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National Museum of Nuclear Science & History

John Kenyon Kinnear, Sr.

Mechanical EngineerOak Ridge, TN

Los Alamos, NM
EngineerManhattan Project VeteranMilitary Veteran
John Kenyon Kinnear

John Kenyon Kinnear, Sr. was raised in Brooklyn, NY. He joined the Army and because he was a tool and die maker, he was assigned to the Manhattan Project. He worked producing parts for the bombs. While in New Mexico, he met, courted and married a woman from Albuquerque.

On his uniform he wore the atom bomb patch. He did not speak of the project for at least 25 years as silence was required. As a mechanical engineer, he continued to work on top secret defense industry projects throughout his working career. His last job was as an Imagineer for Disney, for which he was hired at age 78.

Information submitted by his son, Larry.

John Kenyon Kinnear (right) with a fellow soldier during the war in New Mexico

John Kenyon Kinnear (left) with fellow soldiers during the war in New Mexico

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