Radioactive Fallout in Time of Emergency [with maps]

Planning for a chicken’s worst nightmare.

This unusual collection of mid-century documents belonged to Gerald E. Annin, a staff member in the poultry science department at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. The material focuses on the effects of nuclear attacks on rural agriculture – undoubtedly a contemporary concern for Annin during a period of heightened tensions in the Cold War.

A booklet printed in 1960 by the USDA Agricultural Research Service provides practical high-level information on radioactive fallout, including measures for protection and its effects on agriculture. It is accompanied by organization charts for Wisconsin Civil Defense (3 copies), a two-page memo titled Responsibilities of Coooperative Extension Services in Event of Civil Defense Emergency, and a series of four maps of Wisconsin. The last, sent to Annin by Civil Defense Coordinator Don Jensen, are accompanied by a cover memo reading ‘here’s a better set of maps.’

The first three sheets show the area of mortality for (presumably) poultry housed outside, in a house, or in a basement. The final map pinpoints potentially fatal areas with a shelter factor of 500 (root cellars), noting “Deaths Mainly Due to Initial Blast and Heat and Not Residual Radiation.” Subterranean options clearly provide the best mechanism for protection, though the prospect of nuclear war does not bode well for chickens in Wisconsin (or people, for that matter).

Source.