Made by Castle Films during WWII, this silent movie entitled "The Civilian Serves" shows the many ways in which ordinary civilians helped defend the nation during WWII, by serving as Air Raid Wardens, Block Wardens, in defense plants, and elsewhere. The film dates to 1942 and was probably shown at clubs and workplaces as a recruitment tool, and also made available to the home market by Castle. At the 2:40 mark, the large Civilian Defense Headquarters in Manhattan, New York is seen, and at 2:56 the Air Warden Service. The film shows at 3:50 how Germany managed to create huge fires in London and wreak havoc, in part because the civil fire service was not well organized. The Pearl Harbor attack is shown and the question asked at 4:47, Is Your Town Prepared? At 5:21 the Staff Corps is seen aiding in Civilian Mobilization, and at 5:50 women are seen working as drivers as part of the Driving Corps. Auxiliary police are seen at 7:17, and Air Raid Wardens at 7:50. At 8:38, thousands of Air Raid Wardens are sworn in en masse in Chicago. Fire watchers are seen being trained at 9:50. Demolition crews are seen working at 10:10, and at 11:00 a food truck is seen dolling out American coffee and other aid in war-torn Britain.
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This film is part of the Periscope Film LLC archive, one of the largest historic military, transportation, and aviation stock footage collections in the USA. Entirely film backed, this material is available for licensing in 24p HD, 2k and 4k. For more information visit http://www.PeriscopeFilm.com