National Archives at Atlanta

Secret City Symposium

A Symposium at the National Archives at Atlanta

Saturday, September 15, 2012
9:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m.


National Archives at Atlanta

The National Archives at Atlanta is the repository of nearly 5,000 cubic feet of records from the Atomic Energy Commission including its predecessor agency, the Manhattan Engineering District, commonly known as the Manhattan Project. The purpose of this symposium is to promote research in this historically rich record group and highlight scholarly works based on these holdings.

Oak Ridge, Tennessee

Oak Ridge was the largest of the Manhattan Project "Secret Cities" which included Los Alamos, New Mexico, and Richland, Washington. Three major facilities were constructed on the Oak Ridge reservation during World War II. Y-12, using the silver from the US Mint, enriched Uranium 235 through electromagnetic separation. K-25 enriched U-235 with a process of gaseous diffusion. X-10 was the site of the second nuclear pile (reactor) after the successful chain reaction at the University of Chicago and is now known as Oak Ridge National Laboratory. Oak Ridge today is still a city of scientific research and the home of the world's largest computer.

Presenters

Denise Kiernan
Author of The Girls of the Atomic City

James Mahaffey
Author of Atomic Awakening

Ray Smith
Y-12 Historian

Jim Campbell
Director, East Tennessee Economic Development Council

Schedule of Presentations

TimeTopicSpeaker
9:00 Welcome to the Archives Joel Walker,
National Archives at Atlanta
9:15 The Records of the Atomic Energy Commission Shane Bell,
National Archives at Atlanta
10:15 The History of Y-12Ray Smith,
Y-12 National Security Complex
11:15 The Girls of Atomic City: Life in the Secret City With the Women Who Made the Bomb Denise Kiernan,
Author of The Girls of the Atomic City
12:00 Lunch
1:00 Special Recognition Ceremony
1:30 Oak Ridge: From Secret City to MunicipalityJim Campbell,
East Tennessee Economic Development Council
2:30 The Post War Boom into Nuclear Power James Mahaffey,
Author of Atomic Awakening

How to Register

Pre-registration is required and limited to 200 participants.

To register, you may email joel.walker@nara.gov or call 770-968-2530.

Please include your:

  • name
  • address
  • phone number
  • email

Registration deadline is Monday, September 10, 2012.

If you wish, you may print out the registration form and mail to:

Joel Walker
National Archives at Atlanta
5780 Jonesboro Rd
Morrow GA 30260

Directions to the National Archives at Atlanta

5780 Jonesboro Rd
Morrow, GA 30260

The National Archives at Atlanta is located in the Southeast part of the Atlanta Metropolitan Area and south of the I-285 loop.

From Downtown Atlanta - take I-75 South to Exit 233, Morrow. Turn left onto Georgia Highway 54/Jonesboro Road. Travel approximately 1-1/2 miles. The National Archives at Atlanta is the second building on the right after Clayton State Boulevard.

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