Books have something call an "index" and a "table of contents." You don\'t have to read a whole book for a nugget.
You can search online public access catalogs for free on the internet. Might as well start with the LOC:
http://catalog.loc.gov/ Start building a bibliography of books that might contain what you\'re looking for. There are many books specifically on WWII defense contractors. Search OPACs for your local libraries to find out who holds the books. When you find a book, check the author\'s bibliography for more ideas to expand your own list.
I sort of doubt that you want to look at historic newspapers, unless you are a history major. Those probably aren\'t good sources anyway.
Libraries provide access to databases of journal articles that are not available free on the Internet. Sometimes the full text articles are also available electronically from the same library. If not, you can figure out which libraries hold the journals, and take a trip over there.
Research is fun unless you\'re lazy.