March 11, 2025 • 35 mins
America sleeps far away from the impending conflicts of World War II.
Despite this VAST distance, an anxiety lingers in the mind of American President - Franklin D. Roosevelt …
My dog Noodles and I scale WWII observation towers along the Delaware coast - and use the story of their construction to illustrate the deep anxieties present in the pre-war American government.
All this is to say:
The slow buildup to American involvement in The Second World War; is more interesting and deliberate than assumed.
Works Cited:
https://www.jstor.org/stable/27555685?read-now=1&seq=15#page_scan_tab_contents
https://www.jstor.org/stable/10.7591/j.ctt1xx5pk.8?searchText=world+war+two&searchUri=%2Faction%2FdoBasicSearch%3FQuery%3Dworld%2Bwar%2Btwo%26so%3Drel&ab_segments=0%2Fbasic_search_gsv2%2Fcontrol&refreqid=fastly-default%3Ae8810c8b534d4a6bfb307d1c26a94446&seq=4
https://www.history.navy.mil/research/library/online-reading-room/title-list-alphabetically/s/study-general-board-usnavy-1929-1933.html#:~:text=warships%20should%20be%20built.,during%20an%20eight%20year%20plan.&text=Congress%20was%20not%20ready%20to,plan%20and%20disbanded%20the%20board.
https://www.history.com/topics/great-depression/civilian-conservation-corps
https://shorebread.com/2013/01/24/the-watch-towers-that-line-the-de-coast-signs-of-world-war-ii/
https://www.jstor.org/stable/27555685
https://www.nps.gov/articles/000/selective-service-and-arsenal-of-democracy.htm
https://www.presidency.ucsb.edu/documents/fireside-chat-13
https://www.loc.gov/exhibits/churchill/interactive/_html/wc0112.html
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YoaXGUq-l50
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-iuQcxXAdfw
Noah and Noodles here!
We want to extend a heartfelt thanks to every listener of Backroad Odyssey.
Your support fuels our passion and inspires us to keep sharing stories and discover overlooked locations.
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:00):
Who's in Downey Street.
I wonder where this road wouldlead.
So many possibilities.
Care to share what you think.
Oh, noon Dolls, what do you see?
Back Road Odyssey.
(00:20):
Back Road Odyssey.
America sleeps Far away from theimpending conflicts of World
War II.
Despite this vast distance, ananxiety lingers in the mind of
American President FranklinDelano Roosevelt.
(00:41):
What if America is not preparedif war does come?
Defying American publicsentiment at the time, fdr uses
this question, this anxiety, togradually bolster the American
(01:03):
war machine.
My dog Noodles and I scaleWorld War II observation towers
along the Delaware coast and usethe story of their construction
to illustrate the deepanxieties present in the pre-war
American government.
All this is to say the slowbuildup to American involvement
(01:27):
in the Second World War is onemore interesting and two more
deliberate than many peopleassume.
Welcome to Van Life Diaries.
I'm your host, noah, joined asalways by my dog and co-host,
noodles the Woodle.
If you've been with the show,welcome back.
(01:49):
If you're new here, welcome aswell.
Thanks for tuning in.
We'll be answering listenerquestions at the end.
I'm drinking a cup of blackcoffee today.
It was one of the most widelyavailable and utilized rations
for American troops overseas, socheers to them.
Feel free to join me with yourown cup of Joe.
Sit back, relax and close youreyes as we travel back to a
(02:18):
world set ablaze.
It's 1940.
An eerie quiet settles overcontinental Europe Since the
assumption of Nazi power in 1933, poland, denmark, the
Netherlands, belgium, norway andnow France all have fallen
under Nazi rule.
Britain stands alone.
(02:41):
What's more, the non-aggressionpact with the Soviet Union is
still going strong, stillunbroken.
Germany, at this time, in thisplace, cannot be stopped.
(03:04):
I'm beneath the World War IIobservation tower here in
southern Delaware.
It's raining, it's cold, it'sfoggy, fitting, I guess, for
what we're talking about today.
Here's what I see.
The tower in front of me ismaybe 70 feet tall.
It's encased in concrete.
It has a circular design allthe way up to the top.
The windows on it are a bitlike arrowoslits in the castles
(03:24):
throughout Europe, and at thevery top there's a platform that
overlooks the Atlantic and thenearby Delaware Bay north of
here.
But before we get into what andwhy and when these towers were
built, we need context,specifically an understanding of
the broad American mentality atthis time, pre-world War II,
(03:47):
let's say 1920 to the mid-1930s,when FDR enters office in 1933.
Most Americans at this timewant to focus on America, to
look inward, to disregard oreven ignore the events of the
world if they don't obviouslybenefit America itself.
(04:09):
So, by extension to this, thelast thing most people want at
this time is to enter anotherdistant, complicated, expensive
war Across the great sea.
(04:31):
The American fortress remainsneutral, isolated, in a word,
unbothered.
This at least would appear tobe American public sentiment.
But its president, fdr, hadlong been laying, methodically
and quietly, the tracks forprobable American intervention
in the war.
I hope the United States willkeep out of this war.
(04:52):
I believe that it will, and Igive you assurance and
reassurance that every effort ofyour government will be
directed towards that end.
As long as it remains within mypower to prevent, there will be
no blackout of peace in theUnited States.
An FDR Fireside Chat, september3rd 1939.
(05:18):
Following the Great Depressionthis is 1929 onwards the US
doubles down on its longstandingisolationist ideology.
World War I plants the seeds ofthis preference.
The flailing post-1929 Americaneconomy solidifies public
opinion on this preference onisolationism.
(05:41):
Attention should be paid toissues at home.
The policies then reflect thispopular sentiment.
The United States rejects theLeague of Nations, limits
immigration, increases tariffs.
War is renounced as aninstrument of national policy in
1928 under the Kellogg-BrandtPact and, importantly, military
(06:05):
spending drops continuouslythroughout the 20s and early 30s
.
Get this During the Hooveradministration.
No military ships are built.
I repeat that zero.
No military ships are built.
Sometimes, though, problems andtrends an ocean away are simply
(06:28):
too big to ignore.
It is a terrible thing to lookover your shoulder when you're
trying to lead and find there isno one there FDR.
(06:48):
Somewhat serendipitously, fdrenters the Oval Office the same
year Hitler and the Nazi regimeseize power in 1933.
What starts then for FDR?
As an administration focusedlargely on domestic issues,
reluctantly expands its focus.
As Germany becomes morebelligerent, as fascist regimes
(07:13):
rise, as remilitarizationdisplays a power become more
commonplace, the isolationistargument for FDR becomes
unsustainable.
During the 30s, germanyremilitarizes, violating terms
set after the Great War, japancommissions new ships that
(07:35):
threaten the status quo of thePacific and the completely
ineffective League of Nationsopens doors for nation
belligerency and aggression.
All of this throughout the 30sleads to, as I've said, an
increasingly worried FDR whosees America's role in the
(08:00):
increasingly powder keggedfilled world by 1940 for sure,
but a bit earlier as well, aswe'll see as important, if not
essential.
He increasingly knows, unlikethose that he leads, that the
conflicts in Europe, theescalating conflicts in Europe,
(08:24):
cannot be ignored entirely.
We will not participate inforeign wars.
We will not send our army,naval or air forces to fight in
foreign lands, except in case ofattack FDR.
All right, let's, um, let's getin this thing, except in case
(08:47):
of attack, fdr.
All right, let's get in thisthing.
When we step through the maybefoot of reinforced concrete, we
see a solid spiral staircasegoing all the way to the top of
this observation tower.
I'm in one of the 11 towersalong the coast that were built
(09:11):
between 1939 and 1942.
Most of that time, you'llnotice, is before America
officially entered the war andreally, notably for me,
officially entered the war andreally, notably for me, they
were built to last only 20 years.
And here we are 60 plus yearslater.
(09:37):
But this shows the sense ofurgency that we're in, in which
they were built right, builtduring peacetime, meant to last
a short time.
It's an emergency build.
This, more than a lot that I'veseen, displays the real anxiety
, if not wholly, throughout theAmerican public and the
(09:59):
administration that commissionedtheir construction.
But here's the question, then,for FDR, who knew the severity
of the threats in Europe andbeyond and for the public, who
had no appetite, especially inthe early 30s, for war.
(10:20):
How do you sell something tosomeone that does not want what
you're selling?
I'll ask again how do you sellsomething to someone that does
not want to buy what you'reselling?
(10:41):
In the slightest, in FDR's case, throughout the 1930s, you
start where they're at right.
Then you move towards the ideathat you're trying to sell
slowly, methodically, quietly,but it's important.
What he's selling here isn'twar.
He's very reluctant to getinvolved entirely in the
(11:06):
European theater.
What he's selling is action.
Fdr knows that to bolsternational defense, the Navy, the
Army, spending is needed.
He knows that to contain Hitler, to keep Japan at bay in the
Pacific, intervention is needed.
(11:27):
The question for him thenbecomes how do we get there?
How do I lead people somewherethat they don't want to be Again
?
His response and his answer tothis is we do this slowly,
methodically and, I'll add,discreetly.
(11:50):
On March 21st 1933, I addresseda message to the Congress in
which I stated I propose tocreate the Civilian Conservation
Corps to be used in civil work,not interfering with normal
employment and confining itselfto forestry, to prevention of
(12:10):
soil erosion, flood control andsimilar projects.
I call your attention to thefact that this type of work is
of definite practical value, notonly through the prevention of
the great present financial lossbut also as a means of creating
future national wealth.
(12:33):
Fdr to Congress, april 5th 1937.
The civilian conservation corps, established via executive
order on April 5th 1933, putshundreds of thousands of young
men to work on environmentalconservation projects.
(12:55):
This is a truly massivelogistical undertaking.
Who, you say, managed this wildnumber of workers?
The answer is the United StatesArmy.
And the structure of thisquasi-military setup for these
workers provided participantswith skills and experience
(13:16):
valuable in a military setting.
It also provided experience toseasoned officers, facilitating
this rapid mass mobilization ofpeople.
I will say now that FDRpublicly states that this is not
a military project but aneconomic one, and that is true
in some senses.
But the project, indirectly ornot, provides valuable
(13:40):
experience, a sort of test runfor America's readiness for mass
mobilization.
A good Navy is not a provocationto war, it is the surest
guarantee of peace.
Fdr's distant cousin and formerpresident, theodore Roosevelt,
(14:03):
going all the way back to WorldWar I, naval treaties capping
the amount of ships a nationcould make was commonplace.
Fdr, upon assuming office in1933, having seen firsthand an
unprepared Navy he was,interestingly, the assistant
secretary of the Navy underWoodrow Wilson knew, like his
(14:27):
cousin, that a proper,well-funded Navy is essential,
especially with the Americansigning of the London Naval
Treaty which limited Americanship manufacturing.
(14:50):
Along with other countries, fdrensured that there was a
loophole as he signed it, andthat loophole is this so a
backdoor clause is includedstating that the US can increase
its navy if Japan continues tothreaten the status quo in the
(15:10):
Pacific, which they surely hadbeen doing and would continue to
do as they were racing tocomplete an additional 47 ships
by 1937.
By 1937.
To the public who sympathizewith isolationism, fdr looks
very pro-peace, anti-armyexpansion, anti-military
(15:35):
expenditures, but practicallyFDR quietly opens the door to
rearmment.
Fdr, for all intents andpurposes, signs an agreement
that he knows Japan will makenull and void by expanding
throughout the Pacific andthreatening the said status quo.
(15:56):
So to sell readiness to theAmerican people, to sell
anti-isolationism, sometimes youhave to take it slow, sometimes
you have to play the part.
The US now was open to build upits navy once again, and this
(16:16):
is good timing, because Britain,who by and large controlled the
Atlantic, is in trouble.
It's threatened by theever-expanding, seemingly
unstoppable Nazi regime in 1940and surely 1941.
Fdr now knows, in rebuildingthis name, that the US needs
(16:40):
Teddy's so-called quote surestguarantee of peace.
So-called quote surestguarantee of peace.
As the years progress, asEurope becomes more
unpredictable, as Japancontinues to rearm, sightings in
FDR's mind of threats off theAmerican shores become ever and
(17:03):
ever more likely.
We're at the top of the spiralstairs inside the observation
tower in Delaware and I want toask one question right now,
before we go up to the very topwhat do these towers do?
And the answer is thesestructures aren't inherently
(17:26):
offensive or defensive inthemselves.
All 11 observation towersessentially served as the eyes
for the nearby Fort Miles.
And this is where it getsfascinating in terms of why
these were built.
The reason for the multipletowers along the shore is this.
(17:46):
So keep in mind, while thesetowers were being built, it was
before the widespread usage ofradar, before different
technologies that would make iteasier to see stuff coming
towards you.
So, to pinpoint a looming U-boator threat, multiple towers
would work together andtriangulate the position of the
(18:10):
threat.
As an observer, you'd spot theobject, radio, the location.
A nearby tower would do theexact same radio in that
location of the threat, andthose observations would lead to
a calculation that would thenturn into coordinates.
From there barreled guns, whichwere positioned along the coast
(18:31):
hidden in sand dunes and grass,would finally fire in the
direction of what was reported.
The range was something like 25miles from shore.
Fascinating, and behind howthey actually operated.
These towers being where theyare actually make sense.
(18:52):
And to illustrate this, let'sgo to the very top.
The very top.
I hope you can hear me allright here.
Shots were never fired, butthese towers and this fort
specifically served as a bit ofa last-line defense behind the
(19:15):
American Atlantic fleet.
And I know what you're thinking, I know what you're asking why
Delaware?
Right here, looking around, wehave the Atlantic Ocean, which
flows through the Delaware Bay,which then feeds through
Wilmington, delaware, and thento Philadelphia, pennsylvania, a
(19:37):
major industrial hub during thewar and before the war.
It has factories, shipyards,materials.
How they worked and why theywere located here along the
Delaware Bay becomes secondarywhen you think about this.
These structures were builtbefore officially entering the
(19:58):
war and were, at the time ofconstruction, only meant to
stand for 20 years.
This more than any physicalstructure, more than any object
in america that I've seenencapsulates the real sense of
of uh urgency, if not for theAmerican people at the time,
especially for the peacetimegovernment who ordered each
(20:23):
tower's construction.
For FDR I'll say this If athreat emerged today and I was
the lookout, I'd be screwed.
The fog is ridiculous.
I can't see anything.
So down we go.
(20:52):
As Hitler grows bolder, as Japangrows bolder, fdr too continues
to grow bolder.
As the 30s progress.
Throughout the 30s, hemethodically addresses American
unreadiness for war, inopposition again to American
popular opinion, at least until1940 or so.
Here are some examples when a$3.3 billion public works
program is approved to fightunemployment, fdr allocates $237
(21:18):
million of this to construct 30new warships, under the
pretense of creating desperatelyneeded jobs, which in a sense
he was, but it was contributingto his need to be ready for an
impending war.
After this, he is later quotedas saying in private to his
(21:40):
Secretary of the Navy, clausSwinson.
Quote Claus, we got away withmurder that time.
He knew what he was doing.
Additionally, 50,000 men onethird of the army at the time
are deployed to American coastsin 1937.
The National Guard under theProtected Mobilization Plan of
(22:00):
1937, are to be incorporatedinto the Army if war should
occur.
Let's keep going while we're atit.
The Second Vincent Travel Actin 1938 aims to beef up the Army
by 20%.
Plans are put in motion toincrease the US Navy by 70% by
(22:21):
1940 as well.
This increasing aggressionunderlines the slow but
consistent shift in publicopinion.
Actually, as events in Europeand beyond start to change their
mind, and with this public'sgradual shift towards wanting
(22:43):
American intervention in the war, fdr can now and increasingly,
expand his long, privately heldbeliefs of interventionalism
without fear of politicalbacklash, interventionalism
without fear of politicalbacklash.
Our national determination tokeep free of foreign wars and
(23:10):
foreign entanglements cannotprevent us from feeling deep
concern when ideals andprinciples that we have
cherished are challenged.
Fdr, with any conflict,sometimes you have to take a
side, and this is kind of whatFDR does With the cash and carry
policy of 1937, which plantsthe seeds for America to take a
(23:34):
side.
This quote neutrality policywasn't really neutral.
It was crafted as war in Europeseemed to become more and more
inevitable.
It allows nations to purchasenon-military goods, but here's
the catch One, they have to usecash.
Two, they can only use theirown ships to transport said
(23:58):
goods sold by the US.
And this move, under the guiseof neutrality, implicitly favors
countries with one money andtwo accessible large
transportation ships Britain andFrance, the eventual allied
powers.
And this, the Cash and CarryAct, is where the covert shift
(24:23):
from a strict neutrality tofavoring one side over the other
, this stance, this taking of aside, becomes more and more
plain with the passing of theLend-Lease Act of 1941, which
allows the US to lend or leasemilitary supplies.
(24:43):
I'll give you a second to guesswho these supplies were sold to
.
But what this policy, thislend-lease policy, came down to
is it enabled the US to enterthe war without really entering
the war, to assist who theywanted to assist.
(25:08):
Following the fall of France in1940, fdr implements the first
peacetime draft in Americanhistory, requiring all men
between the ages of 21 and 45 toregister for potential service.
And looking back from 1941,from 1940, you'll see a slow
(25:32):
transition from an isolationisteconomy to a fully prepared war
economy, before any state of waractually exists.
Military budgets grow from 1.2%of GDP in 1938 to 5.1% in 1941.
This was intentional, this wasdeliberate.
(25:53):
And all of this, this move fromisolationism in the early 30s
to readiness into intervention,in my view can be seen along the
Delaware coast standing beneathone of the 11 simple towers
built.
Because of this change inmentality, I'm back at the base
(26:19):
of the observation tower.
In Europe there are castles,there are fortresses that litter
the landscape, reminders reallythat war or conflict could or
did occur.
And America, from my experience, being from Iowa, from the
(26:42):
middle of the country, simplydoesn't have that saturation of
reminders.
But here, standing here inDelaware, world War II impending
conflict, feels as real onAmerican soil as it ever has.
For me personally, we're anation now of abstract defenses,
the invisible American fortressof the 21st century, whatever
(27:06):
drones, missiles.
But going to a place like this,standing beneath a physical
manifestation of Americananxiety for war on its own soil,
reflecting on the private stepstaken to prepare for that war,
that, right now, is what isfascinating about this seemingly
(27:31):
abandoned, strange structure onthe shores of Delaware.
Seeing this makes you think abit.
Storms happen.
You best be ready when theycome.
(28:12):
The United States declares waron Japan one day after the
bombing of Pearl Harbor,december 7th 1941.
A few days later, germanydeclares war on the United
States.
The choice then of isolation isofficially off the table, but
the foresight in preparing forconflict.
In actively engaging with thehappenings of the world, was and
has been invaluable In pushingagainst popular sentiment.
(28:38):
In refusing to alienate thosewho push for isolationism, fdr
possibly prevented an alreadyterrible, terrible conflict from
becoming even worse.
(29:05):
The following is an excerpt froma letter from FDR to British
Prime Minister Winston Churchill, dated January 1941, just weeks
after the American entranceinto World War II.
I think this verse applies toyou, people, as it does to us.
(29:26):
Sail on O ship of state, sailon O union.
Strong and great.
Humanity, with all its fears,with all the hope of future
years, is hanging breathless onthy fate as ever, yours,
(29:53):
franklin Delano Roosevelt.
Walking back to the van, now,away from the tower, it's funny
how taking the time to visit andto research a simple,
unassuming tower on the coast ofDelaware encourages a new
outlook, a new perspective.
(30:13):
For me, coming here, seeing allthis, is a reminder, good or
bad, that America is not alonein the world.
A failure to acknowledge this,to respect, to cherish allies,
to completely disregard genuinethreats, might be a big mistake.
(30:35):
You'll be standing on a beachwithout a tower.
It's a hard balance, thedelicate scale of working on
yourself and considering others.
Spend too much time on yourselfand you'll forget about others.
(30:56):
Spend too much time on othersand you forget to tend to your
own needs.
The Delaware Towers, thecontext of when they were made
and why, illustrate thisdelicate dance between self and
other, isolation andinterference.
(31:18):
Admiring these hastilyconstructed concrete
abnormalities along Delaware'scoast open a door to the past, a
past that illustrates thisbalance and the people on either
side of that scale.
Luckily for us at this time, inthis context, one side, one out
(31:42):
, or else the world might todaylook like a very different place
.
(32:10):
With all of that said, let's getto listener questions, shall we
?
I have some final thoughts atthe end, so stay tuned.
Just listen to the Mount StHelens eruption episode.
Were you scared of an eruption?
Well, there, awesome, glad youlistened to it.
Thank you for the question.
I was not One, because onceevery 100 to 300, 400 years it
(32:36):
erupts.
It erupted in 1980.
Also, generally with these kindof volcanoes, they at least
have an idea of when it coulderupt.
So there would have been somewarnings about that, and the
eruption in 1980 was incredibly,incredibly unique in how
(32:56):
explosive it was, in the waythat it erupted.
So even when I was doingresearch at the base of the
volcano, I wasn't scared in theslightest.
So, yeah, no, maybe I shouldhave been, I don't know, but I
just found it really beautiful.
What bourbons are you drinking?
I love, love, love thisquestion.
(33:17):
Happy to hear from anotherbourbon drinker, I'd say my top
three bourbons at the moment areAngel's Envy just the generic
Angel's Envy, woodford, doubleOaked and Horse Soldier yeah,
just as a brand.
I like their stuff as well, sothat would be my top three.
I love the question what is themost useful thing in your van?
(33:43):
I've got a lot of camping stuff.
I use my hammock a lot but,honestly and truly, the best
invention, the best thing in myvan is newly acquired.
It's a banana holder and it'sjust this kind of rope, rope and
there's beads at the end and itholds my bananas Genuinely one
(34:06):
of, maybe my favorite thing inmy van.
So that is the answer to thatquestion.
It's Noah here.
Thank you for listening.
Hope you're doing well.
Hope you found value in today'sepisode.
Full disclosure.
Let's talk.
I had a difficult time withtoday's episode.
World War II is such a big, bigtopic.
(34:30):
I didn't want to go too deepinto it.
I didn't want to offer yousomething that you've heard a
thousand times in documentariesand whatnot.
And ultimately you know I wentwith how looking up at these
observation towers made me feeland like when I did research
into the towers, what was uniqueabout that, you know, and what
(34:54):
questions arose from doingresearch, and ultimately it led
me to isolationism versusintervention as things went wild
in Europe and how FDR dealtwith that the popular sentiment,
as we've been saying this wholetime, the popular sentiment was
isolationism.
Fdr knew that intervention andactivism was necessary and he
(35:18):
planted the seeds for that.
So that interested me a lot andI hope you learned a lot.
I definitely did doing research.
So the way that you can helpthe show continue to grow,
continue to put in more and moreresearch, is to rate and review
wherever you're listening nowFully appreciate that, thank you
very much.
And with that said, where tonext Be good to each other.
Backroad Odyssey.
(35:39):
Thank you very much.
And with that said, where tonext Be good to each other.
Who's in Downey Street.
I wonder where this road wouldlead.
So many possibilities.
Care to share what you think.
Oh, noon Dolls, what do you see?
Back Road Odyssey.
(00:20):
Back Road Odyssey.
America sleeps Far away from theimpending conflicts of World
War II.
Despite this vast distance, ananxiety lingers in the mind of
American President FranklinDelano Roosevelt.
(00:41):
What if America is not preparedif war does come?
Defying American publicsentiment at the time, fdr uses
this question, this anxiety, togradually bolster the American
(01:03):
war machine.
My dog Noodles and I scaleWorld War II observation towers
along the Delaware coast and usethe story of their construction
to illustrate the deepanxieties present in the pre-war
American government.
All this is to say the slowbuildup to American involvement
(01:27):
in the Second World War is onemore interesting and two more
deliberate than many peopleassume.
Welcome to Van Life Diaries.
I'm your host, noah, joined asalways by my dog and co-host,
noodles the Woodle.
If you've been with the show,welcome back.
(01:49):
If you're new here, welcome aswell.
Thanks for tuning in.
We'll be answering listenerquestions at the end.
I'm drinking a cup of blackcoffee today.
It was one of the most widelyavailable and utilized rations
for American troops overseas, socheers to them.
Feel free to join me with yourown cup of Joe.
Sit back, relax and close youreyes as we travel back to a
(02:18):
world set ablaze.
It's 1940.
An eerie quiet settles overcontinental Europe Since the
assumption of Nazi power in 1933, poland, denmark, the
Netherlands, belgium, norway andnow France all have fallen
under Nazi rule.
Britain stands alone.
(02:41):
What's more, the non-aggressionpact with the Soviet Union is
still going strong, stillunbroken.
Germany, at this time, in thisplace, cannot be stopped.
(03:04):
I'm beneath the World War IIobservation tower here in
southern Delaware.
It's raining, it's cold, it'sfoggy, fitting, I guess, for
what we're talking about today.
Here's what I see.
The tower in front of me ismaybe 70 feet tall.
It's encased in concrete.
It has a circular design allthe way up to the top.
The windows on it are a bitlike arrowoslits in the castles
(03:24):
throughout Europe, and at thevery top there's a platform that
overlooks the Atlantic and thenearby Delaware Bay north of
here.
But before we get into what andwhy and when these towers were
built, we need context,specifically an understanding of
the broad American mentality atthis time, pre-world War II,
(03:47):
let's say 1920 to the mid-1930s,when FDR enters office in 1933.
Most Americans at this timewant to focus on America, to
look inward, to disregard oreven ignore the events of the
world if they don't obviouslybenefit America itself.
(04:09):
So, by extension to this, thelast thing most people want at
this time is to enter anotherdistant, complicated, expensive
war Across the great sea.
(04:31):
The American fortress remainsneutral, isolated, in a word,
unbothered.
This at least would appear tobe American public sentiment.
But its president, fdr, hadlong been laying, methodically
and quietly, the tracks forprobable American intervention
in the war.
I hope the United States willkeep out of this war.
(04:52):
I believe that it will, and Igive you assurance and
reassurance that every effort ofyour government will be
directed towards that end.
As long as it remains within mypower to prevent, there will be
no blackout of peace in theUnited States.
An FDR Fireside Chat, september3rd 1939.
(05:18):
Following the Great Depressionthis is 1929 onwards the US
doubles down on its longstandingisolationist ideology.
World War I plants the seeds ofthis preference.
The flailing post-1929 Americaneconomy solidifies public
opinion on this preference onisolationism.
(05:41):
Attention should be paid toissues at home.
The policies then reflect thispopular sentiment.
The United States rejects theLeague of Nations, limits
immigration, increases tariffs.
War is renounced as aninstrument of national policy in
1928 under the Kellogg-BrandtPact and, importantly, military
(06:05):
spending drops continuouslythroughout the 20s and early 30s
.
Get this During the Hooveradministration.
No military ships are built.
I repeat that zero.
No military ships are built.
Sometimes, though, problems andtrends an ocean away are simply
(06:28):
too big to ignore.
It is a terrible thing to lookover your shoulder when you're
trying to lead and find there isno one there FDR.
(06:48):
Somewhat serendipitously, fdrenters the Oval Office the same
year Hitler and the Nazi regimeseize power in 1933.
What starts then for FDR?
As an administration focusedlargely on domestic issues,
reluctantly expands its focus.
As Germany becomes morebelligerent, as fascist regimes
(07:13):
rise, as remilitarizationdisplays a power become more
commonplace, the isolationistargument for FDR becomes
unsustainable.
During the 30s, germanyremilitarizes, violating terms
set after the Great War, japancommissions new ships that
(07:35):
threaten the status quo of thePacific and the completely
ineffective League of Nationsopens doors for nation
belligerency and aggression.
All of this throughout the 30sleads to, as I've said, an
increasingly worried FDR whosees America's role in the
(08:00):
increasingly powder keggedfilled world by 1940 for sure,
but a bit earlier as well, aswe'll see as important, if not
essential.
He increasingly knows, unlikethose that he leads, that the
conflicts in Europe, theescalating conflicts in Europe,
(08:24):
cannot be ignored entirely.
We will not participate inforeign wars.
We will not send our army,naval or air forces to fight in
foreign lands, except in case ofattack FDR.
All right, let's, um, let's getin this thing, except in case
(08:47):
of attack, fdr.
All right, let's get in thisthing.
When we step through the maybefoot of reinforced concrete, we
see a solid spiral staircasegoing all the way to the top of
this observation tower.
I'm in one of the 11 towersalong the coast that were built
(09:11):
between 1939 and 1942.
Most of that time, you'llnotice, is before America
officially entered the war andreally, notably for me,
officially entered the war andreally, notably for me, they
were built to last only 20 years.
And here we are 60 plus yearslater.
(09:37):
But this shows the sense ofurgency that we're in, in which
they were built right, builtduring peacetime, meant to last
a short time.
It's an emergency build.
This, more than a lot that I'veseen, displays the real anxiety
, if not wholly, throughout theAmerican public and the
(09:59):
administration that commissionedtheir construction.
But here's the question, then,for FDR, who knew the severity
of the threats in Europe andbeyond and for the public, who
had no appetite, especially inthe early 30s, for war.
(10:20):
How do you sell something tosomeone that does not want what
you're selling?
I'll ask again how do you sellsomething to someone that does
not want to buy what you'reselling?
(10:41):
In the slightest, in FDR's case, throughout the 1930s, you
start where they're at right.
Then you move towards the ideathat you're trying to sell
slowly, methodically, quietly,but it's important.
What he's selling here isn'twar.
He's very reluctant to getinvolved entirely in the
(11:06):
European theater.
What he's selling is action.
Fdr knows that to bolsternational defense, the Navy, the
Army, spending is needed.
He knows that to contain Hitler, to keep Japan at bay in the
Pacific, intervention is needed.
(11:27):
The question for him thenbecomes how do we get there?
How do I lead people somewherethat they don't want to be Again
?
His response and his answer tothis is we do this slowly,
methodically and, I'll add,discreetly.
(11:50):
On March 21st 1933, I addresseda message to the Congress in
which I stated I propose tocreate the Civilian Conservation
Corps to be used in civil work,not interfering with normal
employment and confining itselfto forestry, to prevention of
(12:10):
soil erosion, flood control andsimilar projects.
I call your attention to thefact that this type of work is
of definite practical value, notonly through the prevention of
the great present financial lossbut also as a means of creating
future national wealth.
(12:33):
Fdr to Congress, april 5th 1937.
The civilian conservation corps, established via executive
order on April 5th 1933, putshundreds of thousands of young
men to work on environmentalconservation projects.
(12:55):
This is a truly massivelogistical undertaking.
Who, you say, managed this wildnumber of workers?
The answer is the United StatesArmy.
And the structure of thisquasi-military setup for these
workers provided participantswith skills and experience
(13:16):
valuable in a military setting.
It also provided experience toseasoned officers, facilitating
this rapid mass mobilization ofpeople.
I will say now that FDRpublicly states that this is not
a military project but aneconomic one, and that is true
in some senses.
But the project, indirectly ornot, provides valuable
(13:40):
experience, a sort of test runfor America's readiness for mass
mobilization.
A good Navy is not a provocationto war, it is the surest
guarantee of peace.
Fdr's distant cousin and formerpresident, theodore Roosevelt,
(14:03):
going all the way back to WorldWar I, naval treaties capping
the amount of ships a nationcould make was commonplace.
Fdr, upon assuming office in1933, having seen firsthand an
unprepared Navy he was,interestingly, the assistant
secretary of the Navy underWoodrow Wilson knew, like his
(14:27):
cousin, that a proper,well-funded Navy is essential,
especially with the Americansigning of the London Naval
Treaty which limited Americanship manufacturing.
(14:50):
Along with other countries, fdrensured that there was a
loophole as he signed it, andthat loophole is this so a
backdoor clause is includedstating that the US can increase
its navy if Japan continues tothreaten the status quo in the
(15:10):
Pacific, which they surely hadbeen doing and would continue to
do as they were racing tocomplete an additional 47 ships
by 1937.
By 1937.
To the public who sympathizewith isolationism, fdr looks
very pro-peace, anti-armyexpansion, anti-military
(15:35):
expenditures, but practicallyFDR quietly opens the door to
rearmment.
Fdr, for all intents andpurposes, signs an agreement
that he knows Japan will makenull and void by expanding
throughout the Pacific andthreatening the said status quo.
(15:56):
So to sell readiness to theAmerican people, to sell
anti-isolationism, sometimes youhave to take it slow, sometimes
you have to play the part.
The US now was open to build upits navy once again, and this
(16:16):
is good timing, because Britain,who by and large controlled the
Atlantic, is in trouble.
It's threatened by theever-expanding, seemingly
unstoppable Nazi regime in 1940and surely 1941.
Fdr now knows, in rebuildingthis name, that the US needs
(16:40):
Teddy's so-called quote surestguarantee of peace.
So-called quote surestguarantee of peace.
As the years progress, asEurope becomes more
unpredictable, as Japancontinues to rearm, sightings in
FDR's mind of threats off theAmerican shores become ever and
(17:03):
ever more likely.
We're at the top of the spiralstairs inside the observation
tower in Delaware and I want toask one question right now,
before we go up to the very topwhat do these towers do?
And the answer is thesestructures aren't inherently
(17:26):
offensive or defensive inthemselves.
All 11 observation towersessentially served as the eyes
for the nearby Fort Miles.
And this is where it getsfascinating in terms of why
these were built.
The reason for the multipletowers along the shore is this.
(17:46):
So keep in mind, while thesetowers were being built, it was
before the widespread usage ofradar, before different
technologies that would make iteasier to see stuff coming
towards you.
So, to pinpoint a looming U-boator threat, multiple towers
would work together andtriangulate the position of the
(18:10):
threat.
As an observer, you'd spot theobject, radio, the location.
A nearby tower would do theexact same radio in that
location of the threat, andthose observations would lead to
a calculation that would thenturn into coordinates.
From there barreled guns, whichwere positioned along the coast
(18:31):
hidden in sand dunes and grass,would finally fire in the
direction of what was reported.
The range was something like 25miles from shore.
Fascinating, and behind howthey actually operated.
These towers being where theyare actually make sense.
(18:52):
And to illustrate this, let'sgo to the very top.
The very top.
I hope you can hear me allright here.
Shots were never fired, butthese towers and this fort
specifically served as a bit ofa last-line defense behind the
(19:15):
American Atlantic fleet.
And I know what you're thinking, I know what you're asking why
Delaware?
Right here, looking around, wehave the Atlantic Ocean, which
flows through the Delaware Bay,which then feeds through
Wilmington, delaware, and thento Philadelphia, pennsylvania, a
(19:37):
major industrial hub during thewar and before the war.
It has factories, shipyards,materials.
How they worked and why theywere located here along the
Delaware Bay becomes secondarywhen you think about this.
These structures were builtbefore officially entering the
(19:58):
war and were, at the time ofconstruction, only meant to
stand for 20 years.
This more than any physicalstructure, more than any object
in america that I've seenencapsulates the real sense of
of uh urgency, if not for theAmerican people at the time,
especially for the peacetimegovernment who ordered each
(20:23):
tower's construction.
For FDR I'll say this If athreat emerged today and I was
the lookout, I'd be screwed.
The fog is ridiculous.
I can't see anything.
So down we go.
(20:52):
As Hitler grows bolder, as Japangrows bolder, fdr too continues
to grow bolder.
As the 30s progress.
Throughout the 30s, hemethodically addresses American
unreadiness for war, inopposition again to American
popular opinion, at least until1940 or so.
Here are some examples when a$3.3 billion public works
program is approved to fightunemployment, fdr allocates $237
(21:18):
million of this to construct 30new warships, under the
pretense of creating desperatelyneeded jobs, which in a sense
he was, but it was contributingto his need to be ready for an
impending war.
After this, he is later quotedas saying in private to his
(21:40):
Secretary of the Navy, clausSwinson.
Quote Claus, we got away withmurder that time.
He knew what he was doing.
Additionally, 50,000 men onethird of the army at the time
are deployed to American coastsin 1937.
The National Guard under theProtected Mobilization Plan of
(22:00):
1937, are to be incorporatedinto the Army if war should
occur.
Let's keep going while we're atit.
The Second Vincent Travel Actin 1938 aims to beef up the Army
by 20%.
Plans are put in motion toincrease the US Navy by 70% by
(22:21):
1940 as well.
This increasing aggressionunderlines the slow but
consistent shift in publicopinion.
Actually, as events in Europeand beyond start to change their
mind, and with this public'sgradual shift towards wanting
(22:43):
American intervention in the war, fdr can now and increasingly,
expand his long, privately heldbeliefs of interventionalism
without fear of politicalbacklash, interventionalism
without fear of politicalbacklash.
Our national determination tokeep free of foreign wars and
(23:10):
foreign entanglements cannotprevent us from feeling deep
concern when ideals andprinciples that we have
cherished are challenged.
Fdr, with any conflict,sometimes you have to take a
side, and this is kind of whatFDR does With the cash and carry
policy of 1937, which plantsthe seeds for America to take a
(23:34):
side.
This quote neutrality policywasn't really neutral.
It was crafted as war in Europeseemed to become more and more
inevitable.
It allows nations to purchasenon-military goods, but here's
the catch One, they have to usecash.
Two, they can only use theirown ships to transport said
(23:58):
goods sold by the US.
And this move, under the guiseof neutrality, implicitly favors
countries with one money andtwo accessible large
transportation ships Britain andFrance, the eventual allied
powers.
And this, the Cash and CarryAct, is where the covert shift
(24:23):
from a strict neutrality tofavoring one side over the other
, this stance, this taking of aside, becomes more and more
plain with the passing of theLend-Lease Act of 1941, which
allows the US to lend or leasemilitary supplies.
(24:43):
I'll give you a second to guesswho these supplies were sold to
.
But what this policy, thislend-lease policy, came down to
is it enabled the US to enterthe war without really entering
the war, to assist who theywanted to assist.
(25:08):
Following the fall of France in1940, fdr implements the first
peacetime draft in Americanhistory, requiring all men
between the ages of 21 and 45 toregister for potential service.
And looking back from 1941,from 1940, you'll see a slow
(25:32):
transition from an isolationisteconomy to a fully prepared war
economy, before any state of waractually exists.
Military budgets grow from 1.2%of GDP in 1938 to 5.1% in 1941.
This was intentional, this wasdeliberate.
(25:53):
And all of this, this move fromisolationism in the early 30s
to readiness into intervention,in my view can be seen along the
Delaware coast standing beneathone of the 11 simple towers
built.
Because of this change inmentality, I'm back at the base
(26:19):
of the observation tower.
In Europe there are castles,there are fortresses that litter
the landscape, reminders reallythat war or conflict could or
did occur.
And America, from my experience, being from Iowa, from the
(26:42):
middle of the country, simplydoesn't have that saturation of
reminders.
But here, standing here inDelaware, world War II impending
conflict, feels as real onAmerican soil as it ever has.
For me personally, we're anation now of abstract defenses,
the invisible American fortressof the 21st century, whatever
(27:06):
drones, missiles.
But going to a place like this,standing beneath a physical
manifestation of Americananxiety for war on its own soil,
reflecting on the private stepstaken to prepare for that war,
that, right now, is what isfascinating about this seemingly
(27:31):
abandoned, strange structure onthe shores of Delaware.
Seeing this makes you think abit.
Storms happen.
You best be ready when theycome.
(28:12):
The United States declares waron Japan one day after the
bombing of Pearl Harbor,december 7th 1941.
A few days later, germanydeclares war on the United
States.
The choice then of isolation isofficially off the table, but
the foresight in preparing forconflict.
In actively engaging with thehappenings of the world, was and
has been invaluable In pushingagainst popular sentiment.
(28:38):
In refusing to alienate thosewho push for isolationism, fdr
possibly prevented an alreadyterrible, terrible conflict from
becoming even worse.
(29:05):
The following is an excerpt froma letter from FDR to British
Prime Minister Winston Churchill, dated January 1941, just weeks
after the American entranceinto World War II.
I think this verse applies toyou, people, as it does to us.
(29:26):
Sail on O ship of state, sailon O union.
Strong and great.
Humanity, with all its fears,with all the hope of future
years, is hanging breathless onthy fate as ever, yours,
(29:53):
franklin Delano Roosevelt.
Walking back to the van, now,away from the tower, it's funny
how taking the time to visit andto research a simple,
unassuming tower on the coast ofDelaware encourages a new
outlook, a new perspective.
(30:13):
For me, coming here, seeing allthis, is a reminder, good or
bad, that America is not alonein the world.
A failure to acknowledge this,to respect, to cherish allies,
to completely disregard genuinethreats, might be a big mistake.
(30:35):
You'll be standing on a beachwithout a tower.
It's a hard balance, thedelicate scale of working on
yourself and considering others.
Spend too much time on yourselfand you'll forget about others.
(30:56):
Spend too much time on othersand you forget to tend to your
own needs.
The Delaware Towers, thecontext of when they were made
and why, illustrate thisdelicate dance between self and
other, isolation andinterference.
(31:18):
Admiring these hastilyconstructed concrete
abnormalities along Delaware'scoast open a door to the past, a
past that illustrates thisbalance and the people on either
side of that scale.
Luckily for us at this time, inthis context, one side, one out
(31:42):
, or else the world might todaylook like a very different place
.
(32:10):
With all of that said, let's getto listener questions, shall we
?
I have some final thoughts atthe end, so stay tuned.
Just listen to the Mount StHelens eruption episode.
Were you scared of an eruption?
Well, there, awesome, glad youlistened to it.
Thank you for the question.
I was not One, because onceevery 100 to 300, 400 years it
(32:36):
erupts.
It erupted in 1980.
Also, generally with these kindof volcanoes, they at least
have an idea of when it coulderupt.
So there would have been somewarnings about that, and the
eruption in 1980 was incredibly,incredibly unique in how
(32:56):
explosive it was, in the waythat it erupted.
So even when I was doingresearch at the base of the
volcano, I wasn't scared in theslightest.
So, yeah, no, maybe I shouldhave been, I don't know, but I
just found it really beautiful.
What bourbons are you drinking?
I love, love, love thisquestion.
(33:17):
Happy to hear from anotherbourbon drinker, I'd say my top
three bourbons at the moment areAngel's Envy just the generic
Angel's Envy, woodford, doubleOaked and Horse Soldier yeah,
just as a brand.
I like their stuff as well, sothat would be my top three.
I love the question what is themost useful thing in your van?
(33:43):
I've got a lot of camping stuff.
I use my hammock a lot but,honestly and truly, the best
invention, the best thing in myvan is newly acquired.
It's a banana holder and it'sjust this kind of rope, rope and
there's beads at the end and itholds my bananas Genuinely one
(34:06):
of, maybe my favorite thing inmy van.
So that is the answer to thatquestion.
It's Noah here.
Thank you for listening.
Hope you're doing well.
Hope you found value in today'sepisode.
Full disclosure.
Let's talk.
I had a difficult time withtoday's episode.
World War II is such a big, bigtopic.
(34:30):
I didn't want to go too deepinto it.
I didn't want to offer yousomething that you've heard a
thousand times in documentariesand whatnot.
And ultimately you know I wentwith how looking up at these
observation towers made me feeland like when I did research
into the towers, what was uniqueabout that, you know, and what
(34:54):
questions arose from doingresearch, and ultimately it led
me to isolationism versusintervention as things went wild
in Europe and how FDR dealtwith that the popular sentiment,
as we've been saying this wholetime, the popular sentiment was
isolationism.
Fdr knew that intervention andactivism was necessary and he
(35:18):
planted the seeds for that.
So that interested me a lot andI hope you learned a lot.
I definitely did doing research.
So the way that you can helpthe show continue to grow,
continue to put in more and moreresearch, is to rate and review
wherever you're listening nowFully appreciate that, thank you
very much.
And with that said, where tonext Be good to each other.
Backroad Odyssey.
(35:39):
Thank you very much.
And with that said, where tonext Be good to each other.
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