Joseph Molnar, a long time resident of Morristown, New Jersey, participated in the Ground Observer Corps (GOC) at the Morristown Post from 1954-1959. The GOC was a supplement to the nation's radar system designed to detect a Soviet Union bomber attack against the United State. The GOC maintained Posts throughout the nation. Initiated in the early 1950's the Corps was organized and directed by the United States Air Force. Code named Operation Sky Watch, the Corps utilized civilian volunteers to man observation posts 24 hours a day. The Morristown Post of the GOC was centered at the Morristown Municipal Airport and operated throughout the 1950's. The GOC was disbanded in 1959 as the capabilities of the nation's radar early warning system improved enough to supercede the combined efforts of the Corps and the more primitive electronic systems, with the Morristown post being deactivated on January 28, 1959. At that time Operation Sky Watch was the longest peacetime joint civilian-military operation in United States history.
Joseph Molnar was an active participant in the GOC throughout his high school years. Mr. Molnar eventually served over four years before the Post was deactivated. He was awarded several citations for his service. Born in Morristown, on 27 April 1940, Mr. Molnar attended the Morristown school district elementary schools and graduated from Morristown High School in 1958. In addition to his service in the GOC Mr. Molnar also actively participated in Morristown Civil Defense, another municipal-Federal effort to protect citizens in the event of a Soviet attack.
The Joseph Molnar collection documents the Morristown Post of the Ground Observer Corps and Joseph Molnar's participation in the Post from the years 1953-1959. The collection covers the height of the Communist Scare Years from the mid to late fifties and culminates in the Corps dissolution in 1959. A large portion of the collection is the journals created by the various elements of the Corps, local and national. This collection provides excellent evidence of the notable events of the Morristown Post of the GOC.
The collection is arranged in four series. The first series, Joseph Molnar, 1955-1958, contains the material covering Mr. Molnar's participation in the Corps. It includes awards and certificates presented to him for his service in the GOC.
Series II, Morristown Post GOC, 1958-1959, contains that material either created by, intended for, or about the Morristown Post of the GOC. The local posts managed the daily operational control of their area of responsibility. This series contains watch schedules, memorandum, a newsletter "The Observer"(incomplete), meeting notices, and newspaper articles. "The Observer" issues included in the series are Vol. 1 No. 1-No. 5, Vol. 2 No. 1- 3, and Vol.2 No. 5.
Series III, Federal Ground Observer Corps, 1953-1958, covers the material created by the command structure to help administer control of the Corps. This series contains recruitment brochures, GOC form ADC 6-3 (a form to be filled out daily by the Corps members on duty), a copy of a letter from President Eisenhower upon the deactivation of the Corps thanking the members for their service, shoulder patch, stickers, and a poster of insignia.
Journals and newsletters were created on both a national and local level. Series IV, Journals, contains Corps related journals, "Sky Tracks" and "The Aircraft Flash" (both incomplete) as well as one copy of the journal "Filter Busters" and newspaper articles. The "Sky Tracks" issues in this series are Dec. 1956, Jan. 1957, Apr. 1957, May 1957, and Oct. 1957. The issues of "The Aircraft Flash" are June-Sept. 1954, Dec. 1954-June 1955, Aug. 1955, Oct. 1955, Dec. 1955-Feb. 1956, Apr. 1956, June 1956, Aug. 1956-May 1957, July 1957-Oct/Nov. 1957, Apr. 1958, June 1958- Oct. 1958.
This material is open for research without restriction under the conditions of the North Jersey History Center archives access policy. Records may be copied for use in individual scholarly or personal research, however, as with all materials in the History Center, researchers are responsible for obtaining copyright permission to use material from the collection. Material in the Joseph Molnar Collection may be photocopied, but because this material is a permanent part of the History Center's collections, researchers are advised to photocopy with care, using only the edge copier for bound material.
The Joseph Molnar Collection was acquired as a gift from Joseph Molnar.
The Joseph Molnar Collection. North Jersey History Center, The Morristown and Morris Township Library.
Arranged by Lawrence T. Greene