Digging Up the Past

Caterpillar During World War II

TIMELINE

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Sept 1, 1939          WWII begins in Europe with invasion of Poland

Dec 7, 1941           Pearl Harbor is attacked – U.S. declares war on Dec. 8th

1942                       Caterpillar starts producing air-cooled radial diesel engines to power
                               U.S. M4 tanks

1942 (Spring)         Cat’s Special Products Division, starts producing tank transmissions,
                               final drives, shells, bomb fuses, howitzer carriages, fuel injection
                               equipment, & hi-speed armored versions of track-type tractors

July 1942               Caterpillar war machines are painted Army olive drab instead of Cat’s
                               standard “Hi-Way Yellow”

1943 (late)             Caterpillar asked to concentrate production on standard machines,
                               especially D7s, of which they build thousands for the war effort

Late 1944               Cat announces plans to manufacture their own line of attachments,
                               wagons, scrapers, bulldozer blades, rippers - previously built by
                               a group of companies known as Allied Equipment Manufacturers 

Sept 2, 1945          WWII formally ends

Caterpillar factories produced tanks and artillery
shells during WWII years

“If forced to choose

between tanks and

bulldozers, I’d take

the road-building

equipment every time.”

- General George S. Patton