There was an interesting bit of discussion yesterday about the " noon " whistle. Does your town have a noon whistle ? Greensboro does not. In East Hampton where I was raised we did. I never gave it much thought though. I only heard it when I was in school or happened to be upstreet at the time. Couldn't heat it where my house was, about three miles from the location of that whistle. The general discussion determined that the whistle was initially installed as part of the civil defense system. I do remember seeing the symbols on the buildings indicating the " fallout " shelters located around town. We were assured that we would be safe in there should the Russians bomb us ! That history of the whistle makes the most sense and I believe it to be the truth of the matter.
As I said, the area of town where I grew up didn't have a whistle. At least I have no recollection of hearing one. In my section of town my neighbors where fisherman and craftsman. In other words, the blue collar crowd. Many of these people worked for themselves or outdoors in some fashion. They were not bound to a time clock. I had seen on television images of the big factories and shipyards where a great number of people were employed. I would see the whistle blowing and the people streaming out of the building. As a child I imagined that was what it wa like uptown, where they had that whistle. Those people working in the stores and shops uptown were so bound to their jobs they needed a whistle to tell them when to go to lunch. That is what I figured anyway. I thought it must be terrible to tied to a time clock. It must be like selling your soul to the devil in exchange for money !
It would appear however that the truth is far more mundane. That is usually the case The whistle was installed as part of the civil defense program. That whole program followed the second world war and the dropping of the Atomic bombs on Japan. The dreaded Russians had gotten their hands on that technology and might bomb us all ! Along with the whistle to warn us, we schoolchildren practiced hiding under our desks ! We were ready for those Russians. The whistle was tested each day, at noon. In that way we would know it was just a test and not be scrambling to the fallout shelters or hiding under school desks. Well, that is unless those Ruskies attacked at high noon that is. The testing of the whistle, at noon, continued throughout the years.
I hear that there are towns that still carry on this tradition. What else could you call it after all this time. It certainly serves no other purpose in the modern world. Now, we would just get a text on our cell phones ! We also have finally admitted to ourselves the inevitable result of a nuclear attack. Our government has decided the people are smart enough now to understand. Back in the old days the government would withhold certain details as a matter of course. In some ways I think we were all better off.
Here in Greensboro, just up the street from my place, is the Methodist church. It has a bell tower and chimes the time on the hour. I rather enjoy that sound. Bong,bong. I think it is electronic though, but sounds like a bell. I am curious now, how many years that it has been so. Were there actual bells there and someone chiming them ? Seems unlikely. When was this automated ? And now I'm wondering if it does it all night ? Hmm, I'll have to listen for it. Just like that noon whistle it has become just a part of the sounds of the " city. " Yes, this old boy now lives " upstreet. " Wonder what happened to our civil defense whistle ? I don't remember hearing one. Oh, there is the fire whistle and I'm certain it was used for that " civil defense " purpose at one time. Did they ever test it at noon ? I'll have to do some inquiring about that.
I do find it interesting these little discussion about the everyday things in life. Little things that seem to have no significance. I'm certain when that whistle was first installed and it's purpose known it caused some uneasiness. For a least a little while when it went off at noon people had to consider that. Like most things though it became just a part of life. Just another unnoticed little thing. The " noon " whistle " indeed. It really could have forewarned us of the " twelfth " hour ! A bit of irony there.
As I said, the area of town where I grew up didn't have a whistle. At least I have no recollection of hearing one. In my section of town my neighbors where fisherman and craftsman. In other words, the blue collar crowd. Many of these people worked for themselves or outdoors in some fashion. They were not bound to a time clock. I had seen on television images of the big factories and shipyards where a great number of people were employed. I would see the whistle blowing and the people streaming out of the building. As a child I imagined that was what it wa like uptown, where they had that whistle. Those people working in the stores and shops uptown were so bound to their jobs they needed a whistle to tell them when to go to lunch. That is what I figured anyway. I thought it must be terrible to tied to a time clock. It must be like selling your soul to the devil in exchange for money !
It would appear however that the truth is far more mundane. That is usually the case The whistle was installed as part of the civil defense program. That whole program followed the second world war and the dropping of the Atomic bombs on Japan. The dreaded Russians had gotten their hands on that technology and might bomb us all ! Along with the whistle to warn us, we schoolchildren practiced hiding under our desks ! We were ready for those Russians. The whistle was tested each day, at noon. In that way we would know it was just a test and not be scrambling to the fallout shelters or hiding under school desks. Well, that is unless those Ruskies attacked at high noon that is. The testing of the whistle, at noon, continued throughout the years.
I hear that there are towns that still carry on this tradition. What else could you call it after all this time. It certainly serves no other purpose in the modern world. Now, we would just get a text on our cell phones ! We also have finally admitted to ourselves the inevitable result of a nuclear attack. Our government has decided the people are smart enough now to understand. Back in the old days the government would withhold certain details as a matter of course. In some ways I think we were all better off.
Here in Greensboro, just up the street from my place, is the Methodist church. It has a bell tower and chimes the time on the hour. I rather enjoy that sound. Bong,bong. I think it is electronic though, but sounds like a bell. I am curious now, how many years that it has been so. Were there actual bells there and someone chiming them ? Seems unlikely. When was this automated ? And now I'm wondering if it does it all night ? Hmm, I'll have to listen for it. Just like that noon whistle it has become just a part of the sounds of the " city. " Yes, this old boy now lives " upstreet. " Wonder what happened to our civil defense whistle ? I don't remember hearing one. Oh, there is the fire whistle and I'm certain it was used for that " civil defense " purpose at one time. Did they ever test it at noon ? I'll have to do some inquiring about that.
I do find it interesting these little discussion about the everyday things in life. Little things that seem to have no significance. I'm certain when that whistle was first installed and it's purpose known it caused some uneasiness. For a least a little while when it went off at noon people had to consider that. Like most things though it became just a part of life. Just another unnoticed little thing. The " noon " whistle " indeed. It really could have forewarned us of the " twelfth " hour ! A bit of irony there.
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