Oral Histories

Gordon Fee is the retired president of Lockheed Martin Energy Systems and the former manager of the Y-12 nuclear weapons plant in Oak Ridge, TN. He began working at Oak Ridge at the K-25 gaseous diffusion plant in 1956. In this interview, he describes his career at Oak Ridge, and shares stories about his work at Y-12 and Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL). In particular, he focuses on scientific developments connected with Oak Ridge, including the growth of the Nuclear Navy, the use of radioisotopes in medicine, and more. He also discusses the challenges of trying to explain Oak Ridge’s complex history to the public.

In July 1945 William E. Tewes was transferred from New York, where he was working on gaseous diffusion, to Oak Ridge. He worked on the leak testing operation at K-25. He discusses the many scientific and engineering innovations of the K-25 Plant, raising a family in Oak Ridge, and the friends he made among his fellow Manhattan Project workers.

Denise Kiernan has worked as a journalist and producer. She is best known for “The Girls of Atomic City,” which came out in March 2013 and immediately shot to the top of the New York Times bestsellers list. “The Girls of Atomic City” tells the story of the women who worked at Oak Ridge on the Manhattan Project. She has appeared on the Daily Show and NPR to talk about her book and the women who worked on the Manhattan Project.