Browse Exhibits (2 total)

Cuyahoga River catches fire! Prior to the sixties incidents when the Cuyahoga burned, Cleveland was seen as a city on the move. Due in part to those incidents, however, Cleveland once again became the butt of the nation's jokes. The great demise of the Cuyahoga River began with the Europeans settling near it in the 1600 through the 1700's.The Cuyahoga River was known for its great game and great trading posts.  This started the "end of innocence" for the river, making it more popular for industry.During the last 200 years, the river has changed dramatically. The northern part became the point of the river's settlement. It was a site for warehouses and its banks used for ship building. Pollution has been the main factor in the Cuyahoga River. It was very prevalent in the early 1800's as well as now. Industry and population have made the river become a "flowing dump". The Cuyahoga is by no means perfect, but is an example of what could be done to save a very important river.

This exhibit was created with the Cuyahoga County Archives National Fallout Shelter Survey Collection. This collection features information dealing with the National Fallout Shelter Survey.  The 13 boxes contain correspondence between Civil Defense administrators, fallout shelter diagrams, blueprints, records, individual shelter booklets, and census tract information pertaining to the survey.

The National Fallout Shelter Survey was a program from 1948-1986.  During the Cold War, nuclear destruction was a threat that was a constant concern to the American people and administration alike.  Existing buildings and new construction were designated as fallout shelters.  These were reinforced structures with the capacity to provide some protection from the radioactive fallout that would occur after a nuclear exchange.  These facilities were surveyed, sketched, and blueprinted, and many different measurements were used to define each shelter's protection value, and the number of people each shelter could protect.

 This survey was done in two phases, Phase 1, which took place from 1948-1964, was the identification and preliminary survey of structures eligible for fallout shelter status.  Individual buildings were inspected and licensed as facilities for fallout shelters.  Phase 2, from 1963-68, consisted of a more detailed survey of the structure, and attention to supply issues, such as potable water on hand, ventilation, and sewer capacity. An updating survey of these shelters was performed in the 1970s, and for a final time in the 1980s. With the end of the Cold War, these facilities were no longer necessary.