a small prefabricated air-raid shelter devised by William Paterson, a Scottish engineer, and adopted while Sir John Anderson was the British HomeSecretary (1930 - 1940). Anderson shelters were used in Britain during World War II. They were curved, steel huts which some people buried in their gardens and covered with 2 or 3 feet of earth to protect them from the effects of explosion. —All About Radiation Glossary. Final approval 27.9.89