12/12/2023 0 Comments 1930s mickey mouse gas maskPeople collected their gas masks from their local town halls or other distribution points organised by the borough councils. The British 'Mickey Mouse' mask did not resemble the character but it used the red and blue, like the American version, and kept the name. There was an American gas mask for children that looked like Mickey Mouse, with the character's nose and ears and even a picture of him on the gas filter. The British government took precautions against poison gas attacks and by 1938 they had issued 'civilian type respirators' to every man, woman and child in the nation. Harmful gases can make the skin blister, cause blindness and breathing problems, and can even kill. During World War I both the Germans and Allies had used poison gas in the trenches. In the build-up to World War II the British government feared that the Germans would attack Britain with poison gas. We now know that there is a link between asbestos and lung disease so it is very important that all asbestos is professionally removed from old gas masks. Children learned to annoy their parents by making a 'raspberry' noise every time they breathed out.Īs asbestos ages it breaks down. Children would breathe the clean air into their mouths, and then breathe out through the rubber flap. The can holds a block of asbestos, a chemical substance that absorbs poisonous gases. This is a blue tin can with perforated holes. Let them make a game of it and they will wear their gas masks happily.The lower part of the gas mask is the filter. Toddlers soon learn to put on their own masks. Children were taught to hold the mask in front of their face, with thumbs inside the straps, then put their chin well into the mask and pull the straps over their head. There are straps to hold the mask on the head and the rubber fits snugly round the child's face. The mask is made of red rubber with round plastic eyepieces. This mask was known as the 'Mickey Mouse' mask even though it doesn't look anything like the cartoon mouse! Because many small children were frightened of gas masks, bright colours and the friendly name were used. It dates from World War II when the British government gave everyone in Britain a gas mask as protection against possible poison gas attacks by the Germans. This red and blue mask was for a two to five year old child.
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