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Articles by Y-12's Historian

[Image: Photo of Y-12 Historian D. Ray Smith]

D. Ray Smith
Y-12 Historian

Articles by Y-12’s Historian

In “Y-12: Local Treasure — National Resource,” a series of articles printed in the Oak Ridge Observer beginning in June 2007 and continuing into early March 2009, and more recently as part of the series “Oak Ridge Treasure, National Resource” published by The Oak Ridger, Y-12 Historian D. Ray Smith provides richly detailed stories about Y-12 evolving missions over the past 60 years.

Click a year below to see its associated articles. Then click the date to the left of an article title to open the story in PDF format.

2007

Y-12: Local Treasure – National Resource
Series published in the Oak Ridge Observer

Date	Article Title
07-06-28	Introduction to Y-12 history
07-07-05	Before Y-12
07-07-12	Ribbon cutting at Y-12
07-07-19	Events leading to Manhattan Project
07-07-26	Vannevar Bush and Ernest Lawrence — Two key individuals
07-08-02	Decisions that led to Y-12
07-08-09	Colonel Nichols comes on board
07-08-16	General Groves takes charge
07-08-23	Final decions that led to Y-12
07-08-30	Y-12 electromagnetic separation process wins approval
07-09-06	Early planning for construction at Y-12
07-09-13	OSTI and Science.gov — Not your ordinary website — Part 1
07-09-20	OSTI and Science.gov — Not your ordinary website — Part 2
07-09-27	Design of the Y-12 calutrons
07-10-04	Building go up at Y-12
07-10-11	14700 tons of silver at Y-12
07-10-18	9731: First building completed at Y-12
07-10-25	9731: Chauncey Starr — First operations manager
07-11-01	General Groves and Ernest O. Lawrence visit 9731
07-11-08	9731: It all started here
07-11-15	A calutron stool appears and more
07-11-22	Construction of Building 920101 (Alpha 1) — Part 1
07-11-29	Construction of Building 920101 — Part 2
07-12-06	Operations start and shipments begin
07-12-13	More production buildings and expanded operations
07-12-20	Both construction and operations continue to increase

2008

Y-12: Local Treasure – National Resource
Series published in the Oak Ridge Observer

08-01-03	Operating Oak Ridge’s “calutrons”
08-01-10	Some of the buildings constructed at Y-12
08-01-17	Heritage Tourism and Y-12, K-25 and X-10 history
08-01-24	More on buildings at Y-12
08-01-31	Smithsonian interview video history interview — Part 1
08-02-07	Smithsonian video history interview — Part 2
08-02-14	Jack Case — The man who helped bring uranium machining to Y-12
08-02-21	Jack Case — Tool and die make to plant manager
08-02-28	Ivory (soap) flakes and historic artifacts
08-03-06	Bob Ellingson remembers — Part 1
08-03-13	Bob Ellingson remembers — Part 2
08-03-20	Post World War II missions emerge for Y-12
08-03-27	Y-12 makes first radical changes
08-04-03	More radical changes at Y-12
08-04-10	Still more radical changes at Y-12
08-04-17	Special Engineer Detachment
08-04-24	Nuclear testing continues
08-05-01	Production work up for grabs
08-05-08	Y-12 transition and birth of the national laboratories
08-05-15	The Clinton Laboratory begins to expand to Y-12 Buildings
08-05-22	Clinton Lab occupies many Y-12 buildings and becomes ORNL
08-05-29	Preliminary steps to the Atomic energy Commission
08-06-05	Moving closer to the Atomic Energy Commission
08-06-12	United Nations Atomic Energy Commission stalls out
08-06-19	United States Atomic Energy Commission formed — Part 1
08-06-26	United States Atomic Energy Commission formed — Part 2
08-07-03	USAEC, David Lilienthal and Oak Ridge — Part 1
08-07-10	USAEC, David Lilienthal and Oak Ridge — Part 2
08-07-17	AEC and control of nuclear weapons
08-07-24	AEC and Oppenheimer
08-07-31	Major General Kenneth David Nichols
08-08-07	AEC and Oak Ridge Operations
08-08-14	AEC and Oak Ridge High School
08-08-21	AEC and changes at Y-12, K-25 and X-10
08-08-28	DOE Oak Ridge Operations managers
08-09-04	Y-12’s second era begins
08-09-11	Y-12’s second era grows
08-09-18	AEC and Oak Ridge transitions
08-09-25	UT gets involved at Oak Ridge
08-10-02	AEC and Oak Ridge Institute for Nuclear Studies
08-10-09	Y-12 replaces “Fort Knox” as standard for security
08-10-23	Even more Oak Ridge Transitions
08-10-30	Oak Ridge picking up momentum
08-11-06	Zirconium and hafnium separation at Y-12
08-11-13	Zirconium-related accident at Y-12
08-11-20	Y-12 uranium storage facility — A dream come true — Part 1
08-11-27	Y-12 uranium storage facility — A dream come true — Part 2
08-12-04	Tennessee Eastman letter on Y-12 reduction in force
08-12-11	Lilienthal and Groves comments on CEW transfer to AEC
08-12-18	NEPA — A grand new idea
08-12-25	The Cold War approaches and Y-12’s workload grows

2009

Y-12: Local Treasure – National Resource
Series published in the Oak Ridge Observer

2009
(cont'd)

Y-12: Oak Ridge Treasure – National Resource
Series now being published in The Oak Ridger

09-01-01	Lion Television films at Oak Ridge
09-01-15	The Cold War comes to Y-12
09-01-22	Beta 3 at Y-12
09-01-29	Oak Ridge and Y-12 grow stronger in the 1950s
09-02-05	Early steps in the Cold War
09-02-12	Y-12 again called on by the nation
09-02-19	Y-12 and the Hydrogen Bomb
09-02-26	Y-12 begins to separate lithium isotopes
09-03-05	Y-12 introduces the COLEX process

09-03-13	Y-12 Plant prepares to separate lithium isotopes
09-03-20	Beta calutrons and Y-12 experiments
09-03-27	Just 'another day' at Y-12 plant, the National Lab
09-04-03	Y-12 reopens Buildings 9201-4 and 9201-5
09-04-10	Why “25”? and Y-12 mercury losses
09-04-17	Y-12 lithium-6 production
09-04-24	The Scientist of Y-12 — Dr. Googin
09-05-01	Dr. Googin and his early days at Y-12, part 1
09-05-08	Dr. Googin and his early days at Y-12, part 2
09-05-15	Dr. Googin and his early days at Y-12, part 3
09-05-22	Dr. Googin and his early days at Y-12, part 4
09-06-01	Dr. Googin and his early days at Y-12, part 5
09-06-05	Dr. Googin and his early days at Y-12, part 6
09-06-12	Dr. Googin and his early days at Y-12, part 7
09-06-19	Dr. Googin and his early days at Y-12, part 8
09-06-26	Dr. Googin and his early days at Y-12, part 9
09-07-03	Dr. Googin and his early days at Y-12, part 10
09-07-10	Dr. Googin and his early days at Y-12, part 11
09-07-17	Apollo “Moon Boxes” made at Y-12
09-07-24	Apollo “Moon Boxes” made at Y-12, part 2
09-07-31	Dr. Googin and his early days at Y-12, part 12
09-08-10	Dr. Googin and his early days at Y-12, conclusion and community involvement
09-08-14	Dr. Googin and the Y-12 COLEX Process
09-08-21	Y-12 weapons work expands in 1950s
09-08-28	Harold Cofer and the COLEX process, part 1
09-09-04	Harold Cofer and the COLEX process, part 2
09-09-14	Harold Cofer and the COLEX process, part 3
09-09-18	Harold Cofer and the COLEX process, part 4
09-09-25	Harold Cofer and the COLEX process, part 5
09-10-02	Harold Cofer and the COLEX process, part 6
09-10-09	Y-12 grows and expands in the 1950’s
09-10-16	America Recovery and Reinvestment Act at Y-12
09-10-23	Y-12’s 1958 nuclear criticality accident and increased safety
09-10-30	A brief history of the Y-12 Development Division, part 1
09-11-06	A brief history of the Y-12 Development Division, part 2

Articles by Y-12's Historian

Y-12's History