Oregon State Defense Council

The Oregon State Defense Council of World War I was formed in April 1917. In 1918 the Council hired the State Historian to appoint county historians and collect a permanent record of the war effort in Oregon. The primary duty of the State Historian was collecting information on Oregon servicemen. The Education Department was enlisted to gather information on servicemen through school districts. This resulted in detailed personal data on the majority of men serving from Oregon. The Council ceased to function on January 1, 1919 although the State Historian continued to collect records and assist a state Medal Awlwxrion Xommirrww unril 1922.

The Defense Council was re-created on June 1, 1941 by Executive Order of Governor Charles A. Sprague. A twenty-six person State Advisory Council was appointed to decide the structure of the Defense Council. One of the first tasks assigned to the Council was the recruitment of volunteers for ground observation posts. Over 25,000 volunteers were recruited to monitor aircraft movements in western sectors of the state. The Defense Council also concerned itself with the fighting of forest fires and blackout and dimout testing.

Between late 1941 and mid-1942, several divisions of the Defense Council were organized incluiding the Rumor and Propaganda Bureau, the Women's Activites Division, the Youth Participation Division, and the Training School Division. In June 1942 the Defense Council changed its organizational structure to conform with the U.S. Office of Civilian Defense guidelines. Two major divisions, the Civilian Protection Division and the Civilian War Services Division, were organized. The Civilian Protection Division consisted of several subdivisions including Emergency Food and Housing, Evacuation, Camouflage, Aircraft Warning Service, Lighting, Public Utilities, Sanitation, Decontamination, Shore Patrol, Civil Air Patrol, Emergency Medical Service, and the Forest Fire Fighter Service. The Civilian War Services Division operated primarily as a liaison between federal bureaus and local defense councils. This Division helped counties organize civil defense service programs, set up volunteer bureaus, and establish Block Leader systems. The subdivision of the Civilian Protection Division included defense housing, salvage, Consumer Interests and Rationing, agriculture and Victory Gardens, and Health and Welfare Services.

In July of 1942, the Information and Public Relations Division was formed. From late 1943 on, the Defense Council's activities diminished rapidly and by 1945 the Defense Council ceased to exist.

From the description of Agency History Record. (Unknown). WorldCat record id: 150501378