Thanks for posting, Don and Charlie. Now mebbe we can put this topic to rest and file it away next to the tongue in cheek urban legend that the purpose for Los Alamos was to make windshield wipers for submarines.
There is a very recent book out on Los Alamos which I highly recommend. The author, Jennet Conant, is the daughter of Dr. James Conant (I believe)who was a participant in the Manhattan Project, and later became Pres. of the Univ. of CA. So she has a lot of first hand knowledge.
The book, entitled "109 East Palace", centers around the comings and goings at that Santa Fe address. (Los Alamos didn't officially exist, although it was common knowledge that there was someing going on up on the "Hill", although no one knew for sure what it was.)
Dorothy McKibben, who died a few years ago, ran the office for many years. With few exceptions, every one traveling to and from Los Alamos had to pass through 109 East Palace Avenue.
What's most interesting about that book is it's emphasis on life in and around Los Alamos, rather than the gadgetry. I lived in Los Alamos starting in the late 1940's and can attest to the different mind set that existed. Oppenheimer's Friday afternoon cocktail parties were legendary - and still are. More than one Nobel Laureate had to be disentangled from the shrubbery outside.
One more anecdote, also in Conant's book, is the fight that Gen. Groves, the military commander of Los Alamos, got into with the wives over living conditions. Groves lost.
Heady times. Remember, all this was accomplished in roughly two years. Today, a project of this size would require a two year study by a committee beforehand.
CJ (Ex Hilltopper)
P.S. If you are ever in Santa Fe, stick your head in the door of 109 East Palace Avenue, and breathe deeply.
ecret Chili Line, Where are Pro and Con Facts?
