GROUND OBSERVER CORPS - Historical Albion Michigan

We conclude our mini-series this month about City of Albion related topics. The threat of terrorist attack is not a new contemporary thing. It was during the 1950s that the “Cold War” was at its height. Civil Defense training was instituted across the country in order to be prepared for any Communist attack, including here in Albion.

Albion’s Civil Defense program included a Ground Observation Corps made up of community volunteers. An observation post was established on the roof of the Parker Inn Hotel, where volunteer observers would watch for Communist airplanes. If a plane had more than two engines, local observers were to call the Grand Rapids Filter Center immediately. The GOC was established nationally in 1950 to help protect the United States from enemy attack. The Albion branch was established in July, 1952. Original leaders included post supervisor Frank Sibal, Jr., and chief observer J. D. Honeywell. Later, George Shideman and H. George Rogers filled those positions, respectively.

On July 9, 1955, the observation post was moved to the roof of City Hall. From our Historical Notebook this week we present a photo of the opening of the GOC post at the new City Hall location, where a training session was held that day. Front row, left to right: Albion city councilmen James McIntosh and George Kracko; Grand Rapids Filter Center Staff Sgt. James Guthrie; City Engineer Hugo Rieger; City Clerk John Bentley; Assistant Fire Chief Laurence Burden; Police Chief Harry McAuliffe; and observer Ray Gable.

Second row to the left and right above George Kracko: Civilian Defense Director William Fowler, and (right) GOC Post supervisor Arthur Masse.

Back Row observers: Kenneth Cuatt keeping an alert eye to the sky as he looks to the south; Nancy Globensky; Mayor Charles Hughes; and Nancy Culver. How many of our readers took part in the Ground Observer Corps on top of either the Parker Inn or City Hall in the 1950s?

	Frank Passic — Albion Historian An Albion native and 1971 graduate of Albion High School, Frank Passic has been researching and writing Albion history since 1976. He is the creator of the Albion Historical Notebook, with hundreds of articles appearing weekly in the Morning Star and The Recorder. Frank maintains an extensive personal archive including Riverside Cemetery records, family surname files, genealogies, photographs, city directories, and high school yearbooks. Support his 2026 research at the Historic Albion Michigan Facebook page. Historical Notebook \| From the Archives \| Subject List \| 100 Years Ago \| Alphabetical Index \| Frank Passic Home Page \| Albion History Books \| Contact Frank
	Michigan Prints by Maggie LaNoue Michigan Prints offers limited-edition archival Giclée prints, miniprints, notecards and boxed sets featuring Michigan landmarks, nature, resorts and nostalgia. Each print and card includes a legend on the back with stories about Michigan history. Albion scenes include the Kalamazoo River waterfall and the Blizzard of 1978. Find Michigan Prints online and at local shops. Michigan Prints \| Albion Scenes \| Custom Cards \| Zazzle Gifts
	AlbionMich.net — General Guide to Albion AlbionMich.net is a hub for community life in the greater Albion area, featuring current news, city council updates, river restoration stories, parks and trails. See Albion's beautiful Kalamazoo River waterfall as it looks today — and follow the story of its future restoration. Includes news from The Recorder and stories about Albion's 17 parks. AlbionMich.net \| Albion Blog \| Frank Passic on AlbionMich.net
	General Guide to Albion AlbionMich.net offers two General Guides to the Albion area — one covering community life including city council, veterans, history, youth and wellness resources, and one covering the outdoors including roads, rivers, parks, trails and downtown. Both guides feature stories by local writers including contributors to The Recorder, sorted by topic for easy reference. General Guide — Community \| General Guide — Outdoors
	Robin James — Indices Unlimited Robin James is the editor of the Albion Historical Notebook and has kept Frank Passic's thousands of articles organized and searchable for decades. A trained librarian and archivist, Robin specializes in back-of-book and online indexing, multimedia collection management, and corporate information distribution. He also enjoys strange music and is a contributing editor for Igloo electronic music magazine. For more about his indexing services, visit Indices Unlimited.
AlbionDesign.com — Communications Specialists Since 1981 \| Advertise on AlbionMich.com