WW2 ARP & Civil Defence Local Area Marking Badges
First Pattern ARP Area Marking - Red on Black / Dark Blue
Local authorities were allowed to obtain area/location markings from commercial manufacturers to be sewn onto uniforms. These would display either the local authority's borough name (e.g. LEWISHAM), city name (e.g. BIRMINGHAM) or where required their initials (e.g. H.H.R.D. - Hemel Hempstead Rural District). These first pattern badges were initially made as an oblong bar 3.75" by 1.75", either embroidered or woven on rayon. The lettering was to be red on a dark blue or black background. However, ovals and arched styles are known to have been produced, both with and without a border.
These badges were normally sewn onto the bluette overalls, generally above the right pocket. The placement of the area badge varies from authority to authority with some below the ARP badge and some above. With the introduction of the battledress in 1941 some local authorities mandated that existing stocks of badges be used before the new old gold were issued. Consequently, it is known that the red area markings appeared on battledress (just as the red ARP breast badge did).
These badges were normally sewn onto the bluette overalls, generally above the right pocket. The placement of the area badge varies from authority to authority with some below the ARP badge and some above. With the introduction of the battledress in 1941 some local authorities mandated that existing stocks of badges be used before the new old gold were issued. Consequently, it is known that the red area markings appeared on battledress (just as the red ARP breast badge did).
Woven first pattern ARP area marking for Birmingham
City of London Area Marking
Wardens in the City of London wore an embroidered oval area marking incorporating the white shield and sword emblem on their bluette overalls. This badge has also been seen on battledress jackets and it assumed it was also worn on female tunics.
WW2 City of London ARP Warden Area Marking
Bristol Air Raid Warden Area Marking
Bristol produced a rare badge for their wardens. It featured embroidered red letters "BRISTOL AIR RAID WARDEN" on a navy blue cotton twill with a merrow edge. It was unusual for a badge to feature additional wording beyond the area.
With the change to the name "CIVIL DEFENCE" in 1941, Bristol issued a woven yellow on blue area marking.
Bristol Civil Defence area marking
Second Pattern Civil Defence Area Marking - "Old Gold" Yellow on Blue
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Following the introduction of the Civil Defence battledress in 1941, area markings were manufactured in 'old gold' (a yellow colour variance) on a very dark blue material to match the battledress blouses and uniforms. These area markings were placed under the CD badge on the left chest pocket of the battledress. On the female Pattern 71 tunic the badge is known to appear above the pocket as well as below.
Arched versions curved around the bottom of the CD breast badge and oblong varieties were also made to be placed below the CD badge. Again, some areas used a border whilst others did not. Backing material is usually dark blue wool but rayon versions are also known to have been produced. There are a number of localities that appear to have the location name arched the other way (i.e. to be placed above the CD badge). However, to date no original photographs have come to light showing these and they are probably post-war insignia. Additionally, some authorities placed a further badge below the area marking to differentiate between services. These are most commonly found as "R.D." for 'Rural District'. When worn on serge uniforms the official location, as dictated by ARP Memo 17, was below the CD breast badge. |
ARP Warden with Holborn (London) area marking. |
WW2 Civil Defence Oblong Area Marking Badges
Both embroidered and woven area titles are known to exist.
WW2 Civil Defence Arched Black Wool Area Marking Badges
The backing material of the area titles are usually of two styles - wool/felt or navy blue twill. Below are the wool/felt examples.
WW2 Civil Defence Arched Navy Blue Twill Area Marking Badges
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The navy blue arched cotton twill with black thread merrow edge area titles are mainly seen issued in the Midlands, Wales and London areas. Examples are also known to appear on the south coast such as Portsmouth and Southampton.
It would appear that they all originate from one manufacturer but currently the name of this company is unknown. No oblong style area titles are currently known with this navy blue cotton twill backing. |
An ARP Warden with Newport area marking title
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Civil Defence area marking for Birmingham
Civil Defence area marking for Warwickshire
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Civil Defence area marking for Greenwich
Civil Defence area marking for Woolwich
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Civil Defence area marking for Tottenham
Civil Defence area marking for Chislehurst & Sidcup
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Ilford Civil Defence Area Marking
Somewhere in-between the arched and straight we have this rather unique area marking from Ilford. The upper curve would follow the CD breast badge and the straight edge along the pocket seam. Rare and most unusual.
WW2 Ilford Civil Defence area marking
Paddington Civil Defence Area Marking
Paddington in London adopted an arched badge but going in the opposite direction to most seen.
Paddington Civil Defence Area Title / Shoulder Flash
Warden with Paddington area title on shoulder
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Cadet with Paddington title on pocket
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WW2 Civil Defence Area Marking Badges on Battledress Blouses
Southend-On-Sea area title with CD badge on battledress blouse
Derbyshire area title with ARP badge on battledress blouse
To submit original area marking badges please send me an email via the contact page.
A large number of arched area location badges without a border were introduced with the Civil Defence Corps from 1949 onwards. Many of these are incorrectly claimed to be from the second world war.
