CC41

Last updated

Board of Trade's CC41 symbol CC41 mark.svg
Board of Trade's CC41 symbol
CC41 label on a coat. Utility Clothing Label Mona Roberts.jpg
CC41 label on a coat.

The CC41 Utility logo was an identifying mark of products produced and sold as part of the British Government's Second World War Utility Clothing Scheme.

Contents

The CC41 mark indicated that the item met the standards of the Government's Utility regulations, and could be sold as a product of the Utility Scheme. [1] Easily recognisable, the CC41 symbol was useful to manufacturers, retailers, and the civilian consumer public.

Therefore, the Board of Trade stipulated the CC41 marks was applied to all Utility products, which included clothing, footwear, furniture, and fabrics and textiles, from the implementation of the Utility Clothing Scheme in 1941, until its end in 1952.

The CC41 mark could be attached to a Utility product as a label, printed directly onto cloth, or impressed mark, as on furniture and early examples of Utility footwear.

The symbol, colloquially referred to as ‘cheeses’ was designed by Reginald Shipp, and is understood to represent ‘Civilian Clothing 1941’. [2]

Second World War

Couture designers also abided by CC41 strictures. This IncSoc gown by Bianca Mosca was photographed by the Ministry of Information in 1945 as part of its publicity for utility fashion London Fashion Designers- the work of Members of the Incorporated Society of London Fashion Designers, London, England, UK, 1945 D23777.jpg
Couture designers also abided by CC41 strictures. This IncSoc gown by Bianca Mosca was photographed by the Ministry of Information in 1945 as part of its publicity for utility fashion

By 1941, with the need to produce clothing and other war essentials for the expanding armed services during the Second World War, many items were rationed. Certain raw materials could no longer be imported, and those that could were directed towards the war effort. Food rationing had already been reintroduced in January 1940. Non-rationed items saw their price surge, and clothing saw large mark-ups in price, well above the cost of living.

The government introduced Limitation of Supply Orders that forced manufacturers to produce only a fraction of their pre-war amounts. By April 1940, the limits on cloth were having a major impact with a 25% cut in wool and rayon, and a 75% cut in linen. As a consequence, manufacturers ended the production of any loss-making lines which led to calls for clothing rationing to be introduced. The prime minister, Winston Churchill, believed that the general public would not accept this change.

In June 1941 Oliver Lyttleton, the President of the Board of Trade, managed to introduce clothes rationing. Churchill, although thankful the public accepted the move, replaced Lyttleton with Hugh Dalton (a Labour member of the coalition government since 1940) a month later. Churchill was fully aware that rationing and conscription were now necessary as Britain became involved in a 'total war' spanning the globe.

Shortly after Dalton took office he appointed Metford Watkins as Director of Civilian Clothing at the Board of Trade. Watkins, aware of the high price of clothes at the time, promised to introduce cheaper clothes via 'austerity' provisions but not using standardisation. Shortly afterwards, the government announced the production of 'national footwear'. The austerity provisions governed exactly what could or could not be used in the manufacture of clothes and shoes (for example, number of buttons, pleats or pockets, height of heels, amount of lace or embroidery, no turn-ups on trousers and no double-breasted suits).

With the introduction of purchase tax in October 1941 items were taxed at different rates and necessities were designated as tax-free. This stimulated production, reduced waste and through higher taxation curtailed the production of expensive clothing.

Utility items

CC41 utility mark and maker's marks impressed onto the rear of a wooden bookcase. CC41 impression on rear of bookcase with maker's marks.JPG
CC41 utility mark and maker's marks impressed onto the rear of a wooden bookcase.
Utility underwear, photographed in 1942 by the Ministry of Information Utility Underwear- Clothing Restrictions on the British Home Front, 1942 D13083.jpg
Utility underwear, photographed in 1942 by the Ministry of Information

Utility cloths were introduced and manufacturers were supplied with raw materials on a quota system. Manufacturers who agreed to increase production of utility cloth would receive a higher quota. The public bought Utility clothing as it was tax-free.

By September 1942 40 cloths had been specified (19 wool, 16 cotton, four rayon and one locknit) which all now utilised the CC41 Utility mark, designed for the Directorate of Civilian Clothing by Reginald Shipp. [3]

The symbol was to appear on clothing, footwear and furniture and the single, identifiable mark quickly allowed the public to know if an item was tax-free or not. The symbol came to represent cheap, but reliable goods. Within the Utility footwear there were sometimes bands for quality difference. Ladies' shoes would feature the Utility mark and either W1, W2 or W3 which had a different and increasing price range.

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rationing</span> Controlled distribution of scarce resources, goods, or services

Rationing is the controlled distribution of scarce resources, goods, services, or an artificial restriction of demand. Rationing controls the size of the ration, which is one's allowed portion of the resources being distributed on a particular day or at a particular time. There are many forms of rationing, although rationing by price is most prevalent.

G Plan is a British furniture brand. It began as a pioneering range of furniture in the United Kingdom produced by E Gomme Ltd of High Wycombe. The success of G Plan led to E Gomme becoming one of the UK's largest furniture manufacturers, with profits increasing sixfold between 1952 and 1958 when it was floated as an IPO. Since 2005, G Plan has been a subsidiary of Sofa Brands International.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rationing in the United Kingdom</span> Government-controlled distribution of scarce goods in the United Kingdom

Rationing was introduced temporarily by the British government several times during the 20th century, during and immediately after a war.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Timeline of the United Kingdom home front during World War II</span>

This is a Timeline of the United Kingdom home front during World War II covering Britain 1939–45.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Artificial leather</span> Material that imitates leather

Artificial leather, also called synthetic leather, is a material intended to substitute for leather in upholstery, clothing, footwear, and other uses where a leather-like finish is desired but the actual material is cost prohibitive or unsuitable, or for ethical concerns. Artificial leather is known under many names, including leatherette, imitation leather, faux leather, vegan leather, PU leather (polyurethane), and pleather.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Home front during World War II</span> Covering numerous countries

The term "home front" covers the activities of the civilians in a nation at war. World War II was a total war; homeland military production became vital to both the Allied and Axis powers. Life on the home front during World War II was a significant part of the war effort for all participants and had a major impact on the outcome of the war. Governments became involved with new issues such as rationing, manpower allocation, home defense, evacuation in the face of air raids, and response to occupation by an enemy power. The morale and psychology of the people responded to leadership and propaganda. Typically women were mobilized to an unprecedented degree.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">National Museum of Costume</span>

The National Museum of Costume was located at Shambellie House, in New Abbey, Dumfries and Galloway, Scotland and it formed part of the National Museums of Scotland. The museum started operating in 1982. The museum allowed a look at fashion and the lifestyle of the wealthy from the 1850s to the 1950s. The clothes were presented in lifelike room settings. In January 2013, National Museums Scotland announced that the National Museum of Costume was to close and the site would not reopen for 2013.

The following lists events that happened during 1942 in New Zealand.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Utility Radio</span> British radio receiver made during World War II

The Utility Radio or Wartime Civilian Receiver was a valve domestic radio receiver, manufactured in Great Britain during World War II starting in July 1944. It was designed by G.D. Reynolds of Murphy Radio. Both AC and battery-operated versions were made.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">1930–1945 in Western fashion</span> Costume and fashion from the 1930s to the end of World War II

The most characteristic North American fashion trend from the 1930s to 1945 was attention at the shoulder, with butterfly sleeves and banjo sleeves, and exaggerated shoulder pads for both men and women by the 1940s. The period also saw the first widespread use of man-made fibers, especially rayon for dresses and viscose for linings and lingerie, and synthetic nylon stockings. The zipper became widely used. These essentially U.S. developments were echoed, in varying degrees, in Britain and Europe. Suntans became fashionable in the early 1930s, along with travel to the resorts along the Mediterranean, in the Bahamas, and on the east coast of Florida where one can acquire a tan, leading to new categories of clothes: white dinner jackets for men and beach pajamas, halter tops, and bare midriffs for women.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Utility furniture</span>

Utility furniture was furniture produced in the United Kingdom during and directly after World War II. The furniture was produced under a government scheme which was designed to cope with raw material shortages and rationing of their usage. Introduced in 1942, the Utility Furniture Scheme continued into post-war austerity and lasted until 1952.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Identification of inmates in Nazi concentration camps</span> Prisoners camp identification numbers, cloth emblems, and armbands

Identification of inmates in Nazi concentration camps was performed mostly with identification numbers marked on clothing, or later, tattooed on the skin. More specialized identification in Nazi concentration camps was done with badges on clothing and armbands.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Standard Ten</span> Motor vehicle

The Standard Ten was a model name given to several small cars produced by the British Standard Motor Company between 1906 and 1961. The name was a reference to the car's fiscal horsepower or tax horsepower, a function of the surface area of the pistons. This system quickly became obsolete as an estimate of the power produced by the engine, but it continued to be relevant as a way to classify cars for tax purposes. Like other manufacturers, Standard continued to use the name to define the approximate size of their 'Ten' model long after the origins of the name had, in Britain, become inapplicable.

Historically, the Chinese economy was characterized by widespread poverty, extreme income inequalities, and endemic insecurity of livelihood. Improvements since then saw the average national life expectancy rise from around forty-four years in 1949 to sixty-eight years in 1985, while the Chinese population estimated to be living in absolute poverty fell from between 200 and 590 million in 1978 to 70 million in 2017. Before the 19th century, China was one of the leading global powers.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Utility clothing</span> World War II clothing rationing in the UK

The Utility Clothing Scheme was a programme introduced in the United Kingdom during the Second World War. In response to the shortage of clothing materials and labour due to wartime austerity, the Government's Board of Trade put the Utility Clothing Scheme in place in order to standardise the production, sale, and purchase of clothing in wartime. The Scheme embodied a variety of measures to ensure the availability of fabric, clothing, and shoes, which were proposed to ensure availability, no matter of the consumer’s socioeconomic circumstances.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rationing in the United States</span>

Rationing is the controlled distribution of scarce resources, goods, or services, or an artificial restriction of demand. Rationing controls the size of the ration, which is one person's allotted portion of the resources being distributed on a particular day or at a particular time.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Demob suit</span> Civilian clothes for a man upon demobilised after WWII

A demob suit was a suit of civilian clothes given to a man on his demobilisation from the British armed forces at the end of the Second World War. Although the suits were of good quality, the need to clothe millions of demobilising servicemen led to supply problems that caused some men to receive suits that were not of the correct size. As a result, the demob suit became a common subject in British comedy in the post-war years.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Feed sack dress</span> Womens dress made from cotton sacks

Feed sack dresses, flour sack dresses, or feedsack dresses were a common article of clothing in rural US and Canadian communities from the late 19th century through the mid 20th century. They were made at home, usually by women, using the cotton sacks in which flour, sugar, animal feed, seeds, and other commodities were packaged, shipped, and sold. They became an iconic part of rural life from the 1920s through the Great Depression, World War II, and post-World War II years.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Civilian life under the German occupation of the Channel Islands</span>

During the five-year German occupation of the Channel Islands civilian life became much more difficult. During that time, the Channel Islanders had to live under and obey the laws of Nazi Germany and work with their occupiers in order to survive and reduce the impact of occupation. Given no guidance on how to behave by the British government, there were individuals who got close to the enemy and others who undertook resistance activities.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Make-Do and Mend</span> UK government campaign in World War II

Make-Do and Mend was one of several campaigns introduced by the British Government to reduce clothing consumption and save resources during the Second World War. Offering practical guidance on caring for, altering, and mending clothes, instructional pamphlets were produced. In collaboration with voluntary groups, the scheme also offered classes in fibrecraft techniques, such as dressmaking.

References

  1. "A Point of View: Dazzling in an age of austerity". BBC. 2011-12-31.
  2. "How Clothes Rationing Affected Fashion In The Second World War". Imperial War Museums. Retrieved 2023-06-30.
  3. "Utility Coat and Hat". V&A Museum of Childhood. Archived from the original on 2012-01-19. Retrieved 2012-01-01.