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On April 18, 1941, while war raged in Europe, Africa and on the high seas, the city of Pittsburgh conducted its initial city-wide blackout rehearsal. At 10:10pm, Zero Hour, air-raid sirens began to wail and darkness fell upon the Steel City ... well, almost. Duquesne Light switched off all power to street lights and railway lines. Police were out in force as streetcars stopped in place and traffic around the city ground to a halt, all with their lights off. Soon afterward, a rumbling flight of six army planes and a large TWA transport plane circled above the city a half dozen times, simulating an air attack. On the ground, where a few firetrucks pointed search lights skyward, pedestrians and motorists watched in wonder at the simulated wartime spectacle. When the "All Clear" sounded, however, many came away from the half hour rehearsal wondering why so many lights failed to be extinguished. Some problems did occur, as lights on several of the billboards/marquees along Penn and Liberty Avenue were not shut off, including the large sign above Jenkins Arcade shown in the photo above. In addition, the beacon atop the Grant Building continued to blink "Pittsburgh" in Morse code.
Since neither the state of county participated in the test, Bigelow Boulevard and the Boulevard of the Allies, as well as the bridges, remained illuminated. The steel mills, essential to the war materials effort, were also exempt from the drill. While the city was not entirely blacked out, army officials deemed the test 80% successful, citing the outstanding compliance of most downtown buildings, commercial establishments and homeowners. This was, after all, a rehearsal, and the groundwork was now in place for Pittsburgh's future cooperation in an actual regional or state-wide blackout. THE REAL DRILL On June 25, 1942, the city of Pittsburgh, along with sixteen Western PA counties, staged their first mandatory Civil Defense air raid blackout drill. With the country now at war, and the threat of enemy long-range air attacks within the realm of possibility, this test was taken seriously. There were no exceptions. Police and Civil Defense wardens monitored the streets and hefty fines were issued to violators.
At 9:50pm the sirens began to wail, soon followed by whistles and church bells. Vehicles came to a halt and pedestrians headed for the nearest shelter. Within a few minutes, the city had truly plunged into darkness. Even the steel mills along the rivers went dark. It was an eerily awe-inspiring sight even for those that staged the event. The half hour drill could not have gone better. Army and Civil Defense officials rated it the best and most organized section-wide blackout drill they had overseen in the entire state.
The June 1942 drill was actually a dusk-to-dawn test throughout the region. After the half hour total blackout, street lights were turned back on and essential services restored, but buildings and residences were required to remain darkened until the following morning. More blackout drills followed, once a month for a while, until the tide of war had turned in the Allies favor and the threat of attack from the air no longer a danger. The final air raid blackout drill in Pittsburgh occurred in April 13, 1944.
The Civil Defense network throughout Allegheny County was a huge volunteer force mobilized to manage and oversee the air raid blackout process. These dedicated individuals served throughout the war, and for many it was a full-time job. CD volunteers included 26,000 air raid wardens, 6700 auxiliary police, 5700 auxiliary firefighters, 2000 in demolition and clearance squads, 6000 drivers, 4300 fire watchers, 3200 in emergency medical squads, 4700 trained for evacuation and emergency feeding/housing work, 2700 in the control center, and smaller numbers in a wide range of related activities.
NATION-WIDE BROWNOUT In addition to the occassional blackout drills, there was also the national "Brownout". As the war dragged into 1945, a Brownout soon became a mandatory practice each evening. This involved minimizing outdoor lighting and restrictions on electricity consumption to conserve coal, and other fuels, needed for the war effort. Street lights remained on, but all other non-essential lighting was extinguished. The implementation of the nation-wide Brownout went into effect on February 1, 1945. The mandate from the War Production Board remained in effect until May 8, 1945, the day after Germany capitulated in the European Theater. Although the war still raged in the Pacific Theater, it was estimated that the Brownout saved the country 500,000 tons of coal at a critical time when it was suffering from a severe fuel shortage.
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