that machinery and equipment will break down, just like soldiers do, and need to be fixed before going back into action. It tells us how Army Ordnance went to International Harvester with a request to form a battalion of mechanical specialists who could go to the fighting areas and quickly take care of any equipment problems so that a return to action would happen quicker. Harvester did respond quickly and sent hundreds of mechanics over in addition to the 5,000 who were already there as fighting soldiers.
Source: October 26, 1942 Life magazine.
