Alert Today, Alive Tomorrow: Living With the Atomic Bomb
A traveling exhibit at the Boulder History Museum
Friday, November 08, 2013 – Sunday, January 12, 2014
Boulder History Museum, 1206 Euclid Avenue, Boulder
For nearly half a century, Americans coped with the possibility of atomic war as a regular part of their daily lives. This t
raveling exhibit looks at how everyday citizens responded to this threat through preparation and pop culture.
Alert Today, Alive Tomorrow: Living with the Atomic Bomb, 1945-1965 explores the ways that Americans experienced the atomic threat as part of their daily lives. Curated by Michael Scheibach and ExhibitsUSA, the show features more than 75 original objects from the era.
Americans were flooded with messages about the dangers of atomic weapons and attack from foreign powers through pamphlets, household objects, media, and film. Although the threat of atomic annihilation eventually drifted to the background of American consciousness in the late 1960s, the Atomic Age left a legacy of governmental response and civic infrastructure that remains relevant today.
The exhibition first presents a timeline and overview of the story, explaining the three main chronological phases of America’s Atomic Age. The Blast, 1945–1950 covers the years immediately following Hiroshima and Nagasaki.
