The attack on Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941 brought the U.S. into WWII. Over the coming months the federal Office of Price Administration implemented rationing of many commodities. Soon, vacant lots and city rooftops were converted into Victory Gardens. During the war ridership on the bustling city’s subways and elevated trains reached an all-time high.

New York City became the principal wartime port of embarkation for troops, and a center of defense-industry production. Ellis Island, in New York Harbor, which for decades had been the primary gateway for immigration to the U.S., was largely given over to Coast Guard training purposes for the duration of the war.
Defenses were bolstered, arsenals around the city were fortified, and the entire waterfront was militarized. Warships were constructed at the Brooklyn Navy Yard. Troops were assembled at many bases in the City, including the Army Signal Corps Photography Center in Queens where Staff Sgt. Arthur Rothstein trained combat photographers.