The Hudson Civil Defense Committee was organized in Hudson in late December, 1941. The purpose of this committee was to elect members of the community to coordinate activities with other national wartime organizations, such as the National Office of Civil Defense (OCD), wartime rationing, Red Cross, and war chest (buying war bonds).

The Hudson Civil Defense Committee elected members of the community to become heads of smaller organizations that specialized in activities such as hospital & first aid services, emergency food, and welfare, and housing. Each of these groups would help to plan activities, set up by guidelines put in place by the Hudson Civil Defense Committee. The overarching purpose for the committee was to make Hudson more self-sufficient in case of a natural disaster or an enemy attack. By planning ahead, resources from the State of Ohio or other areas around the United States could be put to use in the war effort.

The Hudson Civil Defense Committee was disbanded after the surrender of Japan on August 15, 1945. However, it was revived during the Korean War in December 1950, and then disbanded once more in late 1953 after the end of hostilities.