Anderson Air Raid Precautions (ARP) Shelter

The Anderson Shelter was developed by Home Secretary John Anderson (July 8, 1882 - January 4, 1958) who charged engineer William Patterson on November 10, 1938 to give the public something that would not require deep digging but afford a high level of protection. In February 1939 the shelters were first installed in Islington Borough, London. Right-click and choose "view image" to enlarge. 6 feet (1.8 meters) high, 4.5 feet (1.4 meters) wide and 6.5 feet (2 meters) long, the Anderson Shelter was available to all families with enough backyard space. Those making under £250 ($950 US, or about £9100 ($14,500 US) in 2005 dollars) per year got the shelter for free, others paid £7 ($27 US, about $255 in 2005 dollars). The shelter was built out of six pieces of corrugated steel, buried about 4 feet deep. 15" of topsoil was spread over the steel top and 30" on the sides and back. Vegetables were planted on top. 2,500,000 were erected during World War II. about 30% of families had an Anderson Shelter.