The Secret City that Helped the U.S. Build the Bomb

A city built secretly by the U.S. government to be a center for the design and development of the atomic bomb still stands today as an interestingly urban piece of U.S. history.

1 minute read

June 1, 2011, 8:00 AM PDT

By Nate Berg

"The city, now called Oak Ridge, was once home to 75,000 people, yet it did not appear on any map. Visitors could only get into the town through gated entrances. The vast majority of residents were unwitting participants in the drive to harvest enriched uranium for the "Little Boy" bomb that devastated Hiroshima on August 6, 1945. They only learned exactly what they were doing when they read the big black headlines that proclaimed the war's end.

Nearly 66 years later, Oak Ridge is getting ready to celebrate its heritage--and to party a little, too."

Now home to 29,000 people, the Tennessee city is replete with museums documenting its cloaked past.

FULL STORY: Visiting the 'secret city' of Oak Ridge: The drive to build the atomic bomb (and planners from Chicago) shaped this city in Tennessee

Friday, May 27, 2011 in Chicago Tribune

Community / Economic Development Government / Politics History / Preservation Land Use United States Tennessee Cities Bombs Secrets Oak Ridge View More

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