Research

Scope and Content Note

This series contains quarterly operating report forms sent to the Office of Civilian Mobilization (OCM) by local war councils detailing their home front activities, programs, and personnel. Information about the Volunteer Office, Division of Civilian War Services, the Block Plan, and Office of Civilian Protection, among others, is found.

Each form lists the local war council's office address, officers, resignations, and appointments. Detailed information from the Volunteer Office includes: names of officers; total volunteers recruited; number of volunteers working on each project; outstanding activities and projects; services performed for other state and private agencies; and assistance required of the office from the OCM.

Officers' names and addresses for the following local war council units are also provided, along with small amounts of program information: Block Plan; Citizen Service Corps; Civilian Protection Office; Civilian War Services; and Speakers Bureau.

For the Civilian War Services, some reports contained only the names and addresses of the chairs of active programs, while others provided a full page on operations and activities. Units represented include: child care; critical resources; health preparedness; nutrition; physical fitness; recreation; salvage; victory gardens; war information; war savings bonds; war training; and locally organized committees.

Master reports similar to those found in Series A4331, Field Directors' Local War Council Master Reports, possibly culled from these operating reports, are also found in this series, but many are blank or incomplete. They detail local war councils' territory and demographics, list (for counties) the towns responsible to the local war council, and provide the names and addresses of local war council officials.