Earliest short story I can remember is Monsters are Due on Maple Street in middle school. Didn't quite get the historical context at the time. But the theme of rampant senseless paranoia stuck with me.
Was that a short story before Twilight Zone or was it adapted into from Twilight Zone episode later?
This was the short story that came to mind for me as well. And I'm only now realizing it was about the red scare?