Duluth Civilian Defense Council records
Scope and Contents
The collection contains correspondence, bulletins, publications, news clippings, scrapbooks, photographs, posters, personnel lists, and other reference materials from the war activities of the organization. The records were collected from a variety of sources, such as the Duluth Public Library, the War History Division of the Duluth Civilian Defense Council, and individuals. Parts of the collection, therefore, are sporadic and incomplete. The collection has been divided into five record groups: organizational material, a subject file, military service records, scrapbooks, and war posters.
Organizational Material, 1941-1945, contains minutes, lists, and bulletins. The lists include Civilian Defense Council staff and volunteer lists. Two card files list zone C and D wardens, as well as an address file of important civic organizations and Defense Council people. A Duluth Victory Gardens card file lists locations of garden plots. Also included are two 10-foot organizational charts (June 1, 1942; Januayr 15, 1943) with personnel names added, and a Duluth Civilian Defense Area Map that illustrates the boundaries of zones, districts, precincts, and sectors of Duluth.
Subject File, 1941-1946, contains news clippings, reference materials, some correspondence, and photographs of Defense Council activities. Unmounted news clippings have been separated from other records by bond folders.
Military Service Records, 1942-1945, contain information gathered by the Defense Council about Duluth servicemen. The sheets include information on residence, birth, parents, school, church, and military service.
Scrapbooks, 1941-1945, largely contain news clippings, although some correspondence and photographs can be found. Most of the scrapbooks concern war loan drive publicity.
War Posters, 1942-1945. See accompanying list.
Dates
- 1941-1946
Creator
- Duluth Civilian Defense Council (Duluth, Minn.) (Organization)
Conditions Governing Access
Open for use in the Kathryn A. Martin Library, Archives and Special Collections.
Conditions Governing Use
This collection may be protected by the Copyright Law of the United States (Title 17, U.S. Code). It is the user's responsibility to verify copyright ownership and to obtain all necessary permissions prior to the reproduction, publication, or other use of any portion of these materials. Researchers may quote from the collection under the fair use provision of the copyright law.
Biographical / Historical
The first meeting of the Duluth Civilian Defense Council was held on October 3, 1941 in response to growing concern for local defense. The Council's activities were accelerated after the U.S. became involved in the war. The general organization of the Council provided a chairman, an advisory division, a Cititzen's Service Corps and a Citizen's Defense Corps. The Service Corps included such functions as salvage, nutrition, employment, publicity, welfare, and women's services. The Defense Corps mobilized existing services such as police, fire, and public works. It also organized a network of air raid wardens. Many organizational changes were made throughout the war, and new divisions were often created. Control of the Duluth Council was exercised by the Federal Office of Civilian Defense (created on May 20, 1941) and the Minnesota State Defense Council.
R. S. Mars served as first chairman, and he was succeeded by Amasa Wheeler in 1943. Citizen's Survey Corps directors included F. Rodney Paine, Thomas Shefchik, and S. Valentine Saxby. Richard Fingall Peterson served as commander of the Citizen's Defense Corps.
The Defense Corps was involved in an intensive training program for medical, utility, fire, and rescue operations. By 1943, 2100 Air Raid Wardens had completed their training. A Victory Aid division was created under Women's Services to organize women as liasons between the community and the civil defense program. Other programs included salvage and war bond drives, health and first aid education, war history, and even glider building. The Duluth Council claimed a volunteer force of nearly 15,000 people by January, 1943.
The Duluth council incorporated in October, 1942. The Proctor Civilian Defense Council became associated with the Duluth Council in 1942. Although the Federal Office of Civilian Defense was abolished in May, 1945, the Duluth Council continued its activities on a smaller scale.
The Duluth Civilian Defense Council was organized in 1941 in response to growing concern for local defense. It was controlled, in part, by the Federal Office of Civilian Defense and the Minnesota State Defense Council. After the U.S. entered World War II, the Council's acitivities were accelerated and new programs, such as salvage, air raid protection, Victory Aide and bond drives were established. The Council was incorporated in 1942 and remained in existence after the termination of the war.
Extent
12.50 Linear Feet
Language of Materials
English
Abstract
The collection contains correspondence, bulletins, publications, news clippings, scrapbooks, photographs, posters, personnel lists, and other reference materials from the war activities of the organization. The records were collected from a variety of sources, such as the Duluth Public Library, the War History Division of the Duluth Civilian Defense Council, and individuals. Parts of the collection, therefore, are sporadic and incomplete.
Physical Location
This collection is located at the University of Minnesota Duluth Archives. For more information about this collection or to make an appointment, contact us at libarchives@d.umn.edu or 218-726-8526.
General
This collection is owned by the Minnesota Historical Society, but is housed at the University of Minnesota Duluth Archives.
- Civil defense Subject Source: Library of Congress Subject Headings
- Correspondence Subject Source: Local sources
- Duluth (Minn.)--History Subject Source: Library of Congress Subject Headings
- Membership Lists Subject Source: Local sources
- Minutes Subject Source: Local sources
- Newsletters Subject Source: Local sources
- Newspaper clippings Subject Source: Local sources
- Photographs Subject Source: Local sources
- Posters Subject Source: Local sources
- Proctor (Minn.) Subject Source: Library of Congress Subject Headings
- Public welfare Subject Source: Library of Congress Subject Headings
- Publications Subject Source: Library of Congress Subject Headings
- Scrapbooks Subject Source: Local sources
- Servicemen, Military Subject Source: Library of Congress Subject Headings
- Soldiers Subject Source: Library of Congress Subject Headings
- Veterans Subject Source: Library of Congress Subject Headings
- World War II Subject Source: Library of Congress Subject Headings
- Title
- Guide to the Duluth Civilian Defense Council records
- Author
- Finding Aid Authors: B.H. Bruemmer, P. Maus.
- Description rules
- Describing Archives: A Content Standard
- Language of description
- English
- Script of description
- Latin
Collecting Area Details
Contact The University of Minnesota Duluth Archives and Special Collections Collecting Area
Kathryn A. Martin Library
University of Minnesota Duluth
416 Library Drive
Duluth MN 55812-3001
(218) 726-8526
libarchives@d.umn.edu
