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Cold War Bomb Shelters

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http://www.nv.doe.gov/library/films/film.aspx?ID=20. Nuclear World Destruction ... Some hid the construction from neighbors, claiming to be building swimming pools ... – PowerPoint PPT presentation

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Title: Cold War Bomb Shelters


1
Cold War Bomb Shelters
  • Atomic Nightmares
  • Create
  • Survival Fantasies

2
Japan Atomic Effects
  • With the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and
    Nagasaki, the world became aware of the
    destructive power and effects of nuclear war
  • By the early 1950s most Americans had a growing,
    and graphic, understanding of atomic weapons and
    the dangers of radiation

3
Hiroshima Before and After
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7
Atomic Babies Birth Defects
8
Nagasaki
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10
More Unsettling Images
  • The U.S. continued atomic tests and developed the
    even more destructive hydrogen bomb (H-bomb)
  • Americans were exposed to images of these tests
    and statistics such as blast radius damage and
    wind patterns that would spread radioactive
    fallout

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13
Effects of Nuclear Explosion
http//www.nv.doe.gov/library/films/film.aspx?ID2
0
Click the hyperlink above to view atomic test
video showing effects of nuclear explosions seen
in 1953 and 1955 tests.
14
Nuclear World Destruction
  • By the 1950s both superpowers (USSR and USA) had
    nuclear weapons and, by the 1960s, delivery
    systems to send them across continents and oceans
  • For the first time, complete world annihilation
    became a real possibility

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17
A Feeling of Safety
  • Elaborate systems were developed to give warning
    before a nuclear attack
  • Some hoped to survive by protecting themselves,
    and their families, by creating protective
    shelters to survive the explosion and effects of
    radiation

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19
Civil Defense Instructions Nuclear Attack
Warnings and Information
20
Civil Defense Propaganda Spreads Fear and Paranoia
  • U.S. Civil Defense used ads to try to prepare the
    public for possible attack and use of shelters
  • School children routinely practiced duck and
    cover drills where desks would supposedly help
    provide protection

21
Duck and Cover Civil Defense Film
http//www.archive.org/details/gov.ntis.ava11109vn
b1
Click the hyperlink above to view classic 1950s
civil defense film about duck and cover
protection from nuclear attack.
22
Duck and Cover Instructions
Click above to hear audio of Civil Defense
information on Duck and Cover protection.
23
Bunker Mentality
  • Governments, and individuals, searched for a
    feeling of safety and control
  • Bomb shelters seemed to offer the possibility of
    surviving a nuclear war
  • Public and private bomb shelters were built
    throughout the Cold War

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25
Public Shelters
  • U.S. Civil Defense began assigning basements of
    public buildings as bomb shelters
  • Some of these shelters were stockpiled with food,
    water, medicine, etc.
  • There was never enough shelter space, or
    supplies, for all citizens

26
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27
Shelter in the basement of the courthouse in
Ottawa, IL
Shelter in the basement of the Roxy Theatre in
Ottawa, IL
28
Civil Defense Instructions What to Bring to a
Public Bomb Shelter
29
Public/Private Bomb Shelters
  • When the Randhurst Mall was built in the early
    1960s, they added a bomb shelter in the basement
  • It was supposed to be able to protect all the
    residents of Mt. Prospect, IL from nuclear attack

30
Private Shelters
  • To protect their families, some Americans built
    bomb shelters in their homes
  • Many were built in secret to prevent neighbors
    from trying to come in during attacks
  • It is estimated that more than 1500 private
    shelters were built during the Cold War

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33
Shelter Construction
  • To provide maximum protection, most shelters were
    built below ground with concrete blocks
  • Many were built below patios and driveways to
    provide extra protection
  • Some hid the construction from neighbors,
    claiming to be building swimming pools or
    remodeling their homes

34
Shelter Supplies
  • Public and private shelters were stocked for a
    minimum two-week supply of essentials
  • Water
  • Food
  • Sanitation facilities
  • Radiation meters
  • Medical supplies
  • Radios, books, games, etc.

35
Drinking Water
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37
Survival Food
38
Sanitation Facilities
39
Geiger Counters to Measure Radiation Levels
40
Dosimeters to Measure a Persons Cumulative
Exposure to Radiation
41
Medical Supplies
42
Civil Defense Instructions Find Shelter!
43
Private Shelters in Rockford
  • It is estimated that less than a dozen private
    bomb shelters were built in Rockford
  • Most builders did not apply for permits or
    register their shelters with local or federal
    civil defense
  • Two of these Cold War era bomb shelters are known
    to exist today

44
Local Shelter Locations
45
Private Shelter off Rural St.
  • This small house looks like the rest on the block
  • But under the driveway is a secret bomb shelter
  • It was built in the 1950s by the Richard McGaw
    family

46
Mrs. McGaw Explains Why They Built Their Bomb
Shelter
  • It was a scare at the time, you wanted to be one
    of the safe ones.
  • Everyone was made to feel that there would be an
    atomic war and since we had two little children
    we felt we should build one.
  • The neighbors laughed at us at the time and if
    they (the government) came out with something
    like that again, I would be like them.

47
  • A door in the basement opens to the small
    entryway
  • 5 ft. high, 3 ½ ft. wide, and about 16 ft. long
  • The original foundation ends with the red floor
  • Entry to the shelter is on the left at the end of
    the passageway

48
  • Shelters had a sharp bend, or turn, to enter to
    protect the shelter from heat and radiation
  • The entry to the shelter on the left would be
    covered with an asbestos curtain to give further
    protection

49
  • The shelter has storage for supplies
  • The shelves on the right could also be used for
    childrens bunks
  • Equipped with an electrical light
  • Shelter was about 10 ft. wide, 8 ft. high, and 16
    ft. long

50
  • The shelter and entry way are completely
    protected by thick concrete block, even over the
    entry way and ceiling of the shelter
  • The dirt and driveway above provided additional
    protection

51
Area of Underground Shelter
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54
Discussion Questions
  • Why would some families choose to build bomb
    shelters and others would not?
  • What possible psychological effects would the
    civil defense warnings and duck and cover drills
    have on young people growing up in the 1950s and
    1960s?
  • Would public or private shelters have been
    effective protection against nuclear attack?
    Explain.
  • While the threat of nuclear war continued until
    the fall of the Soviet Union in 1991, most public
    and private shelter building ended by the late
    1960s and early 1970s. Why?

55
Assignments
  • You are building a private bomb shelter in the
    1950s. Design your shelter including layout,
    building materials, and a list of survival
    equipment and supplies. Describe why you might
    feel safer with a shelter.
  • After 9/11 there was widespread fear about
    possible biological or chemical attacks.
    Research what methods of protection from such
    attacks were urged by the U.S. government. Can
    you make any comparisons with the bomb shelters
    of the Cold War? Contrasts?
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