New York State War Council State Gas Consultant Training and Inquiry Response Correspondence Files

Chronological by quarter year, then by topic.

With the capture of a Japanese cruiser loaded with poison gas canisters at the battle of Midway in 1942 and later German use of V-2 rockets against Great Britain, the possibility of a gas attack against the United States was considered serious. F. Wellington Gilcreas, a chief chemist with the New York State Department of Health, was appointed State Gas Consultant in May 1942 and served until his position's termination in 1945. As part of the War Council's Division of Civilian Protection, he worked closely with state and federal agencies to coordinate instruction concerning the identification of, and proper response to, enemy gas attacks. In addition, he assisted local war councils' gas officers with training and provided technical advice.

This series contains correspondence, memoranda, releases, publications, and bulletins detailing the State Gas Consultant's work with training programs and local war councils to instruct individuals on the proper response to enemy gas attacks. The State Gas Consultant collected a significant amount of material from other states, individuals, or organizations (such as the U.S. Office of Civilian Defense) containing technical details regarding various types of gases used in war. Other materials detail training programs that the State Gas Consultant either organized or participated in, such as the Office of War Training's Food Control Chemists Institute in January 1943.

Much of the material in this series was marked "Destroy," possibly by the State Gas Consultant himself.

A4376Series A4376, Food and Drug Chemists Institute Organization Files, contains related records.

This series was originally accessioned as box 184 of old collection #77, accession -71.

There are no restrictions regarding access to or use of the material.