Promoting the Civil Defence Corps at Public Events 1960-1.
When we are doing our Civil Defence Corps reenactment displays, I am always aware that, in many ways, they are similar to the sorts of exhibitions done by the real CDC back in the past. This lead me to have a look at what they were doing so that we could base our shows on theirs to add a further layer of historical accuracy. This blog post is the result of that and covers the couple of years preceding our nominal event date of October 1962.
Part of the work of any division of the Civil Defence Corps was to promote the issue of civil defence. Partly this was a way to raise public awareness and support for the work of the CDC and also it was a means of gaining new recruits to the organisation.
The various CDC divisions came up with a range of methods often associated with regular local events and exhibitions such as carnivals and trade shows. There were occasionally some mistakes in planning events. Leatherhead Urban District Council were recommended by their CD & Public Relations Committee to hold a civic forum on April Fools’ Day 1960. For some technical reason, this date was not chosen.
The 2nd annual flower float display at the Spalding Carnival was on 7th May 1960. The Holland Division of the CDC covered one of their Land Rovers in a 4ft deep skirt with 26,000 tulip heads in red, yellow & white (left picture below). In addition to their float, the CDC set up a mobile signals vehicle and used three wireless equipped Land Rovers (including the Float) to provide communications for the event organisers. This prevented the problems which had happened on the previous year’s parade.
The following year, they decorated the Land Rover with 50,000 tulip heads making a large CD badge and sides of the vehicle carried flower boards saying “Parade Control” (right picture above). About 5 weeks earlier, at the request of the local council, the CDC Welfare section had set up a rest centre & provided meals for residents whose houses had flooded on Roman Bank, Spalding.
The CDC provided floats in other carnivals around the country. This one (below) is from Penge, with its cab & bonnet displaying a bombed out house and CD slogans on the sides and back.
These photographs (below) show the CD floats in the Cheltenham festivals of 1960, showing the Welfare section in action, (left & centre) & 1961, depicting a fallout shelter, (right).
In rural areas, the county show provided the opportunity to get the CDC message out to the public with a combination of static displays and practical exhibitions, especially of Rescue section work. This display (below) is from Dorset in 1960.
Islington CDC held a week-long public display in Drayton Park in September 1960. Inside, there were stalls showing equipment and training methods plus two stands displaying competition trophies they had won and hobby crafts made by CDC members in their spare time. Outside, there were emergency cookers (although these had to rebuilt due to overnight vandalism) and mobile control vehicles and field cable units to see. The Evening Standard also ran a series of articles about civil defence to coincide with the exhibition.
The event was visited by over five hundred people and twenty signed up on the day & twelve more took away forms to fill in later.
At Wells, a series of CD exhibitions were set up around the city’s market place. The local Town Crier announced the details from his five “Crying Stations” around the city.
Other Divisions tried more conventional advertising below are two adverts put in the Woking Review in 1960 by the local CDC.
In Wimbledon, they put their CDC recruiting message on carrier bags given away at local libraries.
Across the country, the National And Local Government Officers Association (NALGO) regularly arranged exhibitions showing the work of local government. As civil defence was organised through local authorities, the Corps was invited to these events. Weymouth Division provided a stall at one of these exhibitions in February 1961. It displayed Corps equipment and maps showing Weymouth Borough’s Warden posts and boundaries. Outside a range of CDC vehicles were on show, including a Reconnaissance and Field Cable Land Rovers, Operations and Signals vehicles and a “Purpose-built four berth Ambulance. In the evening the outside area was floodlit using Rescue section lighting equipment.
Many councils ran “Welcome to Citizenship” event to encourage young people to take up community volunteering of various types. The CDC was always well represented at these occasions. This is a picture of a great display put on by Bournemouth CDC in April 1961.
The Auxiliary Fire Service also took part in the annual CD recruiting drive in September or October. In 1960, The Warwick County Fire Brigade did a display to encourage AFS recruits. It was to centre around the use of a “bikini” boat but there had been heavy rain & the River Leam was in full flood. The Bikini had been launched but it was decided to cancel the demonstration due to the rough weather but at the last minute, it was decided to continue and show how the boat could handle rough water.
As the boat moved to the position chosen for the display, the crew entered very rough water by a weir. They spotted someone in the water. The Bikini & a small launch then rescued a 17 year old boy from the river and ensured he was taken to hospital.
The Royal Show was held in Cambridge in 1961 and 15 CDC divisions participated in some way to the event. The usual range of equipment and vehicles was on display but the outdoor emergency cookery display had to be stopped as the smoke was annoying neighbouring stand. Another feature was a 20 foot high gin with a Tirfor winch attached that lifted and lowered an iron girder whilst children sat on it. They also had a “Stephenson Minuteman Resuscitator” on show (it is noted in the article that this is NOT standard CD equipment) which would be found in Forward Medical Aid Units. The manufacturers sent someone to teach the CDC staff how to use it. The pictures show the Queen Mother visiting the CDC stand Below left & centre) and some of the Norwich CD team (right).
Blackpool CDC produced advertisement boards that could be strapped to one of their ambulances to give an instant display (see below).
So as you can see, the members of the Civil Defence Corps, used many local events and a lot of innovative ideas to bring the organisation and the subject of Civil Defence to the attention of the wider public .Most of these events, served to increase recruitment and public awareness of the work of the CDC and its related groups. It certainly gives us freedom to try many things at our reenactment shows.
Sources:
Civil Defence -The Fourth Arm magazine Vol. 12 (1960) No.s 2, 3, 4, 7, 8, 10, 11 & 12
Civil Defence -The Fourth Arm magazine Vol. 13 (1961) No.s 1 ,4 ,5, 7, 8, 9 & 11
