Letter
Lutz Moutain Heritage Museum
All rights reserved.
| Object Name: | Letter |
|---|---|
| Category: | Category 8: Communication Objects |
| Material: | Paper |
| Accession Number: | A2014.14.14 |
| Origin-Province: | New Brunswick |
| Origin-Country: | Canada |
| Use-Province: | New Brunswick |
| Use-Country: | Canada |
| Culture: | Canadian |
| Earliest Production Date: | 1940-01-01 |
| Latest Production Date: | 1940-12-31 |
| Description: | An off white piece of paper of standard letter size. On the front of the paper, is a letter typed and printed in black ink. the back of the paper is left blank. |
| Narrative: | Moncton was not originally believed to be a vulnerable city during World War II. However, due to its geographic location and the sheer number of trains that would pass through Moncton, it was soon designated as a vulnerable location by the Department of National Defense and provided funding to establish an Air Raid Precaution Committee. In addition to typical air raid precautions, a regulation to control the use of lights was also soon mandated. In order to protect citizens from the potential dangers of enemy aircrafts, the use of light during air raids was strictly prohibited. All lights were to be extinguished during air raid alarms. This letter was circulated by the sitting mayor of Moncton, Frank W. Storey, to inform and instruct the public of these new precautions. Frank W. Storey, Moncton's popular wartime mayor, had served five consecutive one-year terms and a sixth term in 1949. He was replaced in 1950 when Thomas Babbit Parlee became one of the city's four mayors elected between 1950 and 1959. |
| History of Use: | To inform the citizens of Moncton, NB and surrounding areas of the new regulations regarding the control of lights at night and during air raids. This was done so that enemy pilots would have a much harder time seeing the city at night and lessen the chance of casualties. |
| Length: | 27.6 cm |
| Width: | 21.2 cm |
| Institution: | Lutz Moutain Heritage Museum |
| Institution City: | Moncton |
| Institution Province: | New Brunswick |