by
Erin Doane, curator
During
the Second World War, Americans feared the threat of aerial attacks. While it
was technically possible for the German or Japanese militaries to launch
strategic bombing attacks on major cities on the east and west coasts of the United
States it was unlikely to happen. It was even more unlikely that small cities
like Elmira would be targeted. That did not make the fear go away, though. It
was logical to think that this area could be targeted because of all the
factories producing materials for the war effort. Many cities and towns across
the country were in the same situation. As a way to ease the minds of its
citizens, the U.S. government created the Office of Civilian Defense in May
1941. The Air Raid Warden Service was part of that.
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Air raid warden
helmets were painted white so that they
could be
identified more easily during a blackout.
|
Civilian
Defense broke cities and towns into sectors, each containing the homes of about
500 people. Each sector was controlled by an air raid warden’s post that was
staffed by a senior warden and three or more assistant wardens. Each post had
to have 3 to 6 wardens. From 4 to 15 posts were grouped under a precinct warden
who reported to the chief warden. Air raid wardens were members of the
community who volunteered for service. They were trained and issued a handbook that
served as a reference manual and explained their duties. It contained
information on the chain of command, how to equip the warden’s post, how to
write reports, and how to respond to attacks using magnesium bombs and war
gases.
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Handbook
for Air Raid Wardens, 1943 |
An
air raid warden’s primary responsibility was “to see that everything possible
is done to protect and safeguard those homes and citizens [in their sector]
from the new hazards created by attack from the air or by enemies from within our
gates,” according to the handbook. To that end, they were trained in first aid,
methods of combating incendiary bombs, and protection against gas. They had to
have detailed knowledge of their sector’s streets and buildings as well as of
the people who lived there. It was important to know if there were firefighters,
police officers, or doctors living in the sector. It was also important to know
where the elderly or disabled lived as they would need more help in the case of
an emergency.
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Air raid warden whistle, 1940s
“The whistle is
furnished you to use in drawing attention to your
presence in an
emergency, not to sound a general warning. Do not
run about
blowing it to supplement the siren warning.”
- 1943 Handbook
for Air Raid Wardens
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Air
Raid Wardens were also responsible for overseeing air raid and blackout drills.
Blackouts were ordered only on the authority of the War Department and everyone
needed to be ready and know what they had to do when that happened. On January
4, 1942 a county-wide blackout drill was held. The local newspapers advertised
the drill in the days leading up to it.
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Elmira
Star-Gazette, January 3, 1942 |
Horseheads
used its fire siren to announce the blackout while Elmira Heights used its
factory whistles. Upon hearing the signal, people were asked to stay where they
were. If they were in their cars they were to stop and find shelter in the
nearest building. People were also asked to make sure that no light could be
seen outside their homes, offices, or factories. Any light that was visible
from above was a target for airplanes on a bombing run. Street lights were
turned off and all traffic lights, except the one on Lake and Church Streets
which had a special shade, were turned off as well. Factories only blinked
their outside floodlights to show that they could blackout if necessary. They
were ordered by the federal government not to interrupt defense production for
the drill. WENY was also ordered to keep its flashing beacon lit on it 425-foot
transmitter tower in Southport so that airplanes would not be thrown off course
during the drill.
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Elmira
Star-Gazette, January 3, 1942 |
I’m
sure it comforted people to know that there was a corps of well-trained, local air
raid wardens ready and able to respond in case of an actual enemy attack.