The Long Island History Project Episode 153: Cold War Long Island with Karl Grossman and Christopher Verga
Journalist Karl Grossman and historian Christopher Verga have teamed up for the new book Cold War Long Island, out now from the History Press. In it, they detail the productive and tumultuous post-World War II years on Long Island. With an influx of returning GIs and an increase of military spending to counteract the growing strength of the Soviet Union and other communist countries, Nassau and Suffolk Counties saw rapid growth. Aviation companies like Republic and Grumman became household names and a housing boom, epitomized by suburban communities like Levittown, brought many people to the area.
Grossman and Verga also highlight the challenges that came with the prosperity. Neighborhoods like Levittown denied homes to Black veterans. Widespread anxiety led to a rise in prescription drug abuse. Nuclear missiles were stationed across the Island and the everyday use of nuclear power was promoted by the government with little or no acklnowledgement of its dangers. And that's not even mentioning Plum Island.
Join us for this wide-ranging discussion on the 1950s, 60s, and 70s as we take in everything from Nazi scientists to the United Nations, space tourism, and the Rolling Stones.
Further Research
- Cold War Long Island (History Press)
- Books by Karl Grossman
- Books by Christopher Verga
- World War II Long Island (2021)
- Civil Rights on Long Island (2016)
- Avoiding Nuclear Destruction by the Skin of Our Teeth (WHTV)
- Welcome to Shirley: A Memoir from an Atomic Town (2008) by Kelly McMasters
- Lab 257: The Disturbing Story of the Government's Secret Plum Island Laboratory (2004) by Michael C. Carroll
- Brookhaven National Lab
- "America's Long Love Affair with Anti-Anxiety Drugs" (Newsweek)
- "We Didn't Start the Fire" by Billy Joel (official video)
- Audio footnotes:
- Episode 50 with Sandi-Brewster walker whose father poured cement for Levittown
- Episode 27 with Karl Grossman on Long Island's nuclear power industry
- Episode 145 with Christopher Verga on Victor Yannacone