The first of the three Community School evening seminars focusing on management of legacy wastes from Oak Ridge will feature local historian D. Ray Smith. The seminar will be held from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m., Tuesday, September 15, at the Oak Ridge Unitarian Universalist Church at 809 Oak Ridge Turnpike.

In his presentation, “Stories from the Secret City,” Smith will give an overview of early Oak Ridge history including how the East Tennessee location was selected and the predictions the “Prophet of Oak Ridge.” In material provided about the presentation, Smith said that many Ed Westcott historical images will form the backdrop for the stories of the history of Oak Ridge during the Manhattan Project. A primary focus will be the Y-12 National Security Complex, which produced the uranium for the first atomic bomb, with some Oak Ridge National Laboratory history included as well.

He said he will touch on the Cold War Era and today’s Oak Ridge missions, and time permitting, give an update on the Manhattan Project National Historical Park. A concluding activity of the first seminar will be an Oak Ridge mapping exercise, led by Community School staff. [Read more…]