History
From the ArchivesYanks in Berlin lead normal lives despite blockade
Stars and Stripes
May 9, 2025
An American gets his montly ration of five gallons at the one-service station in Berlin still serving privately-owned vehicles due to the Berlin Blockade. (Gerald Waller/Stars and Stripes)
This article first appeared in the Stars and Stripes Europe edition, Sep. 25, 1948. It is republished unedited in its original form.
Life in Berlin for Americans these days is still fairly normal despite the blockade. Commissaries continue to be well-stocked. However, gasoline is rationed and many an American has taken to a bicycle, like the GI at left. At right, an American gets his monthly ration of five gallons at one service station still serving privately-owned autos. Because of the gas shortage, many dependents, like the one in the lower left photo, take advantage of the truck and bus services to deliver groceries to their homes. Center photo shows a U.S. dependent filling her grocery basket from the still-full shelves of the Berlin commissary. The meat department of the commissary still offers the same variety as it did before the blockade. With the air lift setting new tonnage records, the dependents are assured of continued well-stocked food shelves. In addition, Gen. Lucius D. Clay, EUCOM commander, has promised a bigger and better air lift and is not discouraged by the possibility of winter weather interfering with the operation.
An unidentified American servicemember puts some items in the saddlebag on the back of his bicycle. Many Americans living in Berlin have taken to the bike as gas rations limit automobile use. (Gerald Waller/Stars and Stripes)
An unidentified American servicemember puts some items in the saddlebag on the back of his bicycle. Many Americans living in Berlin have taken to the bike as gas rations limit automobile use. (Gerald Waller/Stars and Stripes)
An unidentified American servicemember makes his way through Berlin on his bicycle. Many Americans living in Berlin have taken to the bike as gas rations limit automobile use. (Gerald Waller/Stars and Stripes)
A truck delivers groceries to American dependents living in Berlin during the Berlin Blockade. (Gerald Waller/Stars and Stripes)
One of the gasoline pumps at the one-service station in Berlin still serving privately-owned vehicles. (Gerald Waller/Stars and Stripes)
An unidentified American woman has filled her shopping cart from the still-full shelves of the Berlin commissary. The Berlin Airlift - in answer to the so-called Berlin Blockade instituted by Soviet leader Joseph Stalin - makes sure Americans living in West Berlin can get their groceries. (Gerald Waller/Stars and Stripes)
Three months in, the meat department at the Berlin commissary in West Berlin's American Sector still offers the same variety as it did before the Berlin Blockade. (Gerald Waller/Stars and Stripes)
Three months in, the meat department at the Berlin commissary in West Berlin’s American Sector still offers the same variety as it did before the Berlin Blockade, Berlin, West Germany, Sep. 21, 1948. (Gerald Waller/Stars and Stripes)