Ed Westcott, left, the official government photographer in Oak Ridge during World War II, is pictured above with National Park Service staff members during a celebration of the new Manhattan Project National Historical Park on Thursday, Nov. 12, 2015. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)
Note: This post was last updated at 8:05 a.m. Nov. 13.
Oak Ridge residents and officials celebrated the new Manhattan Project National Historical Park on Thursday, two days after the park was formally established in a signing ceremony in Washington, D.C. Here are photos of Thursday’s celebration at Oak Ridge High School and Jackson Square by John Huotari of Oak Ridge Today.
We will add captions to the photos as we can.
The new park includes Oak Ridge, Tennessee; Hanford, Washington; and Los Alamos, New Mexico. The Manhattan Project was a top-secret program to build the world’s first atomic weapons in World War II, before Germany could. The new park is the first of its type to commemorate the Manhattan Project, which is considered one of the top scientific achievements of the 20th century.
The new park includes four buildings in Oak Ridge: the Graphite Reactor at Oak Ridge National Laboratory, the footprint of the former K-25 Building at East Tennessee Technology Park, and Building 9731 and Building 9204-3, or Beta-3, at Y-12 National Security Complex. The Alexander Inn, which is not a U.S. Department of Energy building, is also eligible for inclusion.
See a story on the establishment of the park on Tuesday here, and see a story on Thursday’s celebration here.
From left above at a celebration for the new Manhattan Project National Historical Park on Thursday, Nov. 12, 2015, are Colin Colverson, Oak Ridge Reservation lead for the park in the DOE Oak Ridge Office; Tracy Atkins, project manager for the agreement between DOE and the National Park Service; and Oak Ridge Mayor Warren Gooch. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)
The iconic “War Ends” photo is recreated in part on Thursday, Nov. 12, 2015, with a “Park Opens” photo that celebrates the new Manhattan Project National Historical Park, which includes Oak Ridge. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)
The National Park Service will have a visitor use assistant at the American Museum of Science and Energy in Oak Ridge on Saturday from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., starting Saturday, Nov. 14, 2015. Pictured above is Natasha Klug. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)
Barclay Trimble, Southeast deputy regional director for the National Park Service, discusses the new Manhattan Project National Historical Park during a celebration in Oak Ridge on Thursday, Nov. 12, 2015. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)
Ed Westcott captured the jubilation of Oak Ridge residents the day they learned World War II had ended. The people had only recently learned of the historic role the “Secret City” had played in the winning of World War II. (Photo by Ed Westcott)
More information will be added as it becomes available.
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