The annual fireworks show was in Alvin K. Bissell Park in Oak Ridge on Thursday. The Oak Ridge Community Band performed before the fireworks.
Here are photos by Julio Culiat and D. Ray Smith.
[Read more…]Photos: July 4 fireworks
Demolished building once helped protect city, enriched uranium at Y-12
A building that was mostly demolished on Wednesday, May 30, 2018, once helped to protect enriched uranium at Y-12, and it was used by military police and the Oak Ridge Police Department to help protect the city. Part of the building, a former secure federal communications center, was still standing among the demolition debris late Wednesday afternoon. This picture was taken looking southeast from near the intersection of Bus Terminal Road and Oak Ridge Turnpike. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)
Note: This story was last updated at 8:30 a.m. June 2.
A building that was mostly demolished on Wednesday once helped to protect enriched uranium at Y-12, and it was used by military police and the Oak Ridge Police Department to help protect the city.
The building at 101 Bus Terminal Road was once connected by radio to a Y-12 building that stored the world’s only supply of enriched uranium-235, according to a 2010 newspaper article published by D. Ray Smith, who cited Bill Sergeant, head of security after World War II.
A small section of the Bus Terminal Road building that still had historic artifacts—two holding cells and a heavy, bulletproof steel door—remained standing, surrounded by demolition debris, on Wednesday and Thursday. It’s not clear why that one section hadn’t been demolished yet, but the 2010 newspaper article by Smith said it had been a secure federal communications center and was built to be safe from attack. That small section of the building, which had no external windows, was reported to have a concrete ceiling that was one foot thick.
The building, which is at the intersection with Oak Ridge Turnpike, is now being completely demolished so a Taco Bell restaurant can be built there. The building had been extensively modified, and it’s not clear how much of it might have been considered historic.
Smith said the Bus Terminal Road building was once connected by radio to Building 9213, which stored uranium-235 for about a year at Y-12. Building 9213 is on the south side of Chestnut Ridge, which is on the south side of Y-12. After it briefly stored uranium, Building 9213 was used for criticality experiments for years, Smith said. It’s also been used to train the National Guard to identify and isolate radioactive sources as part of their training for homeland security. [Read more…]
Ray Smith receives DOE Gold Medal Award for helping to create national park
D. Ray Smith, Y-12 National Security Complex historian, left, received a U.S. Department of Energy Gold Medal Award on Monday, Nov. 20, 2017, for his role in helping to create the Manhattan Project National Historical Park, which includes Oak Ridge. The award was presented to Smith by retired Lieutenant General Frank G. Klotz, DOE under secretary for nuclear security and administrator of the National Nuclear Security Administration. (Photo courtesy NNSA)
Note: This story was updated at 4:05 p.m.
D. Ray Smith, Y-12 National Security Complex historian, received a U.S. Department of Energy Gold Medal Award on Monday for his role in helping to create the Manhattan Project National Historical Park, which includes Oak Ridge.
The award was presented to Smith by retired Lieutenant General Frank G. Klotz, DOE under secretary for nuclear security and administrator of the National Nuclear Security Administration.
Smith is retiring this month. He previously told Oak Ridge Today that he would retire November 22.
Established in November 2015, the Manhattan Project National Historical Park is a unique three-site park that includes Oak Ridge; Hanford, Washington; and Los Alamos, New Mexico. The Manhattan Project was a top-secret federal program to build the world’s first atomic weapons during World War II. Among other activities, Oak Ridge built uranium enrichment facilities for the Manhattan Project at Y-12 and the former K-25 site, and the city had the pilot facility for plutonium production at the Graphite Reactor at Oak Ridge National Laboratory, which was then known as X-10. [Read more…]
Celebration of Oak Ridge’s 75th anniversary started Friday
A reminder: The 14-month celebration of Oak Ridge’s 75th anniversary starts today (Friday, September 15).
Today’s celebration will feature guest speaker Denise Kiernan, author of “The Girls of Atomic City” and “The Last Castle,” at 6 p.m. at the Historic Grove Theater. There will be a book signing, and Kiernan’s book will be available for sale.
Ed Westcott, the official government photographer in Oak Ridge during the top-secret Manhattan Project in World War II, will be the honored guest from 4 to 5:30 p.m. Family members Don and Emily Hunnicutt will present a slide show of Westcott photos with a question-and-answer session.
“You will never grow tired of Ed’s photographs, which tell the enormous Oak Ridge Manhattan Project story,” according to the Oak Ridge Heritage and Preservation Association, which is presenting the celebration.
The celebration starts with historical displays at 2 p.m. There will be a wide variety of artifacts, posters, and displays for you to enjoy, the ORHPA said. [Read more…]
Reader photos: July 4 fireworks in Oak Ridge
Fireworks at Alvin K. Bissell Park in Oak Ridge on July 4, 2017. (Photo by D. Ray Smith)
Several readers submitted photos from the fireworks show in Alvin K. Bissell Park in Oak Ridge on Tuesday, July 4, 2017. Here are photos by D. Ray Smith, Donna King, and Liz Bartlett.
Fireworks at Alvin K. Bissell Park in Oak Ridge on July 4, 2017. (Photo by D. Ray Smith)
Ray Smith selected to serve on Tennessee Historical Commission
D. Ray Smith (Submitted photo)
Ray Smith, historian for the City of Oak Ridge and the Y-12 National Security Complex, has been selected to serve on the Tennessee Historical Commission, a press release said.
It’s the first time an Oak Ridger has been selected to serve on the Tennessee Historical Commission, the press release said.
There are 20 members from across the state, and a balanced mix of members is maintained to best represent the entire state on the commission, the release said.
It said Oak Ridge contributes to the State of Tennessee in a number of significant ways, including economic development and heritage and science tourism. [Read more…]
Secret City Wildbots going to robotics championship
The Secret City Wildbots, Team 4265 of Oak Ridge, celebrate their second semifinals win to advance to the finals at the Smoky Mountain Regional in Knoxville on Saturday, March 25, 2017. (Photo by Angi Agle)
The Secret City Wildbots won the Engineering Inspiration Award in the Smoky Mountain Regional on Saturday, and the Wildbots, Team 4265 of Oak Ridge, will advance to the FIRST Robotics Championship in Houston on April 19.
The Wildbots had advanced throughout the day on Saturday, said Angi Agle, an Oak Ridge Board of Education member who attended this week’s robotics competition at Thompson-Boling Arena in Knoxville.
The team finished qualifying in third place, so it advanced to the quarterfinals. They won the first quarterfinal 455-273.
They tied the first semifinal round against a Hardin Valley-led alliance and then won the second semifinal against Hardin Valley, Agle said. [Read more…]
Oak Ridge Rotary Clubs donate $10,000 to Friendship Bell project
Oak Ridge Rotary Clubs announced on Thursday, Nov. 17, 2016, a $10,000 donation to the project to rebuild the pavilion for the International Friendship Bell and relocate it at Alvin K. Bissell Park. From left are Devrin Kuipers, president of Oak Ridge Sunset Rotary Club; Jennifer Campbell, president of Oak Ridge Rotary Club; Emily Jernigan, president of Oak Ridge Breakfast Rotary Club; and Pat Postma and Alan Tatum, co-chairs of the International Friendship Bell Citizens Advisory Committee. (Photo by D. Ray Smith)
Oak Ridge Rotary Clubs announced Thursday that they are donating $10,000 to the project to build a new Peace Pavilion to house the International Friendship Bell at a new location in Oak Ridge’s Alvin K. Bissell Park.
The donation was announced by Devrin Kuipers, president of Oak Ridge Sunset Rotary Club; Jennifer Campbell, president of Oak Ridge Rotary Club; and Emily Jernigan, president of Oak Ridge Breakfast Rotary Club. It was accepted by Pat Postma and Alan Tatum, co-chairs of the International Friendship Bell Citizens Advisory Committee.
The check presentation was the start of a public campaign to raise $750,000 for the project. A total of $416,000, or more than half the money, has either already been raised or pledged.
Also Thursday, UT-Battelle announced a $150,000 donation to the project. [Read more…]
Photos: History talk at Freels Bend Cabin, city’s oldest structure
Aaron Astor, an associate history professor at Maryville College, discussed life along the Clinch River in Anderson and Roane counties before Oak Ridge was built in a special meeting at the historic Freels Bend Cabin on Thursday, Oct. 13, 2016 during a meeting of the Oak Ridge Heritage and Preservation Association. The Freels Bend Cabin was built in 1844, and it is the oldest structure in Oak Ridge. It’s on the National Historic Register. (Photo by D. Ray Smith)
Aaron Astor, an associate history professor at Maryville College, discussed life along the Clinch River in Anderson and Roane counties before Oak Ridge was built in a special meeting at the historic Freels Bend Cabin on Thursday, October 13.
It was the monthly public and membership meeting of the Oak Ridge Heritage and Preservation Association. Here are pictures by D. Ray Smith.
The Freels Bend Cabin was built in 1844, and it is the oldest structure in Oak Ridge. It’s on the National Historic Register. [Read more…]
ORHPA hosts presentation on growing up in Oak Ridge
Ed Westcott, right, was the only official photographer in Oak Ridge during the Manhattan Project in World War II, a top-secret project to build the world’s first atomic bomb. Westcott is pictured above with D. Ray Smith, Y-12 National Security Complex historian and newspaper history columnist. (Photo courtesy D. Ray Smith)
The Oak Ridge Heritage and Preservation Association will host a presentation on growing up in Oak Ridge on Thursday, July 7.
“Join us and reminisce on how it was growing up in the Secret City through photographs from renowned Manhattan Project photographer Ed Westcott,” a press release said. “Don and Emily Hunnicutt will be the speakers.”
The “Growing Up in Oak Ridge” presentation is at 7 p.m. Thursday, July 7, at the Midtown Community Center (Wildcat Den) at 102 Robertsville Road. [Read more…]
Munger, retiring DOE reporter for the News Sentinel, receives Muddy Boot Award
Frank Munger, right, the U.S. Department of Energy reporter for the Knoxville News Sentinel, received a Muddy Boot Award from the East Tennessee Economic Council on Wednesday, June 29, 2016. Munger, who is considered by many to be the best in the field, is retiring Thursday, June 30, after covering DOE for 35 years for the News Sentinel. Also pictured above is ETEC President Jim Campbell. (Photo by D. Ray Smith)
Frank Munger, U.S. Department of Energy reporter for the Knoxville News Sentinel, received a Muddy Boot Award from the East Tennessee Economic Council during a retirement celebration on Wednesday.
Munger is retiring today (June 30) after 35 years covering DOE for the News Sentinel. Many consider him to be the best DOE reporter in the DOE complex. It’s not clear if he will be replaced. Some have said he is irreplaceable.
Among those who praised Munger’s work and “shoe-leather” journalism on Wednesday, even if DOE wasn’t always pleased with his stories, were current and former DOE and contractor officials Gerald Boyd, Sue Cange, Dave Keim, Thom Mason, Billy Stair, and Jim Alexander. They recalled humorous moments; his pocket-sized voice recorder, which he was carrying Wednesday; the occasional arguments; and his ability to translate stories about complex subjects such as the Spallation Neutron Source into language that people without scientific training could understand. They also presented Munger with mementos, including a framed collection of photos from Oak Ridge National Laboratory showing Munger at work over the years, reporting at the lab.
“I can say without reservation that you were always accurate and fair in your reporting—mostly,” said Boyd, a former DOE Oak Ridge Office manager who was unable to attend but delivered his message through a sometimes-humorous letter to Munger. “You always tried to tell all sides of each story, and we all appreciated that even when the story was hard to accept. Your studied approach to reporting on things DOE Oak Ridge always kept the important issues visible and in the forefront, forcing us to have to deal with them. I believe that made us a better operation. In particular, your in-depth articles on various Oak Ridge programs, projects, and activities were excellent tutorials for the general public and helped us explain the value of the Oak Ridge missions. We will miss that.” [Read more…]
Westcott photo exhibit of Oak Ridge during World War II opens Friday
Ed Westcott, right, was the only official photographer in Oak Ridge during the Manhattan Project in World War II, a top-secret project to build the world’s first atomic bomb. Westcott is pictured above with D. Ray Smith, Y-12 National Security Complex historian and newspaper history columnist. (Photo courtesy D. Ray Smith)
An exhibit of more than 50 historic photographs by James Edward “Ed” Westcott, the official photographer of the Manhattan Project in Oak Ridge during World War II, will open Friday in Knoxville.
The exhibit is titled “Through the Lens of Ed Westcott:Â A Photographic History of World War II’s Secret City.” It’s scheduled to be on display from June 3 to August 6 at the University of Tennessee Gallery at 106 South Gay Street in Knoxville.
AÂ First Friday Opening Reception is scheduled from 5-9 p.m. Friday, June 3. Westcott will be in attendance from 6:30-8:30 p.m., a press release said.
There will be a gallery talk with Baldwin Lee, UT art professor emeritus, starting at 7 p.m. Friday. Baldwin will discuss the photos in the exhibition, the press release said.
Here is more information from the press release: [Read more…]
