September - October 2000 Newsletter

Volume I - Issue 5

This newsletter is sponsored by the Society for the Historical Preservation of the Manhattan Project (http://www.manhattanprojectmemorial.org and the Children of the Manhattan Project (http://home.att.net/~cotmp)

Topics covered in this issue:

1) Site Statistics for September 2000

  2) Introducing eGroups

  3) Newsletters by Mail

  4) Quote of the Month

  5) Question of the Month

  6) Did You Know?

  7) Featured Book

  8) The Manhattan Project Memorial

  9) Publicity

  10)What's Ahead

1) Site Statistics for September 2000... 

During the month of September, we received close to 400 visitors. We received an e-mail from NBC's Snap Directory, one of the most used search engines on the Internet, informing us that "the Children of the Manhattan Project web site has distinguished itself as one of the most popular Snap LiveDirectory sites in its category. 

In recognition of this, your site has been promoted to Snap's Premium Directory. Each site in Snap's Premium Directory has been independently reviewed by our editor and placed where it will be available in the Top Web Sites section of search results." 

Now we need to accomplish the same results with the other major engines such as Yahoo, Altavista, and Excite. We are presently tracking web site statistics for the new Manhattan Project Memorial web site and will report those in our July newsletter. 

2) Introducing eGroups.com...

We have once again changed our e-mail newsletter distribution to a new "free" service which is part of Yahoo, called eGroups. It is by this service that you are receiving this newsletter. 

3) Newsletters by Mail... 

As mentioned in prior newsletters, we recognize that many people who might be interested in our newsletters do not have access to the Internet. For this reason we have decided to make our newsletters available via the US Mail. If you know of someone who you think would be interested in receiving this newsletter via mail each month, please e-mail us at newsletter@box1663.org. 

4) Quote of the Month... 

This month's quote isn't really a quote at all in the purest sense. It is commonly referred to as the "Potsdam Ultimatum". 

Immediately after the successful Trinity test on July 16, 1945, the results were transmitted to President Harry Truman who was attending a conference at Potsdam along with Winston Churchill and Josef Stalin. As a result of the successful test, the following message (ultimatum) was broadcast to the Japanese people on July 28, 1945: 

"...the people themselves have seen with their own eyes the steadily mounting power and fury of our combined offensive. You have seen our mighty battleships bombard your shores. You have seen the thousands of war planes day after day darken your skies. Japan must make a choice, upon the wisdom of which her whole future will depend. In light of the alternatives presented in the joint proclamation, this choice should not be difficult. One alternative is prompt and utter destruction. If the Japanese people are forced by their self-willed militaristic leaders to choose the alternative of ruin, centuries of sweat and toil will be brought to naught in a cataclysmic end of a tragic war. The other alternative is the end of the war. One simple decision will allow tranquility again to return to the city and the countryside. The guns will cease their fire, the bombs will no longer drop from the skies, your sons and brothers will no longer face agonizing and useless death on the battlefields. The homeland of Japan will be saved to continue a sovereign existence under a peacefully inclined and responsible government." The "ultimatum" was rejected by Japan. 

5) Question of the Month... 

Each month we will include a question concerning some little known factoid about the Manhattan Project. The correct answer will be included in next month's newsletter. 

If you know the answer, please e-mail us back at question@box1663.org

The first person with the right answer will be listed in next month's newsletter.

This Month's  Question - What Device was Code-Named "Jumbo"? 

6. Did You Know... 

The World War II Memorial being built in Washington, DC does not have a single book referencing the Manhattan Project amongst its 150 recommended books dealing with the history of World war II. 

7. Featured Book... 

A few weeks ago I had the pleasure of speaking with Lt. Col. Fred Olivi (pronounced "O-lee-vee"), the co-pilot of Bockscar, the B29 that dropped the second "Plutonium" bomb on Nagasaki. Fred is 79 and has recently published his new book "Decision at Nagasaki - The Mission That Almost Failed". 

I have read the book and it is one of the most interesting books on the subject ever written. The book covers all of the activities of the 509th Composite Group including the names of all of the crews of the 15 B-29's.

For those that enjoy technical detail, Fred has included a large appendix giving all of the specifications and missions of the 15 B- 29's assigned to the 509 on Tinian Island.

The book itself describes in great detail the series of mishaps that almost cost the mission and the factors of fate that ultimately pointed Bockscar toward Nagasaki. 

This book is not available in bookstores or on Amazon.com since Lt. Col Olivi is still working out distribution arrangements. However, you can receive an advanced copy of the book signed by Lt. Col. Olivi by e-mailing us at  book@box1663.org.

The price is $ 30 plus shipping. Please let me know if you are interested. 

8. The Manhattan Project Memorial... 

Many of you may be wondering what the new web site, box1663.org, is all about. Basically it is about memorializing the efforts of all those who participated in the Manhattan Project. 

As the Children of the Manhattan Project matured, it became evident that we needed some vehicle that concentrated solely on the veterans. What you see is a start and may, by necessity, change over time as we gain experience. 

We have received loads of information about veterans who were at Los Alamos. In fact, as of today, we have over 1,800 names posted to the web site. If you haven't done so already, please review the site at http://www.box1663.org, and let me know what you think. 

We have close to another 500 names to add to the Los Alamos tables. However, we are sorely deficient in information about veterans at Oak Ridge and Hanford. We know there were thousands at these two sites so someone out there should be able to supply us with names. If you can help, please e-mail as veterans@box1663.org. 

Much more about this site in next month's newsletter. 

9. Publicity... 

We have been very fortunate to begin this awesome project during a time of awakened awareness of the World War II veteran. As a result we have been receiving favorable responses to our pleas for publicity. Thus far we have received two great boosts: 

Yesterday, on June 27th, we were featured as a guest on the nationally-syndicated Mike Gallagher Radio Talk Show originating from studios at WABC in New York and broadcast to 148 radio stations. We were on for the first full-hour of the show. 

The topic of the show was "The Historical Preservation of the Manhattan Project" and we received loads of responses. You can listen to this broadcast by visiting Mike Gallagher's website at http://mikeonline.com. After reaching the home page, click on listen and then choose June 27 from the archived list. You may have to download the Windows Media Player which is on the home page also. 

In addition to being featured as a guest, we have also been included on Mike's Guest Page. From Mike's home page, click on "guest" and you will see us there. 

Also, we have been promised by the American Legion to be featured in an upcoming issue of their monthly magazine. I will keep you posted as that moves forward. 

10) What's Ahead... 

I am very thankful that many of you have been in on this project from its inception. We will soon be formalizing the organization and many of you have expressed a willingness to serve on the board of directors or a committee...or, simply to help locate veterans and spread the word. 

Since we have appeared on a national radio show and will soon appear in a national publication, our credibility factor has greatly increased. If any of you would like to represent us locally on a talk show or possibly submit a newspaper article, please let me know. 

As always, your comments are encouraged. It is only through the help of interested people such as yourselves that this project is going to move forward.

Thank you very much for your continued interest...

Joseph Calabrese e-mail: j_calabrese@angelfire.com