Alert! Alert! - PUB 051

PUB 051

Air Raid Instructions

Media: Booklets

Year: 1959

Details: 3 booklets in an envelope

Today's Publications post is a very interesting historical piece coming from the heart of the Cold War era. This past summer I picked up this packet at a local yardsale and it now occupies a unique place in the Sholesonian. The packet was originally mailed to a man who lived in Endwell, New York (I have no idea who he was or how it ended up where I live, which isn't even close to Endwell). These packets seem to have been sent out by the State of New York, under governor Nelson A. Rockefeller.

In a time when nuclear disaster seemed an imminent threat, everyone was on edge and stocking up in case such an event did occur. As you can see from these booklets the government gave out, people felt a real danger and many people built their own fallout shelters, just in case. These pamphlets provide a description on a variety of different ways to built a fallout shelter depending on one's living condition. Two of the most common types were one outside (covered with earth) and one in a basement. The third booklet provides information on how to protect yourself from radiation fallout and how to best be prepared. According to dates on the materials they were printed back on July 6, 1959.

You can't see the obverse of the envelope in the photograph, but it essentially has the general postage details on. It also reads: "HOME EMERGENCY PREPAREDNESS FILE" along with a list of the purposes of the envelope:

1. File all emergency preparedness information in this envelope.
2. Keep it handy for all emergencies.
3. Stay Alert - Keep Posted - It could save your life.

At the bottom is says "FAMILY SURVIVAL depends on home preparedness," with home preparedness boxed in. As air raids drills were common practice in schools across the nation in this uncertain time it should come to no surprise that in addition to all of this information air raid instructions would also be included on the envelope itself to help families in the case of an actual emergency. In any event this is a very nice addition to the museum and provides insight into one of the major portions of the 20th century.