13-04  Julia M. Wynne

Scientific Specialty - Chemist - Specific Duties Unknown

Unknown due to Mother's secrecy during the remainder of her life. I have an appreciation certificate from the Eastman Tennessee Corp, signed in blue ink by the Secretary of War.

Manhattan Project Contribution:

Mother was injured in the lab, treated in a military hospital for some type of radiation injury of which she would never speak, sworn to secrecy by the Oak Ridge administration, which found her a job at the Bell Aircraft Factory in Marietta, Georgia, where she was working on V-J day. She was not allowed to go back to Oak Ridge to her job for fear that she might say something to her co-workers which would impede their "confidence" working around then-unknown substances, many of which, of course, were extremely dangerous for human exposure, but about which there was then no information. The only thing my mother WOULD tell me about the end of her hospitalization was that "a high ranking Army officer" visited her and swore her to absolute secrecy about the injury because "if word of this gets out, you could contribute to the United States losing this war, young lady!" (Potent stuff for a 23 year old from rural Georgia, even though she had graduated cum laude from Berry College in 1944!)

Manhattan Project Story:

Today, I would bet that my Mother would have been given a pension and other considerations. However, she was never contacted by the government for any "follow-up" and I feel that a great number of her health problems may have stemmed from the 1944 accident. There is a good chance, I'll wager" that much of this type material is still classified, or if not, is so "out of date" as to generate no interest. My Mother was always proud of her service at Oak Ridge, and never held a grudge against the government. She died in July of 1993.