The Hanford Effect: Secrecy and Power in Washington, 1942–1946 Stephen Hoberg * Project Mentor(s): Daniel Herman, PhD The Hanford Site is prominent for its role in the Manhattan Project, where it operated the world’s first nuclear production reactors to manufacture the plutonium used in the Nagasaki bombing. The wartime acquisition of the 600-square-mile site displaced thousands of Columbia Basin residents, whose subsequent litigation created substantial obstacles to the site’s secrecy. Previous scholarship argues that the site’s inherent secrecy, coupled with the negative press surrounding the land acquisition, compelled local political leaders to distance themselves from the project. This presentation contends that secrecy did not create a barrier between regional figures and Hanford officials. Instead, secrecy produced negotiations that established collaborative partnerships between Hanford officials and regional authorities. The preservation of secrecy at the site depended on the informal cooperation of prominent local political and judicial figures, whose personal and professional interests strategically aligned with Hanford officials’ goal of shielding the site from public and congressional scrutiny.
Presentation Type: Oral Presentation (May 20, 9:30am–5:00pm) Keywords : History of Science, Nuclear Secrecy, Atomic West SOURCE Form ID: 164
Interdiction in Normandy 1944 Allen McQuade* Project Mentor(s): Melissa Jordine, PhD
Interdiction in Normandy in the summer of 1944 was one of the most successful air operations in Northwest Europe in WWII. It was the culmination of previous air efforts in North Africa, Sicily and Italy. The Allies used the previous experience to devise a line to isolate an entire region of France. The interdiction line established made it difficult for German forces to be reinforced and resupplied by cutting rail and road communications. This was accomplished by hitting bridges and using natural impediments, rivers, to make transportation more difficult. The 9th Air Force was the predominant air force in implementing interdiction in Normandy. The 9th was uniquely suited for the mission because of the planes that it had at its disposal. The 9th with its complement of fighter/bombers and light and medium bombers could be dispatched in smaller numbers and bomb from lower altitudes. It was the light and medium bombers of the 9th which were instrumental in creating and maintaining the line of Interdiction. Presentation Type: Oral Presentation (May 20, 9:30am–5:00pm) Keywords: World War Two in Europe, Air War, 9 th Air Force, Normandy, Operation COBRA SOURCE Form ID: 68
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