36 Willow Run published

     In 1942, the Willow Run Study Project started . It was started with the question how does the war, the building of the bomber plant, the change in family routines, and living arrangements affect juveniles and their families? James Edson Stermer was Director. At the end of the study a book was written recording answers to these and many more questions. It was titled Willow Run: a Study of Industrialization and Cultural Inadequacy by Lowell Juilliard Carr and James Edson Stermer.
     The book starts with the premise that humans are often inadequately prepared when confronted with new situations. The ideal solution would be to plan ahead – holding alternatives in event we need other ways to precede -- before we start to remedy a situation. Instead we muddle through -- and only learn after by recognizing and recording the experience of what works and what makes matters worse.
     The Willow Run Project was conducted under the auspice of the University of Michigan. Both Lowell Juilliard Carr and James Edson Stermer took jobs at the bomber plant. They both took turns living in the dormitories so they would have a personal account of the experience. It was war time, they both took turns working on the production line to collect data of the experience.
     Some students interviewed residents and workers of the plant. This way they had a wider range of data. The facts and personal reports were recorded.
     A few of the questions were:
     How does a rural district that has 2,490 people living in it grow to 42,331 residents?
     How do the original residents feel about new people coming in?
     How are the people housed? What kind of a house do people live in?
     How does a person sleep during the day when they work on the third shift where does the baby 
             play on the space on the floor next to the bed?
      How does the stove get fixed when it breaks down and no one is available to fix it or nor has any
             parts to fix it?
      How can you be sure you will wash clothes in warm water?
      Where do you dry clothes on a wet day when you live in a one room trailer?
      Where do the children go to school?
      How do you manage your electrical appliances if you are limited to a 10amp fuse in a locked box
             for electrical service?

     Working on the assembly line was recorded as was life in the dormitory. The constant coming and going of people in the hall ways made it difficult to sleep no matter what shift you worked on. The walls were paper thin and the temperature often uncomfortable. All this information was documented. It reads like a biography of a moment in the history of the Second World War.
     Today, August 2010 the book is still being used as a textbook as it uses scientific techniques of looking a problem. These are still a valid method of examining changes in a new situation. It is a useful tool for teaching students how to look at life and extract data with a scientific eye.
     When I last borrowed the book from the college lending system, 514 colleges and universities of the United States still have the book available to students in libraries spread across the United States. Evidence on the web showed it is being used in China and India. While it is out of print it can still be purchased on line.