Visiting Los Alamos, New Mexico: The Manhattan Project Road Trip
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How did Los Alamos become the site where Manhattan Project scientists changed the course of WWII...and the world??
In this episode, a historian explains how this secret city became one of America's most important military history destinations—and why you should add it to your next road trip. We'll explore what visitors can see today, the stories behind the locations, and insider travel tips for this unique New Mexico historic site.
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Transcript
Imagine heading high into the isolated mountains of northern New Mexico in 1943.
Speaker:The address on your mail is just a nondescript post office box in Santa Fe.
Speaker:You can't tell your parents, your siblings, or your closest friends where
Speaker:you are going or what you are doing.
Speaker:To enter, you have to pass through a guarded security checkpoint where
Speaker:a woman named Dorothy McKibbin verifies your credentials before
Speaker:granting you access up the plateau.
Speaker:On any official map of the United States, this place does not exist.
Speaker:Just months earlier, this high desert mesa was home to a quiet outdoor boys school.
Speaker:But under an eviction notice from the Secretary of War, the federal government
Speaker:seized the land and transformed it almost overnight into Project Y, a
Speaker:secret makeshift city of thousands of scientists, military personnel, and
Speaker:families racing against Nazi Germany to harness the power of the atom.
Speaker:Led by J. Robert Oppenheimer and General Leslie Groves, this hidden enclave became
Speaker:the birthplace of the atomic age, forever altering the landscape of the world.
Speaker:Welcome to Talk With History.
Speaker:One filmmaker, one historian, leading history-inspired world
Speaker:travels for the curious, the history lovers, and the explorer in us all.
Speaker:I am your host, Scott, here with my, my wife and historian, Jenn.
Speaker:Hello.
Speaker:Today, we're taking a detour from our Route 66 centennial road trip.
Speaker:While Route 66 winds through Albuquerque, we decided to steer the car north into
Speaker:the mountains to visit one of the most pivotal and guarded sites in American
history:Los Alamos, New Mexico.
history:It's not your everyday Route 66 stop, but standing up on the
history:hill where the Manhattan Project took shape is unforgettable.
history:We're walking you past the original main gate checkpoint, exploring
history:General Groves' quarters in the 1918 ranch house infirmary, and visiting
history:the stone cottage where Oppenheimer lived with his wife, Kitty, and
history:their young children during the war.
history:We'll also break down how an entire secret city grew to over 10,000
history:residents, the critical roles played by the Women's Army Corps on the Mesa,
history:and the re- the relentless two-year race that led from a ranch in the hills
history:of New Mexico straight to the Trinity test and the end of World War II.
history:I'm Scott Bennie, so check your clearance badge at the gate.
history:We're stepping inside the secret city of Los Alamos.
history:All right, Jenn.
history:I made it through that last line of the intro.
history:I edited it out, but for, for those of us, for those of you who are lifetime
history:members of the History Road Trip or of our app, which is History or Drive,
history:there is a private Facebook group just for lifetime members, and every
history:now and then we put outtakes on there of us screwing lines up or whatever,
history:or Jenn yelling at me off-camera-
history:or me scolding her off-camera.
history:Um, so if you guys wanna be a part of that private Facecr- Facebook group, um, you
history:can become… You can do that by becoming a lifetime member of History or Drive.
history:That's at historyordrive.com.
history:That's our history travel app, and, uh, I've been doing a lot
history:of updates to that recently.
history:There's a lot of great stuff in there.
history:And if you travel around doing History Road Trip travels, our, our
history:lifetime members have shown us that they've used it on their travel.
history:So check it out, historyordrive.com.
history:But we're not here to talk about that.
history:We're here to talk about Los Alamos.
history:So Jenn, let's, let's talk about this secret city.
history:So we… This is a part of our R- Route 66 trip.
history:Yes.
history:And so most people know Route 66.
history:It's the 100 anniversary, 1926.
history:Uh, that's what we're celebrating.
history:But Santa Fe was part of that original route, and it kinda takes you up past
history:Albuquerque up to Santa Fe because that was kind of a popular city.
history:This is north of Santa Fe, about 30 miles.
history:Yeah.
history:But it's very hilly, and it's, uh, switchbacks, so when you…
history:It's not, it's not 30 minutes.
history:Like, you have to be careful when you drive up there because w-
history:It's probably a good 45 minutes to an hour
history:… we're driving into altitude, and when you're driving up into kind of a, a more
history:r- rural area, which it really was then.
history:Now it's a built-up city.
history:But, um, in 1937 is when they cut off Santa Fe in, uh, for, for
history:Route 66, and they took basically 100 miles away, and you just go
history:right through Albuquerque instead.
history:Uh, so we wanted to do that original route and always wanted
history:to visit Los Alamos because of its significance in American history.
history:Yeah.
history:And like Scott alluded to, uh, this was the race for the atomic bomb.
history:This was during World War II, and it was really the race between the
history:Allied forces and the Axis forces.
history:Uh, Germany, Germany was the first to, to understand the power
history:of splitting the uranium atom.
history:They had done it in 1938.
history:And they had done it, but they hadn't understood the nuclear chain
history:reaction that can happen, and they didn't know how to harness it.
history:Yeah, Albert Einstein had written that letter to America to s- telling them,
history:"The Germans are doing this." And because Einstein is, uh, Jewish, right, and
history:because he's seen the Germans do this, and he's knowing what already in 1938
history:what, uh, Hitler is doing with the, uh, antisemitism, uh, he's afraid of
history:they don't understand quite yet what they've unleashed, and so he wants to
history:make sure America is aware of this.
history:So-
history:So, so he, he sees the writing on the wall.
history:He sees the writing on the wall.
history:Okay.
history:And if you saw the movie Oppenheimer, it really is Einstein talking to
history:Oppenheimer, kind of letting them know the seriousness of this.
history:Okay.
history:Uh, and so that is what's happening here, is they know that Germany has this power,
history:but they don't know yet how to contain it, and, um, the Americans, especially
history:the American, um, government, starts to see the importance of scientists
history:who are leaving Germany, right?
history:They're escaping from Germany, but they understand the
history:power that the Germans have.
history:And it is, at this time, we've talked about this before,
history:this great race of technology.
history:Yeah.
history:Right?
history:America and Germany are really racing each other with who can be the
history:quickest to build better ships and better planes and better submarines.
history:And so it really is this race of technology, and so this is the,
history:the, the chemistry side of it.
history:And what's interesting is Hitler really doesn't put emphasis into this.
history:He doesn't see the power of this, and that is what's so great about these German
history:scientists, you know, um, Einstein, who do see the power of it, and they're able
history:to get the attention of the Americans.
history:And the Americans believe them and believe that, and so that's when they
history:get this joint operation, and w- we really talk about this in Los Alamos.
history:We really talk about Leslie, g- General, um, Leslie Groves-
history:Yep … and Robert Oppenheimer.
history:Like, they are really the power behind this, and the money and the people that go
history:into this, you can see this at Los Alamos.
history:And it's really great that America put the emphasis on this.
history:Germany put their emphasis on rockets and, uh, other technologies like that because
history:they didn't think… They thought they would win the war before the atomic race-
history:Mm
history:… had started.
history:They thought they would have the war won before this even, so they didn't
history:put a lot of emphasis into this.
history:And at the beginning, the Americans really feel like they're
history:neck and neck with the Germans.
history:Like, they're really, we're coinciding, we're racing each other.
history:It's in 1944 they start to realize that Germany is way behind, and they're
history:way ahead, and so they just keep going because they wanna make sure that they
history:have understood this atomic process.
history:So that was projects like the atomic bomb, the B-29, with how
history:massive that aircraft was and the extended range that it provided.
history:Like, that, those were kind of the big technological leaps really
history:of the era, along with everything else that we did during the war.
history:Now, you said kind of America said, "Yep, we believe you, Einstein."
history:Mm-hmm.
history:Right?
history:We're gonna bring all these scientists together, Oppenheimer
history:obviously leading that charge.
history:Did they essentially kind of find Los Alamos because it, we need… They were
history:like, "Hey, we need someone, somewhere that's out of the way, off the grid.
history:This is, you know- GS-14 classified
history:So they picked Los Alamos because of Oppenheimer.
history:Oh.
history:He had vacationed there as a kid.
history:He had gone to those camps.
history:Oh.
history:He had se- and he loved it there.
history:I didn't know that.
history:And he loved the isolationist of it there.
history:And what's really neat is a lot of Los Alamos is funded by
history:the University of California.
history:You get a lot of Berkeley people, and so you get a lot of their
history:laboratories that are funding this.
history:So it's close enough to California, and it's isolated enough that Groves
history:completely agrees with his idea to take this location and make it our top sec-
history:So-
history:… top secret location
history:… so Oppenheimer had been to the boys school, the ranch that was there.
history:Mm-hmm.
history:Yes.
history:Oh, I didn't know that.
history:And
history:he- That's interesting
history:and he loved it.
history:He loved, he loved the area.
history:He loved what it provided for his, you know, for h- his soul
history:and how he could relax and- And,
history:and, and I'm glad you brought that up because, right, we focus on kind of h-
history:historic travel and things like that.
history:Mm-hmm.
history:It was m- more beautiful up there than I expected.
history:It was…
history:It had that very mountain town vibe to it.
history:It… You think Los Alamos, you think New Mexico, and you tend to
history:think kind of desert landscape.
history:Mm-hmm.
history:But this was, like you said, it was up at altitude, so it was cooler up there.
history:It was actually really nice 'cause we were smack in the, you know, the, the
history:end of July when we were getting up there, and it was really nice up there.
history:And, and it was scenic, and it was this… Again, it had this little
history:mountain town vibe that kind of reminded me of, like, in Southern California,
history:people from there, like Idyllwild or, or, or other little spots like that.
history:So I was kind of surprised at, at how, just kind of what it was up there.
history:I was pleasantly surprised.
history:It was really nice.
history:Yeah, so this was a, a ranch school opened in 1917, and the goal was providing
history:an Ivy League education with rugged ranching and outdoor opportunities.
history:Ah.
history:So that's kind of… I mean, you can imagine Oppenheimer has that.
history:He's Ivy League, right?
history:He's a smart guy.
history:Yeah.
history:Well, and i- if you think about it, for boys- Mm-hmm
history:especially in that era, there's no, right?
history:Y- y- technology's not really as much a thing.
history:It's, it's getting outside and doing stuff.
history:Yeah, and it ve- it very much reminded me of kind of like a Boy
history:Scout kind of school- Sure … kind of thing or Boy Scout camping area.
history:And so they had built- Cottages, some log cabins, you know, places
history:to eat and stuff like that, like a camp, like you would go to camp.
history:And so that's what they commandeered, and that's what, like you said, the
history:Secretary of War had sent a letter saying, "We take over your spot."
history:Yeah, that was really interesting to me because, you know, it's, the American
history:government doesn't typically do that.
history:Right now, espe- and they were, they'd done it a lot in the past, right?
history:Obviously we're talking history stuff, right?
history:But this is 19- the 1940s, right?
history:This is, this is very uncommon, but it was so important to the war effort.
history:And, uh, that to me, I, was just very interesting because even in
history:the video, we show a clip of the actual, basically like the eviction
history:notice Yeah … from the Secretary, from the Secretary of War, um- Yeah
history:the De- Department of War to this boys school.
history:Yeah, so in January of 1943, they send a letter.
history:They have the letter there on the wall, and it's one of those Too bad.
history:Yeah.
history:Like, you're not, you, you're not gonna … I, I don't know if
history:you're gonna be compensated what it's worth, but you have to leave.
history:Like, we're taking this, and it really doesn't matter.
history:It's for the war effort.
history:Now, this is 1943, so we've been at war… Actually, it's, like, the end of 1942.
history:Um, been at war almost a year now, so people are very much
history:into the war effort anyway.
history:And yeah, so it's very interesting.
history:Uh, Oppenheimer, uh, he's the leading figure in the collaboration
history:here, and he tells Leslie Groves that he really likes this location,
history:and Groves really likes it, too.
history:Uh, he likes the, the fact that h- the site is, uh, remote, and it has
history:some infrastructure already developed by the ranch school, particularly
history:the Fuller Lodge, which we go to.
history:It's now the museum.
history:Yeah.
history:And so they have buildings already there.
history:It's not like they have to build stuff from scrap.
history:There's some…
history:There's an infirmary there.
history:I think that's where Groves liked to stay.
history:So there were some log cabins, and it's very log cabin-y-
history:Yeah … when you're there.
history:There was some stuff there that they could commandeer, but he liked that remote
history:structure because then he could control.
history:Like you said, we talked about the gate.
history:You can control people getting in and out of the area.
history:You can protect the area.
history:And what's interesting is, um, the max population, uh, before the project was
history:about 600 people, and then by the time the project is done, they have 10,000
history:people living- Yeah … in the town.
history:Yeah.
history:And you have to understand, they opened the laboratory in 1943.
history:They have their first successful Trinity test in 1945, in about the end of 1945.
history:So in two years they get 10,000 people up there, and 42% of
history:those personnel are military.
history:Because you have to think, this is a really joint effort here between
history:the military and the civilian sector.
history:Yeah, so, like, the other 60%-ish are probably family
history:and support and all that stuff.
history:Mm-hmm.
history:Yeah.
history:The military's not bringing their family, right?
history:Right.
history:So it's all of the scientists and the physicists that are
history:bringing their families.
history:And so much so when they open the school there, and they open
history:a school with 140 students, 16 teachers, most of those teachers are
history:wives of- Yeah … the physicists.
history:So, and it's their children that they're teaching.
history:So the military brings in a lot of WACs, and we ha- this is very interesting.
history:They have a whole area dedicated to these women, Army Corps.
history:They bring in about 300 of them, and they do a lot of the logistical
history:work- Mm-hmm … there, right?
history:The typing, the memos, all these things that you see.
history:I mean, this is 1940s.
history:Everything's still done by letter and telegram and typewriter, right?
history:Snail mail.
history:And so they're typing up all the plans.
history:They're typing up all the programs.
history:What's interesting, though, when you go there, is you learn
history:that how much people didn't know about what each other were doing.
history:It very was compartmentalized- Mm
history:what your job was, and they made that so nobody could understand the bigger
history:ramifications of what's going on here.
history:Yeah,
history:and that's the kinda typical kinda military compartmentalization where
history:that's how they keep the, like you said, the overall project more secret-
history:Mm-hmm … by compartmentalizing, and only a few key folks actually know
history:or understand the, the big picture.
history:Yes, and so w- it's now run by the National Park Service.
history:Yep.
history:And, uh, and so when you go there, you can go to the National Park site.
history:Now, that's not anything in particular, that site.
history:It's just a building now.
history:Uh, but they give you the map to go and see the Fuller Lodge, the guest cottages.
history:And it's pretty walkable too.
history:It's pretty walkable.
history:Mm. Now, I will say, kinda we're talking some, some travel tips here.
history:When you're driving up there, there's a gas station that you can stop
history:at if you want before you get up, but it's a pretty well-built city.
history:So there's gas stations up there and grocery stores, stuff like that.
history:But as you're driving in, one of the things we show first on the video
history:is the actual, the old, the, the…
history:It's actually at the actual location of the outpost, the guard post that
history:you would have to check in before you're going into Los Alamos.
history:So it actually has the old-school sign, and they have pictures of the
history:old sign from the 1940s, and it matches exactly with the sign that's up there.
history:So that was, that was kinda neat.
history:But what it is now is actually just, like, a public restroom.
history:Yes.
history:So And I recommend stopping- Yeah … 'cause it's really good.
history:You've just driven those 40 minutes to get there, and you're like, "Oh, the
history:sign." But that's… But if you're going to the National Park, it's about three
history:miles away, so you're like, "Is that…"
history:Yeah, I would… As you're driving into Los Alamos, stop there first.
history:Mm-hmm.
history:Right?
history:Stop at the… You can use the restroom if you wanna use the restroom.
history:But you can take a picture.
history:There's some kinda good scenery, and a- and for those watching the
history:video, I'll show video clips of it.
history:Um, but you can stop there, take your pictures, then you can go into the city.
history:We actually didn't realize that.
history:We drove past it and came back later.
history:But if you're, as you're driving into the city, if you're listening to this
history:on your way up, go ahead and stop there, and then you can kinda just
history:continue on up after you've gotten out, stretched your legs, taken pictures.
history:So when you get to the National Park site, you are gonna do…
history:They have a walking tour.
history:It's a very easy place to park your car-
history:Walk around
history:… and walk around, and that's basically what you can do.
history:Now, they do offer Great tours into the actual deep locations, where
history:the Trinity site took place, where, uh, the different bunkers were that
history:people were at deeper into Los Alamos.
history:Those are only available certain times of the year and by lottery.
history:So that's not the typical tour you're going to do.
history:The typical tour will be these sites where the physicists lived
history:and where they ate- Yeah … and where they went to the movies.
history:You
history:can see Oppenheimer's house.
history:Yes, you can see Oppenheimer's house, which I heard is going
history:to be open for tours eventually, but you can go to the outside.
history:And if you saw the movie, uh, they depict it in the movie.
history:And so you can stand there.
history:This is where he lives with Kitty.
history:It's where they h- they have one child while they're there.
history:They raise their other child there.
history:And so you get to see how it's right next door to the other physicists' houses, and
history:it's neat because it's almost like they're trying to make it a little neighborhood-
history:Yeah
history:and have some semblance of-
history:Normalcy
history:… normalcy there.
history:And so I thought that was very neat.
history:But it's really cool to do the tour.
history:Go to the visitor center first.
history:You're gonna walk around the pond, and then the first thing
history:you see will be the statues.
history:And so we have, uh, videos from that, but there's a statue of General Leslie
history:Groves and a statue of Robert Oppenheimer because these are the two heads, the
history:two men, the two visionaries behind the entire Manhattan Project, and one
history:represents the military and the money.
history:I mean, we're gonna get into the billions of dollars here.
history:Yeah, back then.
history:And then Oppenheimer, the, the brains behind it, and how they both had to
history:come together, and with such vision.
history:understand how they could do this and the possibilities of it.
history:And really, when you think they do it in two years.
history:It's, it's pretty wild.
history:Now, the museum is one of the spots that we went first.
history:So that we went to the visitor's center at the, for the national
history:park, kinda got the lay of the land, did some walking around outside.
history:Kind of, again, a very pleasant, nice place to kinda walk around outside.
history:Then we got over to the museum, and the museum's not huge, but it does
history:a really good job of walking you through kind of this whole timeline.
history:'Cause if you think about it, there's a lot that happened in a
history:relatively short amount of time.
history:So it kinda shows, I think they even had some pictures of, like, the boy's
history:school, the ranch before, from before the Army came in and, and took over.
history:Um, so they walk you through that.
history:They show you the Secretary of War letter, kinda, you know,
history:evicting them essentially.
history:Um, and then it talks you through what life was like in Los Alamos.
history:It focuses a lot on that.
history:So there's a lot of, uh, displays talking timeline.
history:It shows the growth of the city, how it grew, like you said, from 600 to almost
history:10,000 by the end of the war effort.
history:Um, and this is all in two and a half years that- Wow
history:that they were there.
history:And so it does a really good job of walking you through that whole
history:process, and then kinda giving you insights into Oppenheimer and Groves,
history:and then the women that were there contributing and, and things like that.
history:So they didn't go deep into the lives of any of these kinda
history:primary characters, but, uh, it, it, it was a good little museum.
history:I was pretty impressed.
history:And that museum is not It's not run by the national park, so you'll have
history:to pay separate to get in there.
history:However, they gave it to us free because of military, so
history:we were able to walk around.
history:It was built as an infirmary for the ranch school in 1918, and it later
history:served as a guest cottage for visitors.
history:And like I said, it was General Leslie Groves' favorite
history:place to stay in Los Alamos.
history:Uh, and the museum features, uh, exhibits on the Manhattan Project,
history:as well as people from Los Alamos.
history:Uh, and if you need, wanna buy your, um, souvenirs- Yeah … that's a
history:good place to buy them as well.
history:So yeah, it's called the Los Alamos History Museum today,
history:the former infirmary school.
history:So what you can see is how they repurposed these buildings.
history:You can see the buildings that were available there to them, and then
history:how they repurposed them and used them for the Manhattan Project.
history:And like I said, Leslie Groves w- actually would stay there and
history:liked to stay there during, um, while he was visiting Los Alamos.
history:But you walk around, and you go to what they call Bathtub Row, and Bathtub
history:Row are where these h- was homes basically on a street that had bathtubs.
history:And they were, um, they were homes built for the ranch school, but
history:they adapted them for the scientists and their families, and it got
history:their names 'cause they're the only homes in town that had bathtubs-
history:Oh, interesting
history:for their families, right?
history:Because they had children and, and so they wanted to make it seem
history:homey for these scientists that are coming here to kind of sit together
history:and, and figure out this process.
history:So, uh, and Oppenheimer's home is at the end of Bathtub Row.
history:And, and it's a good size little place for what you see up there, right?
history:Mm-hmm.
history:So, you know, it kind of makes sense.
history:He was leading a lot of the effort, and so his, his house was, you know, a little
history:bit bigger than some of the others.
history:It looked like they were doing a little bit of work on the front
history:of the house when we were there.
history:Um, but it was interesting to me, 'cause I asked you this
history:before we started recording.
history:I was like, "So two and a half years, they're doing all this stuff." I was
history:like, "Is the movie relatively accurate when it comes to Oppenheimer and, like,
history:how promiscuous he, he was while he was there?" And you told me, like, yeah, you
history:know, he, uh, he was not faithful to his wife while he was there in Los Alamos.
history:No, he…
history:I mean, uh, he was one of those ecc- ecc- eccentric scientists, right?
history:And he had a strong sexual appetite, so, uh, yeah, uh, that is true.
history:If you watch the movie, that is true.
history:And that's one of the things they kinda In the movie and, and in real life, you know,
history:you're always trying to see where people's weaknesses are when it comes to giving
history:away secrets, especially when you're dealing with such high level clearances.
history:And if you have these different vices that they know that they can be used against
history:you, it was one of the things that made him very vulnerable, and that's why it
history:was so well-known, is because you had to, you had to poke the bear and make
history:sure, "Hey, is this gonna be an issue?
history:Is this gonna be a problem?
history:We know about this.
history:Is this gonna be something that we have to worry about your clearance
history:with?" And that's why his wife knew about it and things like that.
history:So it's very interesting, v- you know, human nature-
history:Yeah … and talking about this.
history:But, um, when you go to Bath, New York and you walk and you see,
history:uh, O- Oppenheimer's house, it's right by the Hans Bethe's house.
history:Yeah.
history:Did I say that right?
history:Yep.
history:And he's the chemist that, uh, the, the two chemists that were brought there,
history:McMillan and, uh, physicist Hans Bethe, they both were Nobel Prize winners, and
history:they lived in that house at separate times, but they were brought there
history:for their brains and, and part of the whole, uh- Race to build the atomic
history:bomb, but it's right across the street, right, of the pathway to Oppenheimer's.
history:Yeah, it, it, all these houses were pretty close.
history:Again, it's, it's very, has that kinda camp ranch feel to it.
history:So everything's pretty close.
history:It's not like they're spread out and they're typical city streets.
history:Now, it wasn't when, when we were there, because it's been built up,
history:but back then, it really wasn't that.
history:Yeah, the city has engulfed this.
history:Yeah.
history:So when you're there, like, there's businesses right across the
history:street from Oppenheimer's house.
history:Like, there's, like, a, a brewery- Yeah … right there.
history:Yeah.
history:You could go have a beer, right?
history:And there were some bigger clubhouses for the ranch that are no longer
history:there, and they have pictures of them, so you can kinda see where they
history:were in those business areas now.
history:But some places have been preserved, like the theater, like
history:the, uh, barracks for the WACs.
history:Those things have, have been preserved, and they could be open at different
history:times for you to go in and see.
history:And I know they're trying to revamp some of that to make it visited, um,
history:more visitor-friendly, but it was really cool, if you've, especially if
history:you've seen the movie, to kinda stand-
history:Yeah
history:in Oppenheimer's backyard.
history:Yeah, I, 'cause we, I was, like, trying to look in his window, but
history:the, the shades were all drawn.
history:Yeah.
history:But that, that was the same house, you know?
history:Yeah.
history:And, uh, and if you're, again, if you're watching the video, that's
history:what you're seeing right now.
history:Yeah, it was super neat.
history:And if you knew anything, you know, there are three locations that are
history:really synonymous with the Manhattan Project, and one of 'em is in
history:Tennessee, Oak Ridge, Tennessee.
history:So here's a, it's another, a National Park Service map.
history:Um- Yep,
history:future video that we're gonna try to do
history:… and then we just did Los Alamos, and then you got, uh, Hanford,
history:Washington, Richland, Washington.
history:We've made a video from there.
history:It has not been… It, it's in the, it's in the can.
history:Yeah, we haven't published it yet.
history:We haven't published it yet.
history:But these three locations is what's needed to make the atomic bomb, because
history:when we talk about uranium, uranium is mined, and it's very hard to find it.
history:You get uranium-239, but that's not what's needed for the atomic bomb.
history:You need uranium-235, and out, out of all the uranium that's mined, 230,
history:um, 238, I'm sorry, 238 is 99% of that uranium, and only 1% will be the 235.
history:And that's the uranium, that's the, uh, atom you need to split.
history:And so what's so difficult about finding that uranium is they were like, "Is there
history:another process we can do to get the same kinda reaction?" Well, you can turn that
history:uranium-238, the bigger stuff you get, into plutonium, and through a nuclear
history:reaction, um, you can make- y- the, the more uranium you find into plutonium.
history:And when you split that plutonium, you get almost the same kinda reaction you
history:get from splint- splitting uranium-235.
history:And so when they make Little Boy, Little Boy uses that uranium.
history:That's- That's
history:the… Is that the first atomic bomb?
history:The first atomic bomb, and that is found in, uh, Oak Ridge.
history:But when they make Fat Man, Fat Man is using plutonium, and that's
history:what they're getting from, uh, Richland, from Hanford, Washington.
history:And so really, it's these three locations that come together, and in Los Alamos
history:is where they do all the testing, where they do all the actual putting it
history:together- Right … and the containment, and they do the Trinity test out there.
history:Now, they're doing the Trinity test in July of 1945.
history:It's successful, and they will drop the bombs in August.
history:Yeah.
history:So they don't waste any time.
history:A- a- and I didn't realize that either.
history:I didn't realize that it was that, the timeline was that
history:tight from testing to usage.
history:Yeah, I mean, again, it was a race.
history:Yeah.
history:And so it was… I will say, uh, we will make it out to Oak Ridge eventually.
history:Yep.
history:And but being able to go to Richland and see that a- another rural location.
history:That's where they're gonna build the first nuclear reactors because
history:you need these reactors to change that uranium into plutonium.
history:And those are still out there today, and you can see all of that.
history:And again, they're bringing in all these people, and they're
history:putting them in homes, and they're bringing in all these scientists.
history:It's the same kind of feel in Los Alamos.
history:Uh, but I will say Los Alamos, the town, is much more built up- Yeah … uh, today.
history:But it was super neat to visit, be a part of the story, see the actual
history:locations, stand in Oppenheimer's backyard, and just celebrate, uh, America
history:and what we did during World War II and how we came together in this race
history:and actually beat the Germans to it.
history:As you drive back down the winding mountain road leaving Los Alamos, looking
history:out across the vast New Mexico landscape, it's hard not to feel the lingering
history:weight of what happened on this plateau.
history:In just over two years, a secluded ranch became the engine that
history:reshaped modern warfare and ushered humanity into the nuclear era.
history:Standing outside Oppenheimer's stone cottage or looking at the security
history:checkpoints where ordinary families lived extraordinary and classified
history:lives, you realize history isn't just made on the battlefield.
history:It's forged in hidden rooms, intense debates, and the moral
history:complexities of scientific discovery.
history:Taking this detour off Route 66 was a powerful reminder of how
history:many world-shifting stories sit just beyond the highway markers.
history:Next time, we point our wheels back down the Mother Road, and we continue
history:our trek across the American Southwest.
history:We'll talk to you next time.
history:Thank you.
history:This has been a Walk With History production.
history:Talk With History is created and hosted by me, Scott Bennie.
history:Episode researched by Jennifer Bennie.
history:Check out the show notes for links and references mentioned in this episode.
history:Make sure you hit that follow button in that podcast player,
history:and we'll talk to you next time
