Donor blood processing. Medical worker handling blood donor transfusion bottles. This processing is taking place in October 1942, during World War II, at Baxter Laboratories, Glenview, Illinois, USA. US healthcare company Baxter Laboratories, founded in 1931, introduced ground-breaking technology in 1939 that allowed blood to be stored for up to 21 days. This made blood banks practical for the first time, and the company and its products played a key role in blood donor and transfusion facilities for the US military in World War II. Photographed by Howard R. Hollem for the US Office of War Information.