Piedmont Heights Walking Tour

Fallout shelter

1799 Monroe Drive

In case of a bomb, Piedmont Heights has bomb shelters—well, two, at least. Actually, “fallout shelter” is a more accurate term. They were mostly intended to provide protection from radiation fallout from atomic bombs during the 1950s Cold War with Russia and again in the 1960s with the Cuban Missile Crisis.

Jane Shalhoub (pictured here, 1985) has one in her backyard. Built in 1960 by a previous owner, it was accessed via a metal tube projecting a few inches above the ground. Below is a nine-foot square prefabricated metal box with a toilet, four cots, electricity, and two fresh air vents. Jane’s son, Daniel, the only family member who has been inside the structure, explored it with a few friends on his 14th birthday in the 90s. Later, the access tube was cut off, capped, and grassed over.

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