18 FEBRUARY 24, 2022 RIDGEWOOD TIMES WWW.QNS.COM
OUR NEIGHBORHOOD: THE WAY IT WAS
Ridgewood Times writer Nino LoBello (at left) with actor Robert Mitchum
on the set of the 1980s TV miniseries “The Winds of War.” LoBello
worked for the Ridgewood Times in December 1941 and covered the
local reaction to the attack on Pearl Harbor.
Photo via Ridgewood Times archives
The front page of the Dec. 12, 1941,
included simple instructions telling
residents what to do “in event of an air
raid.” They were as follows:
Stay at home. Get off the street.
• Put out lights. Stay away from
windows.
• Don’t scream — keep quiet and do not
run for shelter, walk!
• Don’t believe wild rumors; await offi
cial notice from local offi cers.
• Keep your radio turned on.
• If bombs fall, lie down, whether at
home or outside.
• Don’t get excited.
The following week’s paper, Dec. 19,
also included instructions on what to
know about an air raid alarm when it
is activated.
“Long blast followed by short is an air
raid alarm,” the paper noted. “A series
of short blasts is a signal that all’s clear.”
Fortunately, Nazi bombs never fell
on Ridgewood, or on American soil.
The war was kept to the European and
Pacifi c theaters, where thousands of
local residents fought in defense of the
United States, and against the forces of
fascism and tyranny.
***
If you have any memories and photos
that you’d like to share about “Our Neighborhood:
The Way it Was,” write to The
Old Timer, c/o Ridgewood Times, 45-17
Marathon Pkwy., Little Neck, NY 11362,
or send an email to The Old Timer at
editorial@ridgewoodtimes.com. Any
mailed pictures will be returned to you
upon request.
Air raid wardens, like this one, helped patrol communities during World
War II and ensure that residents kept their homes darkened.
Photo via Flickr/Creative Commons
Boy Scouts of the Bushwick-Arlington district, Brooklyn Council, began
decorating 1,800 graves in the National Cemetery at Cypress Hills on
May 29, 1945. More than 500 Scouts helped decorate 2,500 local graves
of men who gave their lives in the service.
Photo via Ridgewood Times archives
Continued from Page 17
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