CITIZENS • DEFENSE • CORPS

CINCINNATI • METROPOLITAN • AREA

LEGEND

CINCINNATI METROPOLITAN AREACitizens Defense Corps

AREA COORDINATOR AND STAFF

AREA CONTROL CENTERDISTRICT WARNING CENTER

Hamilton County, Ohio

ZONE I. ZONE II. ZONE IV.

Kenton County, Kentucky Campbell County, Kentucky

ZONE V. ZONE VI.

ZONE CONTROL CENTER ZONE CONTROL CENTER

AmbeileyAnderson

ColumbiaDeei Park

Indian Hill

Madeira

Miiford

Montgomery

North Union

Rossmoyne

ZONE CONTROL CENTER

Arlington

Glendale

Green Hills

Lockland

Ml. Healthy

New Burlington

Notlh College Hill

Reading

Shaionville

Woodlawn

Wyoming

Total - 11

: COORDINATOR

ZONE CONTROL CENTER

AddystonBridgetown

CheviotCloves

Covedale-Wesl

Crosby Twp.DelhiDenI

ElixabelhlownGroesbeckHarrisonHooven

Mack

ZONE CONTROL CENTER

Elmwood Place

NorwoodSt. Bernard

ZONE COORDINATOR AND S

ZONE CONTROL CENTER

Crescent SpringsLudlow

Fort WrightLookout HeightsPark HillsSouth Hills

E. Ft. MitchellFt. MitchellLakeside ParkS. Ft. Mitchell

District 5 —Creslview HillsEdgewoodElsmereErlanger

District 6 -De CouiceyForrest HillsLalonia LakesPye HillWinston HillWinston Park

District 7 -IndependenceNicholsonRichardsonSanfordtown

District 9 -

(Boone County]

ZONE COORDINATOR AND STAFF

ZONE CONTROL CENTER

Alexandria

BellevueDayton

Ft. Thomas

Highland HeightsNewport

Silver Grove

TOTAL REPORT CENTERS:

Total — OhioTotal — Kentucky

'arious Citizens Defense Corps Report Cenle

Winter 1991

The War That Never Came:Civilian Defense inCincinnati, OhioDuring World War II

The War That Never Came

Robert Earnest Miller

During World War II the Office of CivilianDefense (OCD), a federal agency, encouraged more than tenmillion Americans to volunteer their time and effort for alltypes of defense-related activities that provided psychologicaland material benefits for the home front. The agency's toppriority was civilian protection. By the summer of 1941, airraid precautions modeled after Great Britain's during the blitzhad been developed in the United States. Treated solemnlyby many, especially in the aftermath of Pearl Harbor, civilianprotection was seen as America's last line of defense.1

By the summer of 1942, however, the Alliedmilitary situation had improved dramatically. The threat offurther enemy air raids diminished and the OCD restructuredits programs. It gradually phased out civilian protection plansand placed new emphasis on civilian war services, non-

protective programs in "emergency" child care, nutrition andconsumer information, recreation, and health. Thesevolunteer activities were designed to do three things: giveparticipants a stake in the war effort; encourage wartime unity;and improve and uplift the community. The Office of CivilianDefense also encouraged state and local authorities tocoordinate morale-building events such as scrap drives andwar bond rallies until June 30, 1945, when President HarryS. Truman disbanded the agency.2

Precedents for organized federal civil defensereach back to the months preceding American entry intoWorld War I. The Council of National Defense, which hadbeen created by statute on August 29,1916, encouraged statesto form defense councils to help insure civilian compliancewith the federal government's preparedness measures. At agathering of state governors in 1917, Secretary of War NewtonBaker announced:

Under modern conditions, the whole nation is at

To coordinate civilian protec-tion activities in the GreaterCincinnati area, Dana T. Mer-rill, regional coordinator,divided the metropolitanregion into seven zones.(Map, CHS Manuscript Collec-tion #516)

Robert Earnest Miller receivedhis Ph.D. in American historyfrom the University of Cincin-nati and served as a researchhistorian for the Society'sexhibit, "Cincinnati Goes toWar: A Community Respondsto World War II."

Created in August 1916, theCouncil of National Defenseencouraged states to formdefense councils during WorldWar I. A local council directednumerous activities on theCincinnati home front. (CHSPhotograph Collection)

1

• * *

war . . . as much in the home and in the factory and on the farm-as it is on the fighting front.3

In Ohio, a state defense council, formed onApril 11, 1917, directed a variety of activities on the homefront. In conjunction with Ohio State University's agriculturecollege, the defense council assisted in the increase of foodproduction. It also coordinated a speaker's bureau thatwhipped up patriotic support for the war. By 1918 similardefense councils existed in several states.4

During the postwar reconversion process,civilian defense activities were disbanded. Yet, as early as 1936,long before the United States entered into World War II,officials in the War Department began to revive and modifycivilian defense plans. Some military experts worried thattechnological improvements might someday enable Germanplanes to launch air raids on industrial and metropolitancenters in the United States. In the fall of 1940, when theGermans dropped incendiary bombs on British cities, manyAmericans wondered if their cities were just as vulnerable toenemy attack.5

President Franklin D. Roosevelt responded to

those fears when he created the Office of Civilian Defense byExecutive Order 8757 on May 21,1941. The OCD was dividedinto two main divisions. The Board for Civilian Protection,headed by OCD director and New York City Mayor FiorelloH. LaGuardia formulated "civil defense programs... designedto afford adequate protection of life and property in the eventof emergency." The Volunteer Participation Committee,which was led by Eleanor Roosevelt, promoted non-protectiveactivities "designed to sustain the national morale and toprovide opportunities for constructive civilian participation in

the defense program " Despite the broad mandate outlinedin Executive Order 8757, LaGuardia focused exclusively ondeveloping auxiliary fire and police forces and emergencymedical services.6

The OCD was strictly an informational andadvisory agency. Civilian defense policies were formulated inWashington by a small staff of civilian and military officialsand implemented by state and local defense councils. In July1941, nearly every state and more than 1,000 cities had formeddefense councils. LaGuardia created nine regional OCDoffices to act as conduits between Washington and this

In World War I local civilianorganizations, such as theThimble Fund Committee,helped the war effort througha variety of activities: collec-ting scrap metal, making androlling bandages, and holding

clothing drives. (CHSPhotograph Collection)

Winter 1991 The War That Never Came

growing network of state and local defense councils. The FifthRegional Office in Cleveland, for example, monitored andcoordinated civil defense activities in Ohio, Michigan,Indiana, Kentucky, and West Virginia. In Ohio, the statelegislature had formed the Ohio State Council of Defense onAugust 20, 1941. Governor John W. Bricker became itshonorary chairman, but the day to day administrative dutiesfell upon executive director Courtney Burton, a mining andshipping magnate from Cleveland.7

Civil defense began to take organizationalshape even earlier in Cincinnati. City council member CharlesP. Taft wired Governor Bricker in April 1941, that he andMayor James G. Stewart had asked Philip O. Geier, a localindustrialist and president of the Chamber of Commerce, toserve as chairman of Cincinnati's defense council.8 InCincinnati, and in several other major cities, a pattern ofcorporate leadership in local defense councils arose. Thefederal government had forged strong links with businessleaders, especially where defense plants existed. Since factoriesrepresented obvious potential targets for enemy bombers,corporate leaders were encouraged to assist municipal officialswith civilian defense planning.9

In May 1941, as he created the OCD, PresidentRoosevelt urged "loyal" state and municipal officials tocooperate with the new agency to assure "our internal securityagainst foreign-directed subversion and to put everycommunity in order for maximum productive effort . . .minimum waste and unnecessary friction."10

Cincinnati defense officials mapped out acomprehensive civilian defense program, including air raidprecautions, based on the British experience. Even thoughCincinnati—which was about 500 miles away from theAtlantic seaboard—was presumably less vulnerable to enemyattack, civilian protection plans were formulated. Civiliandefense planners asserted: "the citizens of every communityhave a right to assume that their representative officials haveconsidered every possible provision for their protection andsafety against sabotage or any act of war."11

By fall 1941, every state and more than 6,000cities had formed defense councils; sometimes evenneighborhoods formed local defense councils. Women'sorganizations cooperated with local Red Cross officials tooffer "home defense" courses in filing, shorthand, and typingas well as sewing, knitting, and home nursing. During a twoday "mass registration" for civilian defense jobs more than2,500 area residents volunteered for semi-military fields of firefighting, communications, first aid, and similar activities,More often than not male recruits were funneled into thecivilian protection fields. By this time, local defense leadersrecognized the need for a county-wide agency that couldcoordinate defense activities of Hamilton County's thirtythree municipalities (including Cincinnati) and twelvetownships.12

On November 15, 1941, the state officiallycertified the Hamilton County National Defense Council(HCNDC) as part of Ohio's defense program. TheHCNDC's certification coincided with "Civilian ProtectionDay," capping off a week long observation of "CivilianDefense Week," sponsored by federal and state defenseauthorities.13 But before the HCNDC could call its firstmeeting, the nation was jolted by the news of Japan's attackon Pearl Harbor on December 7,1941. OCD head LaGuardiarecalled:

that raid demonstrated. . . that we live a new kindof war. The customs and rules of civilized belligerents are ignored,and civilian populations no longer enjoy any immunitywhatsoever.1*

The nation's entry into the war unleashed a tidalwave of patriotism and community voluntarism. OhioGovernor Bricker issued a call for wartime unity andencouraged everyone to participate in the war effort withoutthought of "race, creed, political conviction, or personalprofit." In Cincinnati, for the thousands of residents who wereunable to enlist in the armed forces, civilian defenserepresented an alternative means of supporting the war.

Not surprisingly, community organizations

Women's organizationscooperated with local RedCross officials to offer avariety of "home defense"courses. (CHS PhotographCollection)

and individuals who had previously demonstrated littleinterest in organized civil defense activities offered theirservices to the HCNDC. The number of civil defensevolunteers soared from approximately 4,000 in December 1941to more than 62,000 in June 1942.15

Just after Pearl Harbor, the OCD issued overfifty-seven million copies of "What To Do In An Air Raid,"a tersely worded, eight page pamphlet that warned manyAmericans about the dangers of total war. The pamphleturged people to learn the appropriate air raid signals to lessenconfusion during blackouts and air raid drills. In general aseries of short blasts or rising and falling tones from a sirenor whistle signaled a warning. During these tests everyoneexcept air raid wardens and other authorized personnel hadto take cover (and extinguish lights during blackouts) untilthe all-clear signal—a steady tone for two minutes—could beheard. Most cities lacked sirens that were powerful enoughto be heard and were forced to improvise. For example, localdefense councils in Hamilton County used church bells andfactory whistles.16

During December 1941 the HCNDC naturallylooked to state defense officials in Columbus, Ohio, forleadership. Overwhelmed by the rush of events, state defenseofficials issued some dubious advice. "Under [air] raidconditions," the Ohio State Council of Defense [OSCD]warned, "keep a bathtub and buckets full of water for the firedepartment in case water mains are broken." The OSCDadded: "if bombs start to fall near you, lie down. The safestplace is under a good stout table."17

Enemy bombers never threatened the safety ofCincinnati—or any other American city—but during the earlyweeks of the war some local defense heads briefly gave in towartime hysteria. Few cities, including Cincinnati, wereprepared to deal with the sudden influx of volunteers whowere eager to do their part for the war effort. Civilian defensevolunteers were assigned to guard bridges, defense plants, andpublic utilities against the threat of sabotage. The HCNDCalso encouraged civilian pilots to organize for the purpose ofguarding pipelines, railroads, and civilian transportation. CityManager Clarence O. Sherrill, Cincinnati's civilian defensecoordinator, even entertained the notion of transforming theabandoned underground transit tunnel in Cincinnati into abomb shelter.18

State and county defense officials agreed thata metropolitan area, like greater Cincinnati, needed "onerecognized coordinating body" to administer vital disasterand relief services. Upon Sherrill's recommendation, theHCNDC hired retired Brigadier General Dana T. Merrill to

Queen City Heritage

coordinate civilian protection activities in Greater Cincinnati,including Hamilton County, as well as Campbell and Kentoncounties in northern Kentucky. A veteran of two wars, Merrillwas an experienced administrator. During the mid-1930's, hehad served as the commandant at Fort Thomas, in northernKentucky, where he was living in retirement in 1942.19

Merrill encouraged local defense councils toadopt a uniform blackout ordinance as well as "mutual aidagreements that would allow communities to share theirprotective equipment in the event of an emergency."20 Merrillstrengthened his ties with local defense leaders by dividing themetropolitan region into seven zones, five in HamiltonCounty, and two in northern Kentucky. In Hamilton County,Cincinnati comprised one zone, while the outlying suburbancommunities of Cheviot, Wyoming, and Mariemont made upthree more. Two other municipalities, St. Bernard andNorwood, made up the final zone. In the event of anemergency, Merrill hoped to be able to transmit news quicklythrough the zone coordinators to the local defense councils.

V: *"• • . . • . . - • •

flMHH

B

JOHN W.

BRISKER

Republican Governor John W.Bricker served as honorarychairman of the Ohio StateCouncil on Defense. (CHSPhotograph Collection,portraits)

Winter 1991 The War That Never Came

The HCNDC conducted several registrationdrives in neighborhoods and ran ads in Cincinnati newspapersfor civilian defense work.21 The OCD recommended thatcommunities enlist sixty-three volunteers per 1,000 civilians(or a little more than six per cent of the total population) toprovide adequate personnel for air raid precautions. Based onthat ratio, Hamilton County's population of about 622,000would have required about 39,000 air raid wardens.22

Clearly, in retrospect, the threat of an enemyair raid in Cincinnati, seems remote and unrealistic. Not allCincinnatians were convinced that elaborate air raidprecautions were necessary. For example, Bleeker Marquette,the executive secretary for the Better Housing League, arguedthat social and economic problems should take precedenceover civilian defense since "there is little danger of air raidsin Cincinnati " City Manager Sherrill agreed, noting thatCincinnati's chances of being bombed by the enemy were "onein a million." However, in February 1942, a London firemanvisiting Cincinnati said that persons who did not believe thatCincinnati could be bombed should be called "FifthColumnists."23

Federal authorities helped to insure the public'ssupport for civilian defense measures by exaggerating thedanger of further enemy attacks. In January 1942, OCD HeadFiorello LaGuardia—well known for his hyperbolictendencies—warned that "the war will come right to our citiesand residential districts." At a February 1942 press conference,President Roosevelt told the public to take the threat of enemyinvasion seriously. The Germans, FDR remarked, "can comein and shell New York tomorrow night . . . ." It probablyalarmed Cincinnatians more when the President said thatDetroit—an inland city like Cincinnati—could also bebombed "under certain conditions."24

A local radio station (WLW) aired a programsponsored by the county defense council that reinforced thePresident's warning. The radio announcer instructed listeners:

Do you have a world map there handy, . . ? Spread

it out on the floor in front of you. See—there's Lake Erie. . . there's

Detroit at the end of it. There's Ohio, and down at the southwest

corner, Cincinnati and Hamilton County. Distances aren't very

great when you look at it on a world map . . . . They aren't very

great, either, as the modern bomber flies.

The announcer referred to Cincinnati as themachine tool capital which was vital to the nation's productivecapability, adding that "the loss of one single great source ofsupply—Cincinnati Milling Machine, LeBlond, Wright, adozen others—would be a knock-out blow more disastrousthan Pearl Harbor . . . and the enemy knows it!"25

Here's Your Chance To Serve!AIR RAID WARDEN'S VOLUNTEER REGISTRATION FORM

Col. C O . Bhernll, Commander,Citizens' Defense Corps,102 Union Central Annex,Cincinnati, Ohio.

I offer my services as AIR RAID WARDEN t i tap Citizens- DefenseBettor In which my home Is located.

I am able-bodied, between 40 and 65 years old. possess normal sightand hearing, -and am willing to take the training required. If accepted,I agree to aerve if and when an emergency should develop. Pledgingmy devotion, to my country, the Utited States of America, I agree toplace myself under orders—to pertorm the tasks assigned me—and toserve «A long Ju- my services are needed.

(Mr. )Name (Mn.).

(Miss;

Address.

Telephone.

DO NOT (end Ln tbli form if Ton hiva Tolnntecred u » Fire

FIRE WATCHER'S VOLUNTEER REGISTRATION FORMCoL C. O. SherrTll, Commander,Citizens' Defense Corps,!lO2 Union Central Annex,Cincinnati, Ohio.

Possessing the qualifications stipulated, I effer my services asFIRE WATCHER in the Citizens' Defense Sector ln which my home Islocated. If accepted, I agree to serve when and if an emergencyjshould arise.

Pledging my devotion to my country, the United States of America,J agree to place myself under orders—to perform the tasks assigned me—juid to serve as Jorig as my. services are needed.

(Mr. )iName (Mrs.).

(Mlsi)

Addreu.

Telephone-

NOT scad la thU form U yo« hart YolunUsrei »• Va Air E»ld Warden.

The message did not go unnoticed in Cincin-nati. Many if not most public and private organizationsinfluenced by national and local defense activities and by thepress, radio, and newsreels demonstrated their support for airraid precautions. For example, most of Cincinnati's public andprivate schools and universities made important contributionsto the civilian defense effort.

High school teachers practiced air raid drillswith students. The nuns at Saint Ursula Academy, a parochialgirls' school, devised air raid precautions for the school. Theydivided themselves into three groups: "watchers" kept a

The HCNDC ran ads in localnewspapers requesting volun-teers for civilian defense workparticularly air raid wardensand firefighters. (CHS Newspa-per Scrapbook Collection)

Silverton's Sand Bags Ready

»One of the first Hamilton County communities to display

visible evidence of defense preparedness is Silverton, which already

has distributed bags of sand for use in case of attack by in-

cendiary bombs. The sand, packed in old cement sacks, has been

placed at seven street intersections in various parts of the village.

The pile of sand-filled sacks in the above protograph is stackedat the corner of Ohio Avenue and South Berkley Circle. Groupedaround the sacks (left to right) are Police Chief John Ballbach,Councilman William O'Brien and Mayor Harry Mueller. ChiefBallbach said there v?ks enough sand in each sack to control anincendiary bomb. The sacks will be kept covered with waterproofpaper to protect them against rain. Howard Newman, one ofSilverton's volunteer firemen, took this picture.

lookout for falling incendiaries; "sanders" kept full bucketsof sand to douse the bombs; and "runners" stood ready toalert nearby defense officials. The student editor of theWoodward (High School) Bulldog solemnly noted that"Cincinnati would be a favorite target for enemy planesbecause of its large production of machine tools so vital tothe defense program." He added that "this news should addan incentive to pupils of the school when performing theirair raid drills . . . ." Teachers also directed extracurricularactivities towards the war effort. Students cut up old sheetsand rolled them into bandages, participated in salvage drives,and purchased war stamps and bonds.26 Many schools served

Queen City Heritage

as potential "emergency hospitals" and "casualty stations,"storing bandages and medical supplies. In addition, theHCNDC secured space in twenty-six public and parochialschools in Cincinnati to train volunteers as air raid wardensand fire watchers.27

Norman P. Auburn, Dean of the University ofCincinnati's Evening College, agreed to head the civiliandefense training program. For five weeks, on Tuesday andThursday evenings, trainees attended classes dealing with:organizational principles of civil defense, fire and gas defense,blackout techniques, and first aid instruction. Federal andstate documentary and training films often supplementedlecture formats. Some of the films were produced by GreatBritain's Ministry of Information, and depicted "civil defence"procedures during the blitz. The HCNDC also showed avariety of technically-oriented War Department training films,ranging from "Handling Incendiaries" to the "TheAdjustment of the Gas Mask."28

Cincinnati's universities made other contribu-tions to the war effort. Dr. Leon Goldman, Assistant Professorof Dermatology at the University of Cincinnati's College ofMedicine, directed a course for physicians from several states,explaining the potential effects of chemical warfare on civilianpopulations. Xavier University also assisted the HCNDC byhosting "commencement" ceremonies for over 6,000 air raidwardens in May 1942.29

Other sectors of the community prepared forwar. For example, the Cincinnati Zoo devised a speciallighting and communication system to enable its personnelto react quickly in the event of a blackout. Sandbags wereplaced strategically to protect the animals (and people). Thezoo superintendent also announced that in the event of anemergency, "the Zoo force is prepared to destroy animals thatwould be a menace if they should get loose."30

These preparations seemed justified when theOCD designated Cincinnati as a "target area" in March 1942.Based on the vulnerability of area industries, its contributionto national defense, and the likelihood of attack, Cincinnatiwas one of thirty-three "strategic cities." As a result, the OCDgave Cincinnati priority status for future allocations of firefighting equipment, air raid sirens, and medical supplies—enough to equip forty-six "casualty stations "31

Even though Cincinnati was a "target area," theOCD provided only limited material support, mostly in theform of literature, films, and some protective equipment, Butthe ultimate responsibility for training volunteers andimplementing civilian defense policies fell upon state and localofficials. Ideally, the OCD envisioned each community

Hamilton County communi-ties, such as Silverton, distri-buted sand bags to fightincendiary bombs. (CHS New-spaper Scrapbook Collection)

IF AIR RAIDS COME

YOU WILL BE WARNED

When enemy planes are spot-ted moving in your direction,watchers, many miles away willset in motion the machinery ofprotection. You will hear thewarning signal. When danger ispast, the "all clear" will besignaled.

YOUR BIGGEST JOB

There are many things you cando to protect your family if anair raid comes. Nothing is soimportant as to keep calm.Make certain every member ofyour family knows the air raidrules.

KNOW YOUR

AIR RAID WARDENSYou should know by sight andby name the Air Raid Wardensin your block at home, and inthe building where you work.Every member of your familyshould be prepared to carryout your warden's instructions.He has been trained to helpyou protect your family.

BLACKOUTS

Select the safest place in yourhouse for general air raid andblackout purposes. Be preparedto blanket the windows orcover the glass with opaqueprotective material. Be sure

— AIR RAID RULES * * *IF YOU ARE AT HOME . . . Get your family together in the

safest room in the house, and stay there. Turn off your gas stove but not

the pilot Sight. Turn out the lights in rooms not blacked out. Stay away

from windows. Don't go outdoors and don't use your telephone.

• • •

IF YOU ARE ON THE STREET . . . Obey the orders of theAir Raid Wardens. Go home if you can walk there in a few minutes. Other-

wise, get off the street and into the best shelter you can find. Get into

or close to a large building. Avoid large windows, particularly show, win-

dows. Don't join crowd. If it is dark, don't light matches and don't smoke.

• • •

IF YOU ARE AT SCHOOL . . . Do exactly what your teacher

tells you to do.

• * *

IF Y O U ARE IN A STREET CAR OR B U S . . . The oper-

ator will try to stop near a good shelter; go into it and stay there until

the all clear sounds.

• • •

IF YOU ARE IN AN AUTOMOBILE . . . Drive to curb andpark immediately. Shut off lights and ignition and seek shelter.

• •* *

IF YOU ARE IN A CHURCH, THEATER OR OTHERPUBLIC GATHERING . . . Stay seated, remain calm, obey orders.

Panic can be as dangerous as bombs.

• • •

IF YOU ARE NOT NEAR SHELTER AND HEAR BOMBSFALL ING . . . Get off the street and lie face down on the ground,

preferably in a low spot.

that no lights can be seen fromthe outside. Keep your black-out material ready for instantuse.

THINGS TO CHECK:

Have you removed inflammablematerial from your attic?Have you followed your war-dens* advice about equipmentfor fire protection?Have you selected the refugeroom for your family?Are blankets available forfirst aid?Do you have simple first aidsupplies on hand?Has a member of your familyhad first aid training?

IN GENERALUse your Common Sense. KeepCalm. Locate a safe placewherever your daily routinetakes you. Remember thatdirect hits are few. The greatestdanger is from shattered glass,flying debris and fire.

Y O U R A J R R A I D

W A R D E N I S

KEEP CALM

Panic hurts more

people than

bombs.

DONTmake telephone colls

during a raid. All lines

are needed for v i tal

messages.

FOLLOW

these rules of conduct

for yourself and family.

They are based on

experience.

DON'Tshut off main gas sup.

ply unless house is

damaged or gassupply fails.

FOLLOW

your warden's advice

for protection

against fire.

CONTROLLING INCENDIARY BOMBSIf an incendiary bomb comes through your roof, if is your fob to control it.Prompt action on your port will control the fire. Check carefully for smoldering first.

CONSULT YOUR AIR RAID WARDEN for detailed adviceCOOPERATE WITH TOUR AIR «AID WARDEN.

Bring your fire fighting equipment to the scene at once.Shoot a jet of water directly at the bomb without delay, to put it out of actionquickly.

any fires that might have been started.Be absolutely sure the fire is out before you leave the scene.Use a coarse spray only where scattering of metal must be avoided.Use land only if a bomb falls where it is not likely to start s fire, or ifwater is not available.

CINCINNATI METROPOLITAJsMtEOIONCTIZSNS DEFENH^etMPS V

T. Merrill, Brig. Gen., U. S. A., Ret.REGIONAL COORDINATOR

Posters placed in schools,churches, and public buildingsinstructed citizens on what todo "if enemy planes andbombs come." (Poster, CHSManuscript Collection #51 6)

10

separately recruiting and training its volunteers. A fullytrained air raid warden, one on each block, would beknowledgeable of his neighbors needs, and could provideinformation about civilian defense. Moreover, in the event ofan enemy attack, he could take charge of the neighborhood,and assist members of the local police and fire departments.Hamilton County's smaller suburban villages, like Wyoming,were better able to adapt OCD programs. However, formetropolitan areas, like Cincinnati, with a large industrialbase and an heterogeneous population, the process ofimplementing OCD plans took much longer.32

All types of men and women engaged indefense activities, but leadership in the county and city civiliandefense program tended to be dominated by middle classwhite males. Morris Edwards, executive vice president of theCincinnati Chamber of Commerce, was named executivedirector of the HCNDC, and local bankers and industrialistsheld many of the key leadership positions on that council.Likewise, many small businessmen and elected officialsdominated the smaller defense councils. Edwards realized thatthe HCNDC needed the support of every community inGreater Cincinnati in order to implement OCD programs.

However, many people, particularly Blacks andwomen, felt that opportunities to participate fully in civiliandefense programs were limited, In theory total war was a great

Queen City Heritage

equalizer—a leveler of distinctions based on class, race, orgender. In actuality long established patterns of discrimina-tion in Cincinnati persisted after Pearl Harbor andundermined a basic premise of civilian defense, that is, topromote national morale and wartime unity.

The county defense council tried to include across section of municipal and county government represen-tatives, as well as persons from business, labor, religious, andcivic organizations. Yet, when the HCNDC first met just afterPearl Harbor, no Black representative had been appointed byEdwards, even though Blacks comprised twelve per cent ofthe city5 s population and eight per cent of the county's.33

The experience of Blacks in Cincinnati duringthe early months of the war illustrated some of the prejudicesthey encountered in other northern industrial cities. In its 1941annual report the Division of Negro Welfare (DNW), thelocal affiliate of the National Urban League, had noted thatCincinnati was "geographically a northern city, [but] itsproximity to the southern boundary exposes it to manytraditions of Negro-white relations of the South."34 Theabsence of Blacks from H C N D C activities, whetheraccidental or intentional, reinforced the DNWs depiction ofCincinnati as a racially divided city. It also contradictedGovernor Bricker's call for wartime unity and racial amity, andhindered Black morale. During the war, the Division of Negro

The Cincinnati zoo devised aspecial lighting and communi-cation system so its personnelcould react quickly in a black-out. (CHS Photograph Collec-tion, Special Collection #156)

Winter 1991 The War That Never Came 11

Welfare focused primarily on improving employment andeducational opportunities, substandard housing and healthcare, and race relations. But some area Black leadersdemonstrated an interest in civil defense preparations, seeingthem as a means of involving the Black community in the wareffort.

William W. B. Conrad, a Cincinnati attorney,complained first to Governor Bricker and then to OCD headFiorello LaGuardia about the HCNDC's failure to appointa Black representative. Conrad contended: "If we are to securenational unity we shall have to adopt different tactics." StanleyRoberts, a National Youth Administration field worker, addedthat "the protection of the Negro communities, their homes,and perhaps their very lives," were at stake.35 Roberts fearedthat long range civilian protection plans would not includeBlack communities.

Other Blacks, who had little personal interestin the civilian defense movement, still resented their exclusionfrom the HCNDC. Cincinnati NAACP president William A.McClain and his law partner, Theodore M. Berry, viewed thewar as an opportunity to elevate Blacks into decision makingroles. Ten days after Pearl Harbor McClain warned theHCNDC that no organization could be "representative of theAmerican people unless it has a Negro member acting in anadvisory capacity and coordinating the activities of theNegroes in the defense of our democracy."36 Likewise, Berryhad written Mayor Stewart six days earlier and urged him toappoint a Black representative to "this important publicbody." Stewart, threw the problem into Morris Edwards' lap,adding that "Mr. Berry is right in this matter."37

While Berry was not chiefly concerned withHCNDC activities, he realized that "civilian defense was part

of a bigger problem . . . Blacks were not being regarded asan essential part of the war effort or given an opportunity toplay their role."38 Both McClain and the CincinnatiIndependent, a local Black weekly, felt that Berry should beappointed to the HCNDC. However, Berry's local andnational commitments to Black organizations, as well as hisprofessional duties as assistant county prosecutor, preventedsuch an appointment.39 Despite Edwards' assurances to dealwith the matter at the "earliest opportunity," an OCD fieldrepresentative reported in late January 1942 that "Cincinnatiauthorities are not including Negroes in the essentialorganization of Civilian Defense and . . . representativecommunity leaders are not being utilized . . . ." Before themonth ended the HCNDC had designated William N.Lovelace, a Hamilton County probation officer as its Blackrepresentative.40

Women were also restricted in their opportu-nities to participate in civilian defense, however, they wereincluded in civilian defense work more than Blacks had been.Women's organizations like the Cincinnati Woman's CityClub, the Republican Women's Club, and the BusinessWomen's Club that had a reputation for community serviceparticipated indirectly in civilian defense activities. Theseorganizations formed ad hoc "defense committees" that werein close contact with county and city defense officials.41

However, few Cincinnati women participateddirectly in civilian protection, according to a University ofCalifornia survey conducted in early 1942. A team of pollstersfrom its Bureau of Public Administration examined civilian

In the event of an attack atrained air raid warden wouldbe in charge of theneighborhood, knowledgeableof his neighbors needs, andable to provide informationabout civilian defense. (CHSPhotograph Collection)

The zoo superintendentannounced that in an emer-gency the zoo was prepared todestroy animals "that wouldbe a menace if they shouldget loose." (CHS PhotographCollection)

12 Queen City Heritage

Certificate of Snstructton

Because Cincinnati wasdesignated as a "target area,"the OCD gave Cincinnati pri-ority status for allocations offire fighting equipment. (CHSPhotograph Collection)

defense organizations in cities with populations greater than10,000. The survey, which included Cincinnati, considered sixdifferent fields of civilian defense services: air raid warden;auxiliary police and firemen; fire watchers; medical corps;rescue squads; and nurses' aides and found that opportunitiesfor women in most of these fields were limited, Mendominated the ranks of the civilian protection army in everyfield except nurses' aides. There were six times as many maleair raid wardens, the most highly visible and most sought afterposition in civilian protection work. Hamilton Countydefense officials suggested that fewer women had become airraid wardens because applicants had to declare their age onregistration forms. While the federal government encouragedwomen to assume a non-traditional role in the defense plants,volunteer civilian defense work seemed to reinforce traditionalsex roles. In Cincinnati and elsewhere women were usuallycast in supporting rather than leading roles in civilian defensework.42

The HCNDC's emphasis on developing airraid training, instead of other non-protective activities, leftmany women only marginally involved in the civilian defenseprogram. Likewise, William Lovelace, the Black representa-tive on the county defense council conceded that practicallyno consideration had been given to Black participation incivilian defense just after Pearl Harbor. Yet, by April 1942,Lovelace felt that Blacks had become more active in countydefense programs. Lovelace noted that over forty Blacks hadbecome instructors of the air raid warden courses. In thetwenty-six schools for air raid wardens Lovelace indicated thatthere was "no semblance of segregation."43

County, municipal, village, and townshipauthorities were responsible for funding civilian defenseschools as well as other measures, yet, local officials werereluctant to allocate funds necessary for the HCNDC tooperate. Governor Bricker alleviated most of the HCNDC'sfinancial woes, when in April 1942, he announced that over

Although the federal govern-ment encouraged women toassume non-traditional rolesin defense plants, civiliandefense reinforced the tradi-tional sex roles for women, forexample, serving as hostesses

at USO centers. (CHSPhotograph Collection)

14 Queen City Heritage

i

$2,000,000 in "excess poor relief would be channeled towardscounty and local defense efforts.44 From July 1942 to June 1943state appropriations for Hamilton County totaled nearly$290,000.45

Ironically, just when the newly trained air raidwardens began to conduct blackout tests in Cincinnati on aregular basis, the OCD shifted its emphasis away from civilianprotection. By the summer of 1942, the Allies' militarysituation had improved dramatically and the threat of enemyair raids diminished.46 Although civilian protection unitsremained intact in Cincinnati, and elsewhere, state and localdefense councils began to focus on non-protective programs.47

A state defense official hinted at the newdirection of Ohio's defense program in June 1942 andchallenged its volunteers to prove that:

Ohio is truly showing her colors in a thousand ways

every hour of every day by her civilian protection and mobilization,

her war production, her salvage collection, her purchase of war bonds

and stamps, conservation of rubber, . . ,by rationing, price control,

and so forth.**

Harold W. Nichols, the chairman ofHCNDC's Waste Materials Conservation Committee,responded to the challenge by coaxing schools and businesses

to donate large amounts of scrap iron that would ostensiblybe converted into vital material for the war effort. For example,an RKO theater donated a steel tower, that weighed over100,000 pounds. Likewise, Woodward High School contri-buted the iron fence that surrounded its campus, "believedto be the heaviest in the city." Nichols' ability to coordinatecounty-wide salvage drives won the praise of OCD FifthRegion Director Dan T. Moore. In August 1942, the statedefense council honored Nichols, who later became statesalvage coordinator for Ohio. Civilian defense volunteers inCincinnati collected more scrap iron—twenty-nine millionpounds—than any other city in the nation. Nichols directedover 7,000 Boy Scouts in a six day house-to-house scrap drive.The proceeds went to the USO to help meet the expenses ofsend-off parties for new recruits at Cincinnati's UnionTerminal.49

While the HCNDC became increasinglypreoccupied with salvage drives, rationing, and other morale-building programs, civilian protection units continued topractice air raid drills. By November 1942, there were three"victory sirens" were placed on Cincinnati rooftops.Cincinnati civilian defense officials attempted to maximize theauthenticity of an air raid drill on November 8. Planes were

Women volunteers partici-pated in child care, nutritionand consumer information,recreation, and health. (CHSPhotograph Collection)

Winter 1991 The War That Never Came IS

The Paramount Theater at thecorner of Gilbert Avenue andMcMillan Street contributed asteel tower, which weighed1,000 pounds, to the wareffort. (CHS PhotographCollection)

16

scheduled to fly over the city and drop "simulated bombs,"small cardboard cylinders with red crepe paper streamers.Each "bomb" contained a message, rolled up inside thecylinder, that described its destructive capability. They werealso numbered so they could easily be reported to defenseofficials. Unfortunately, inclement weather on the day of thedrill grounded air traffic, but the bombs still "fell." They werethrown from automobiles.50

In retrospect, these events appear bothhumorous and unnecessary. Nevertheless, preparations for thewar that never came paid off when a real emergencyconfronted Greater Cincinnati in late 1942. When the OhioRiver surpassed flood stages in Pittsburgh, the American RedCross appealed to state defense authorities for assistance. Ineastern Ohio, civilian defense workers cooperated with theRed Cross in evacuating hundreds of families. Similarly, inHamilton County civilian defense officials and workersmobilized relief forces in the "onerous responsibilities thatfollow in the wake of a flood." Others served as "auxiliarypolicemen [and] acted as guards at shelter points and assistedcity police in patrol duty in flood areas."51 OCD RegionalDirector Moore praised the efforts of Hamilton Countycivilian defense workers, and the Enquirer attributed the well-

Queen City Heritage

organized effort during the flood to the "greater sense of civicresponsibilities that have grown out of civil defense , . . ."52

Apart from this brief moment during the war, local civiliandefense workers had little opportunity to put some of theirtraining to the test.

In a subtler and less dramatic fashion,thousands of civil defense volunteers engaged in a variety of"non-protective" programs in health, recreation, nutrition,child care, and race relations. Women tended to be moreinvolved in these activities that reinforced rather thanchallenged traditional sex roles.53

During the summer of 1943, the HCNDCcoordinated a morale-building program that was targetedspecifically at involving housewives in the war effort. TheHCNDC awarded "V[ictory] Home" window stickers tohome owners who cooperated with air raid wardens, compliedwith government rationing programs, purchased war bonds,and "refused to spread rumors designed to divide our nation."Air raid wardens inspected homes in their communities andwere encouraged to be generous in issuing stickers. Statedefense officials relaxed the criteria and stated that if "thehousewife indicates that her family is doing its best for thewar effort," then she was entitled to a "V Home" sticker.54

'<-:•• -s/.'. r \ -.'• if J .-'.. -:̂ 2S<

Proceeds from scrap driveswent to the USO to help meetthe expenses of send-off par-ties for Cincinnati soldiers andsailors. (CHS PhotographCollection)

Winter 1991

The HCNDC, like every other county councilin Ohio, acted as a clearing house of war-related information.It also mobilized volunteer support for other federal agencies.As a result, civil defense volunteers often assisted Office ofPrice Administration and Selective Service boards inCincinnati.55 Other community agencies and organizationsthat predated the war also took advantage of the extensivenetwork of state and local defense councils to promote theirown interests. For example, shortly after the race riot inDetroit, in the summer of 1943, the National Urban Leagueissued an "anti-riot directive" to the Division of NegroWelfare (and its other affiliates) encouraging it to promotebetter race relations through local religious, business, andfraternal organizations. Significantly, the Urban League alsofelt it could make use of local defense councils. It hoped thatlocal defense officials could serve as a conduit to promotepositive ideas about race relations in white communities.56

Likewise, neighborhood child care centers andday nurseries benefited from the civilian defense programwhen the HCNDC established an Emergency Child CareOffice. By the end of 1943, the HCNDC had helpedcoordinate the activities of twenty-seven nurseries that caredfor 1,067 children. While only a fraction of the area's workingmothers made use of these facilities, the enrollment figureswere "in line with the state and national trend." Most working

parents relied on relatives or friends to look after their childrenor left them unattended.57

The HCNDC continued to promote thepurchase of war bonds, coordinate scrap drives, and itencouraged community organizations, schools, and areaindustries to cultivate "victory gardens" to supplement foodproduction for the home front. Not all gardens successfullyproduced food, but few defense activities were judged solelyby their end result. The fact that the program involvedthousands of men, women, and children in the war effort madeit a success.58

The HCNDC coordinated a variety of activitiesthat offered both psychological and material benefits to thehome front. However, these efforts rarely if ever received thesame amount of attention in the media that civilian protectionattracted. Nevertheless, the efforts of a child care worker withreal children were arguably more important than those of anair raid warden, dealing with "paper" bombs thrown fromautomobiles. Both activities enabled the participants to feelinvolved in the war effort.

Civilian defense preparations before PearlHarbor—based largely on the British experience during theblitz—stressed the need for elaborate air raid precautions inAmerican cities. During the war federal, state, and localdefense officials periodically exaggerated the threat of enemy

Civilian defense volunteersheld clothing drives and par-ticipated in salvage and scrapmetal drives. (CHS Photo-graph Collection, MarshCollection)

18 Queen City Heritage

attacks to combat public complacency and apathy. The air raid

warden became an important symbol that reminded many

Americans that they were still at war.59 When it became clear

that sustained enemy attacks against the North American

continent were no longer a threat, the OCD encouraged state

and local defense officials to participate in non-protective

activities that promoted wartime unity.

On November 1, 1943, War Department

officials recommended the complete cessation of air raid drills.

While they conceded that "token air raid raids are always a

possibility,... the present degree of danger..." was minimal.60

The Ohio state legislature responded to this news by slashing

appropriations for local defense activities to a bare minimum.

By early 1944, the HCNDC was unable to meet its

administrative expenses. In addition, the Cincinnati Chamber

of Commerce withdrew the use of its facilities. The HCNDC

did not officially disband until September 1944, but during

its final months, it existed mainly on paper.61

Over 60,000 residents of Hamilton County

volunteered for some type of civilian defense work, whether

as air raid wardens, child care workers, clericals, bandage

rollers, or salvage collectors. The experience of the volunteers

in Cincinnati reflected the activities of the millions of

Americans who participated in civilian defense during World

War II. These activities were vital to wartime morale and, in

some cases, the community activism behind civilian defense

carried into the postwar years.62

1. Fiorello H. LaGuardia, Report of the Director of the Office of CivilianDefense, February 1942, p.l, in William H. McReynolds Papers, Box 7OCD File, Franklin D. Roosevelt Library (FDRL), Hyde Park, New York.Several general studies of the World War II home front provide usefuloverviews of civil defense activities. See Phillip J. Funiegello, The Challengeto Urban Liberalism: Federal-City Relations during World War II (Knoxville,1978); Lee Kennett, For the Duration: The United States Goes to War—PearlHarbor—1942 (New York, 1985); Richard R, Lingeman, Don't You KnowThere's a War On?: The American Home Front, 1941-1945 (New York, 1976);and Allan M. Winkler, Home Front U.S.A.: America during World War II(Arlington Heights, Illinois, 1986). For a fuller treatment see RobertEarnest Miller, "The War That Never Came: Civilian Defense,Mobilization, and Morale during World War II" (Ph. D. dissertation,University of Cincinnati, 1991).2. Executive Order 9562 provided for the termination of the Office ofCivilian Defense. See Elwyn A. Mauck, Civilian Defense in the United States,1940-1945 (unpublished, 1946), Ch. 16, p. 16, Office of Civilian DefensePapers (OCDP), Record Group 171, Washington National Records Center(WNRC), Suitland, Maryland. For examples of the OCD's civilian warservices see Thomas Devine, memorandum, "Food Fights for Freedom,September 18,1943, OCDP, RG 171, Entry 32 Box 2 and Thomas Devine,memorandum, "The Use of Day Care Facilities," February 24,1944, OCDP,RG 171, Entry 32 Box 1 (WNRC). For Cincinnati see Report of theEmergency Child Care Director, December 3,1942 to January 1,1944, CivilDefense Collection, Box 1, Folder 4, Cincinnati Historical Society (CHS),Cincinnati, Ohio.3. Newton D. Baker, memorandum, c. April 1917, OCDP, RG 171, Entry10 Box 20, (WNRC). See also The United States at War: Development andAdministration of the War Program by the Federal Government(Washington, D.C., 1946), pp.21-25 and Mauck, Civilian Defense in theUnited States, RG 171, Ch.2 p.l (WNRC).4. William J. Breen, Uncle Sam at Home: Civilian Mobilization, WartimeFederalism, and the Council of National Defense, 1917-1919 (Westport,Connecticut, 1984). The standard account of Ohio's state defense councilis offered in How Ohio Mobilized Her Resources for the War: A History of theActivities of the Ohio Branch, Council of National Defense, 1917-1919(Columbus, 1919), in the Papers of the Ohio Branch, Council of NationalDefense, Series 1135, Box 1, Folder 1, Ohio Historical Society (OHS),Columbus, Ohio.5. Stetson Conn, Rose C. Engleman, and Byron Fairchild, eds., United States

More than ten million Ameri-cans volunteered for all typesof defense-related activitiesthat provided benefits for thehome front. (CHS PhotographCollection)

The Office of Civilian Defenseencouraged state and localauthorities to coordinatemorale building events suchas scrap drives and war bondrallies. (CHS PhotographCollection)

Winter 1991 The War That Never Came 19

Army in World War II: The Western Hemisphere: Guarding the United Statesand Its Outposts (Washington, D.C., 1964), pp.45-79 and B. FranklinCooling, "U.S. Army Support of Civil Defense: The Formative Years, 1935-1942," Military Affairs (February 1971):7-8.6. "The Office of Civilian Defense Is Established. Executive Order 8757.May 20, 1941," Samuel I. Rosenman, ed., The Public Papers and Addressesof Franklin D. Roosevelt, 1941, pp. 162-172; Mauck, Civilian Defense in theUnited States, Ch.3,p.ll andCh. 4, pp.4-5; and Wayne Coy, William Bullitt,and Harold Smith, "Memorandum to the President on the Office of HomeDefense," April 4, 1941, Wayne Coy Papers, Box 2 (FDRL). MayorLaGuardia headed the OCD from May 1941 to January 1942. EleanorRoosevelt served as assistant director, and chaired the VolunteerParticipation Committee, from September 1941 to February 1942.7. "State and Local Cooperation," Defense (a government-sponsored weeklypublication), Vol.1 no. 17 (April 29,1941):22. For Ohio see Senate Bill 178,Ohio General Assembly, (effective August 20,1941). This statute requiredlocal defense councils to submit personnel lists to the state defense councilfor official certification by the Governor.8. Charles P. Taft to Governor John W. Bricker, April 7,1941, Civil DefenseCollection, Box 2, Folder 8, (CHS) and Memorandum on the Mayor'sCommittee on National Defense, May 7, 1941, Civil Defense Collection,Box 2, Folder 8 (CHS).

9. Robert Earnest Miller, "Preparing for Armageddon: The Role of the Cityin Civilian Defense Planning, during World War II," in Joseph Rishel, ed.,American Cities and Towns: Historical Perspectives (Pittsburgh, PA.,forthcoming). See also Ralph D. Henderson to Chamber of CommerceSecretaries, April 24, 1941, Civil Defense Collection, Box 2, Folder 8(CHS), and Morris Edwards, "Before and Since Pearl Harbor," AmericanCity, 57 (May 1942):75. State defense officials, like Henderson, encouragedchamber of commerce secretaries to help organize local defense councilsin several other cities, including Los Angeles, Philadelphia, Syracuse, andToledo. See "Defense Council for City and Council," American City, 56(January 1941):87; John Naegle to Fiorello H. LaGuardia, May 21, 1941,Fiorello H. LaGuardia Papers (FHLP), Municipal Archives, New York,New York (NYC); "The Toledo Chamber of Commerce: An Interim andVaried Program," Toledo Business, 19 no. 10 (October 1941), Ohio StateCouncil of Defense Papers, Series 2246, Box 1, Folder 19 (OHS).10. "The City's Part in National Defense," American City, 56 (June1941):cover page. President Roosevelt linked the goals of civilian defense—protection against foreign-directed subversion with war production, thenation's top priority in June 1941.11. Cincinnati Bureau of Governmental Research, "Memorandum to theCommittee on Coordination and Cooperation in Hamilton County," June12. 1941, Civil Defense Collection, Box 1, Folder 2 (CHS). Coastal cities

Local manufacturers, such asProcter & Gamble, held prac-tice air raid drills. Employeeshad special assignments orreported to specific areaswhere there were lockersstocked with first aid supplies

and bomb fighting equipment.(CHS Photograph Collection)

20 Queen City Heritage

initially displayed the most interest in developing air raid precautions.However, after Pearl Harbor many inland areas, including Cincinnati,developed civilian defense measures comparable to those coastalcommunities. See Stephen J. Leonard, "Denver at War: The Home Frontin World War II," Colorado Heritage, 4 (1987):35-36; Eugene P. Moehring,"Las Vegas and the Second World War," Nevada Historical Society Quarterly,29 (1986):2-6; and Mary Watters, Illinois in the Second World War: OperationHome Front, vol. 1 (Springfield, Illinois, 1951). Even rural areasdemonstrated an interest in civilian protection. See Robert Karolevitz, "Lifeon the Home Front: South Dakota in World War II," South Dakota Historyvol. 19 (Fall 1989): 393-423 and Charles William Sloan, Jr., ed., "TheNewelletters: E. Gail Carpenter Describes Life on the Home Front,Part I" Kansas History, 11 (Spring 1988):54-72.

12. "Tally of Local Defense Councils Reveals 5935 Organized in Nation,"Defense vol.2, no. 47, (November 25, 1941):31. Ohio had 150 local defensecouncils compared to Texas, the largest state in the Union, which had 890.See also Cincinnati Enquirer (clipping), September 28, 1941, WW IIScrapbook, v. 1 (CHS); Cincinnati Post, November 4,24,1941; and MorrisEdwards to James G. Stewart, September 29, 1941, Civil DefenseCollection, Box 1, Folder 2 (CHS).

13. Civilian Defense Week: Plans and Suggestions for Defense Councils,

(Washington, D.C., 1941) in FHLP, Box 3767, Folder 4, (New York City);"Civilian Defense Week," November 11-16, Designed to StimulateAwareness of Need, Defense vol.2 no.43 (October 28, 1941):22; andCincinnati Times-Star (clipping), November 16, 1941, WW II Scrapbook,v. 1 (CHS).14. LaGuardia, "Report of the Director," p. 1.15. Governor John W. Bricker to the People of Ohio, December 9, 1941,Civil Defense Collection, Box 1, Folder 2 (CHS). A Cincinnati radio station(WCPO) offered its services to the HCNDC "under any circumstances."H.M. Kranz, City Engineer for Cincinnati, also offered the services of theDivision of Public Works for civilian protection purposes. See MortimerC. Watters to Morris Edwards, December 9,1941, and H.M. Kranz to C O .Sherrill, December 9, 1941, Civil Defense Collection, Box 2, Folder 8(CHS). On the increase in civil defense volunteers see Post, December 17,1941 and Status Report of the Hamilton County National Defense Councilto OCD, July 2, 1942, Civil Defense Collection (CHS). Nationally, theincrease in the number of civilian defense workers was just as impressive.In November 1941 approximately 750,000 men and women had beenrecruited by state and local defense councils; in just six months there werenearly eight million volunteers. See "LaGuardia Calls for More Volunteersin All Phases of Civilian Defense," Defense vol. 2, no. 47 (November 25,

,

Community activism behindcivilian defense carried intothe postwar years. Volunteerfire departments lateremerged in communities thathad received fire-fighting andprotective equipment from the

federal government's alloca-tions. (CHS PhotographCollection)

Winter 1991 The War That Never Came 21

16. What To Do In An Air Raid (Washington, D.C., 1941), pp.1,5 and Past,March 6, 1942.17. Press Release, December 15, 1941, Ohio State Council of DefensePapers, Series 2246, Box 7 (OHS).18. Post, December 17, 1941, and Memorandum from CO. Sherrill toMorris Edwards, December 10, 1941, Civil Defense Collection, Box 1,Folder 2 (CHS). Cincinnati's reaction to the onset of war was typical ofmany metropolitan areas. For other examples see G. Thomas Edwards, "TheOregon Coast and Three of Its Guerilla Organizations, 1942," Journal ofthe West, 25 no. 3 (July 1986):20-34; Lingeman, Don't You Know There's aWar Going On?, pp.25-62; Geoffrey Perrett, Days of Sadness. Tears ofTriumph: The American People, 1939-1945 (Madison, Wisconsin, 1973),pp.205-206; and Studs Terkel, The "Good War": An Oral History of WorldWar Two (New York, 1984), p.25.19. Courtney Burton to Phillip O. Geier, January 9, 1942, Civil DefenseCollection, Box 1, Folder 2, (CHS); Morris Edwards to Courtney Burton,December 24, 1941, Box 2, Folder 8 (CHS); and Post, December 23,1941.20. W.D. Anderson to Dana Merrill, January 9, 1942; Russell Oelsner toMerrill, January 31,1942; J. J. Greenleaf to Merrill, February 11,1942, CivilDefense Collection, Box 1, Folder 2 (CHS).21. Times-Star (clipping), April 17, 1942, WW II Scrapbook, vol. 2 (CHS).22. Enquirer, February 28, 1942.23. Post, January 27, 1942, and February 16, 17, 1942. After the fall ofSingapore on February 15, 1942, Sherrill modified his position and notedthat the odds of an enemy attack had increased. Sherrill noted that "ourprotection from Japan depends greatly on the Navy."24. LaGuardia cited in New York Times, January 2,1942. See also "The EightHundred and Sixth Press Conference," February 17, 1942, Rosenman, ed.,Papers of FDR, 1942, p.105.25. WLW Radio, "Defense Council," c. February 1942, Ohio State Councilof Defense Papers, Series 2250, Box 4, Folder 13 (OHS).26. Post, December 18, 1941, and January 16, 1942; "Woodward and War,"Woodward Bulldog, March 13, 1942 (CHS); and Virginia Berten, "TheSisters of St. Ursula," Queen City Heritage, 43 (Fall 1985):42-43.27. Post, January 16, 1942.28 Enquirer, March 1, 20, 1942; Post, March 10, 1942; and Harry Gilliganto CO. Sherrill, March 20, 1942, Civil Defense Collection, Box 1, Folder2 (CHS). For the use of films in civil defense training see Enquirer, February26, 1942; OSCD Communique No. 55, February 10, 1942, Civil DefenseCollection, Box 39, Folder 344 (CHS); and Ralph Stone to [All] Mayors,Chairmen, Directors, County and Local Defense Councils, October 5,1942, Ohio State Council of Defense Papers, Series 2246, Box 4 (OHS).County and local defense councils regularly borrowed films from theOSCD's vast collection of British and American defense-related films. Theextant films are available at OHS.

29. "Chemical Warfare Course: Medical Aspects of Chemical WarfareAgents," Science 95 (April 17, 1942):400-401 and Lee J. Bennish, S. J.,Continuity and Change: Xavier University, 1831-1981 (Chicago, 1981), p.161.30. For the Zoo quote, see Enquirer, April 3, 1942. Also see Enquirer,February 12 and March 1, 1942.31. Post, March 7, 1942; Harry Gilligan to CO. Sherrill, March 13, 1942,Civil Defense Collection, Box 1, Folder 2 (CHS); and "Civilian Defense. . . First Allocation of Protective Equipment Under the $100,000,000Appropriation Will Go Mainly to Coastal Target Areas," Victory (formerlycalled Defense) vol.3 (March 10,1942):30. William McReynolds, an Assistantto the President, referred to a list of 39 "target areas." Significantly, fifteencities were located in inland rather than coastal states. Five of the fifteeninland "target cities" were in Ohio, including: Akron; Cincinnati;Cleveland; Columbus; and Toledo. See William McReynolds, c. April 1942,memorandum, "Plans for Training Civilian Protection Workers," WilliamMcReynolds Papers, Box 7 OCD File (FDRL).

32. James M. Landis, "Block by Block," Victory vol.3 (December 22,1942):3and Post, January 7, 1942.33. Memorandum from CO. Sherrill to Morris Edwards, December 10,1941, Civil Defense Collection, Box 1, Folder 2 (CHS) and Charles P. Taftto Morris Edwards, December 1, 1941, Civil Defense Collection, Box 2,Folder 8 (CHS). Population figures are based on the 1940 Census. 55,593Blacks resided in Cincinnati (total pop. 455,610); fewer Blacks (55,313)resided in other parts of Hamilton County (total pop. 621,987).34. See Horace R. Cayton, "Negro Morale," Opportunity 19 (December1941):371-375 and Franklin O. Nichols, "Six Industrial Cities and the Negroin Defense," Opportunity 19 (August 1941):235-37. In order to maintain themorale of the larger (majority) group, Cayton bitterly noted that "all formsof segregation and the subordination of the Negro must be continued, sothat undivided attention can be directed toward the outside enemy. TheNegro is asked to forgo [sic] any change in the status for the duration."Also see Fourth Annual Report (19401941), May 21, 1941, Division ofNegro Welfare, Urban League Papers (ULP), Box 1, Folder 4 (CHS).35. George W. B. Conrad to John Bricker, November 29,1941, and Conradto Fiorello LaGuardia, December 10,1941, OCDP, RG 171, Entry 11, Box47 (WNRC) and Stanley Roberts to J. Harvey Kearns, December 16,1941,ULP, Box 6, Folder 9 (CHS).36. William A. McClain to Morris Edwards, December 17, 1941, CivilDefense Collection, Box 2, Folder 8 (CHS). At roughly the same time,McClain and Berry, as members of the civil rights committee of Cincinnati'sNAACP, led a successful protest movement against downtown movietheaters to admit Blacks. Theater owners had organized, (it should benoted) with the support of the Chamber of Commerce, but the NAACPprevailed, See William A. McClain "Cincinnati's Theatre Doors Opened,"The Crisis 48 (December 1941):382-383, 389.37. Theodore M. Berry to James G. Stewart, December 11, 1941, CivilDefense Collection, Box 2, Folder 8 (CHS). Before Franklin Rooseveltcreated the Fair Employment Practices Committee by Executive Order 8802in June 1941, Berry served as coordinator of the National Committee forthe Participation of Negroes in the National Defense Program. Thecommittee was essentially a pressure group with affiliates in fifteen states,including Ohio, that monitored hiring practices of defense contractors.Berry also served as legal council for the Division of Negro Welfare. SeeAdeline Harris interview of Theodore Berry, Tape I (CHS) and ULP, Box

1, Folder 4 (CHS).38. Interview with Theodore M. Berry, April 18, 1987.39. McClain to Edwards, December 17,1941, Civil Defense Collection, Box2, Folder 8 (CHS) and Cincinnati Independent, n. d., Civil DefenseCollection, Box 2, Folder 8 (CHS).40. Morris Edwards to Theodore Berry, December 20, 1941, Civil DefenseCollection, Box 2, Folder 8 (CHS); James Leslie Hubbell, to James G.Stewart, January 26,1942, Civil Defense Collection, Box 1, Folder 2 (CHS);and Enquirer, February 4, 1942.41. Post, November 4, 24, 1941.42. Russell Barthell and Robert Ward, "Wartime Organization of Cities,"in Clarence E. Ridley and Orin F. Nolting, eds., The Municipal Yearbook,1942 (Chicago, 1943), pp.317-323. According to an HCNDC status reportsent to the OCD in July 1942, only 15.4% of all volunteers engaged in civilianprotection work were women. See also Monthly Report on Status ofCivilian Defense Activities in Local Areas, Submitted By the HamiltonCounty National Defense Council, July 2, 1942, Civil Defense Collection(CHS) and Post, March 4, 1942.

43. Ethel A. Irving to E. Eppinger, March 31,1942, and William N. Lovelaceto P.L. Prattis, April 18,1942, ULP, Box 6, Folder 9 (CHS). Also see Times-Star (clipping), April 8, 1942, ULP, Box 6, Folder 9 and Enquirer, April10, 1942.44. Post April 18,1942, During the first four months of the war, the Chamberof Commerce provided the HCNDC with free office space, heat,

Queen City Heritage

telephones, and met all other operating expenses. Between April and July1942, when state funds were appropriated, the HCNDC relied on the WarChest for support. See Executive and Financial Committee Papers, Box 2,Folder 6, Civil Defense Collection (CHS).45. Finance Committee Papers, Civil Defense Collection, Box 2, Folder 7(CHS) and Enquirer, June 8, 29, July 20, 1942.46. James M. Landis, Harvard law school dean and LaGuardia's successorat OCD recalled that after the Battle of Midway "the danger of bombingwas gone." Landis headed the OCD from February 1942 to August 1943.See James M. Landis, Columbia Oral History Project, 1963-1964, p.324(microfiche copy) and Donald A. Ritchie, Landis: Dean of the Regulators(Cambridge, 198O), pp.103-119. The likelihood of enemy air raids hadlessened by summer 1942, however, later in the war the Japanese armedhigh-altitude balloons with explosives and incendiaries that traveled as farinland as Iowa. These "bombs" caused a few fatalities and injuries, but failedto weaken America's wartime morale as Japan had hoped. See LawrenceH. Larsen, "War Balloons over the Prairie: The Japanese Invasion of SouthDakota," South Dakota History, 9 no. 2 (1979):104-115; Bert Webber, SilentSiege: Japanese Attacks Against North America in World War II (Fairfield,Washington, 1983) and Leonard, "Denver at War," pp.30-39.47. Mauck, Civil Defense, Ch. 3, pp. 13-14.48. OSCD Communique No. 136, June 12,1942, Civil Defense Collection,Box 39, Folder 344 (CHS).49. Enquirer, May 1, 23, June 12, and December 24, 1942; Times-Star(clipping), August 14, 1942, WW II Scrapbook, vol. 2 (CHS); HaroldNichols to Charles P. Taft, n. d., Charles Taft Papers, Box 33, Folder 6(CHS); and OCD Newsletter no.20 (September 24, 1942) in Ohio StateCouncil of Defense Papers, Series 2250, Box 1, Folder 1 (OHS). See alsoCourtney Burton to All Local Defense Councils, February 17, 1942, OhioState Defense Council Papers, Series 2246, Box 1, Folder 16 and Boy Scoutsof America 1942 Series, Bulletin no.l, "We, Too, Have A Job To Do,"January 7,1942, in Ohio State Council of Defense Papers, Series 2246, Box1, Folder 16 (OHS).50. Enquirer, November 4,9,1942; and Sherrill, Memorandum to the Press,November 9, 1942, Civil Defense Collection, Box 1, Folder 3 (CHS).51. Enquirer, December 31, 1942, and The American National Red Cross,The Bxd Cross—A Brief Story (Washington, 1944).52. Post, January 4, 1943; Enquirer, January 5, 6, 1943; Gilligan to Sherrill,January 12, 1943, Civil Defense Collection, Box 2, Folder 6 (CHS);Patterson Report on Activities in the Cincinnati Area During the Flood

Period of January 1,1943 to January 4,1943, Ohio State Council of DefenseCollection, Series 2246, Box 4 (OHS); "Flood Tests CD in Many States,"OCD Newsletter no.27 (January 25, 1943), in Official File 4422, Office ofCivilian Defense, 1943-1945, Box 2 (FDRL); and Landis, COHP, p.326.53. Earlier in the war Boy Scouts had been recruited as messengers to assistair raid wardens, whereas, the state coordinator for civilian war servicesencouraged local defense councils to include Ohio's 53,000 girl scouts innon-protective volunteer programs in recreation, child care, consumerinterest, and victory gardens. See Delbert L. Pugh, memorandum, October9, 1942, Ohio State Council of Defense Papers, Series 2246, Box 7, Folder93 (OHS).

54. Harry Graff to Ford Worthing, April 1, 1943, Ohio State Council ofDefense Collection, Series 2246, Box 3, Folder 13 (OHS).55. Ralph Stone to Morris Edwards, March 24, 1943, Civil DefenseCollection, Box 2, Folder 4 (CHS). Tire rationing and car pool programs,formulated by the OPA, were implemented by state and local defensecouncils.56. Mayor James Garfield Stewart, Memorandum, July 8,1943, ULP Papers,Box 24, Folder 5.57. Report of the Director of the Emergency Child Care Office, December3,1942-January 1, 1944, Civil Defense Collection, Box 1, Folder 4 (CHS).At its peak the nationwide child care program serviced over 130,000 in morethan 3,000 centers. See Susan M. Hartmann, American Women in the Forties:The Home Front and Beyond (Boston, 1982), pp.58-59 and RichardPolenberg, War and Society: The United States, 1941-1945 (Philadelphia, Pa.,1972), pp. 148-49.

58. Ruth Joseph Fischer, ed., Ohio War History Commission, vol.2, no.10,(April 1944), pp.2-4 (CHS).59. Interview with Harry Graff, October 10, 1986, (transcripts available atCHS).60. Elwyn A. Mauck, "Civilian Defense in the United States, 1941-45," TheBulletin of Atomic Scientists 6 (August/September 1950):267.61. Executive Committee Papers, March 29,1944, Civil Defense Collection,Box 2, Folder 6 (CHS); Nichols to Edwards, November 17, 1943, CivilDefense Collection, Box 1, Folder 4 (CHS); and Enquirer, September 23,1944.62. For example, volunteer fire departments emerged in communities thathad profited from the federal government's allocations of fire-fighting andprotective equipment. See The Pride of Park Hills (Kentucky), c.1947.

Many cities lacked sirens thatwere powerful enough to beheard. In Hamilton Countycivilian defense councils sup-plemented the sirens withchurch bells and factory

whistles. (CHS PhotographCollection)