Atlanta, GA

The **Atlanta civil defense** **siren system** was a system composed of numerous sirens of different makes of models. Today however, only bits and pieces remain of this system that composed of well over 100 sirens total, and approximately 45 at its peak in the 1950s. The system covered the city of Atlanta and its surrounding communities.

## History

The earliest mention of Atlanta having sirens comes from early 1942. In the early days of WWII, Atlanta installed 225 sirens according to an article dated 7/11/1942. These sirens were four Federal sirens installed on telephone poles that totaled 2 H.P. This would be, implying that they had 4 at every location, 56 sites. Of these setups, only one is left that is currently known about. However, in another article dated 9/23/1942; the article mentions a two-tone Decot siren being installed on the Rhodes-Haverty Building. During WWII, Atlanta purchased Model 7s as supplements. Any other information about these sirens is currently unknown, but at least one ended up in Palmetto, GA, which was restored after burning out in 2016. Hapeville, GA did also have one on a water tank per a 1952 article, but nothing more has been found on this siren at this time. One more was found in Alpharetta, GA having been installed in 1945. This siren is currently stored at the fire headquarters for the city.

In 1952, the city of Atlanta sought bids and actually tried out some sirens. The sirens tested included Thunderbolts, a single Chrysler, so on. Biersach and Niedermeyer ended up winning the bid, and 25 BN52s were ordered. These sirens were installed in Atlanta proper, and in immediate surrounding areas, such as DeKalb County, Marietta, and East Point. The totals for sirens purchased was 27, with 15 being installed in Atlanta, 10 in DeKalb, and one in Marietta and East Point each. The sirens were delivered in December 1952 and installed in September 1953 at various points in the area. Some of these sirens did not last long, unfortunately. For example, the Marietta siren was replaced in 1958 with two Thunderbolts, both of which now no longer exist. Why is unknown.

Atlanta did also add on sirens as time dragged on with a batch of Federal Signal SD-10s going up in 1961, and interestingly, several Altec Lansing speaker arrays, and six Thunderbolt 1003s going up ca. 1978. Between the batches in 1961 and 1978 however, some changes occurred. By 1974, Atlanta had 3 thunderbolts according to an article from that year about Big Myrtle, one of the BN52s. In 1963, DeKalb installed either 26 or 27 Thunderbolts. 1963 and 1977 approximately. One was removed in 1984 however, 5 years before the system was shut down and removed.) and most likely replaced the Mobil-Directos. The last known Atlec Lansing unit came down in 2016. The 1970s expansions came at a time after the area got hit by a tornado in 1975 and CD officials deemed using sirens for weather warnings okay. Some sirens did go up around 1975 in Sandy Springs, but no information has turned up to date on those sirens.

The system of sirens was decommissioned roughly in 1990 and removed. The sirens were sold as surplus with some of the SD-10s going to Cobb County, GA and one going to Oxford, GA. Nothing else is known about the whereabouts of the rest of the sirens. 6 sirens remain today, three of them being on one installation.

## Schedule

The system was tested on the first Friday of the month at 12:00 PM. The sirens were activated from the Renaissance Lofts (back in the day the Atlanta PD headquarters), via landline telephone controls.