Along with Los Alamos, NM, and Hanford, WA, Oak Ridge was one of three cities where the United States government conducted the Manhattan Project, which ulitmately produced the atomic bomb. The work done in Oak Ridge focused on enriching uranium.
The city of Oak Ridge did not exist prior to the Manhattan Project, as a city grew up in secret, and seemingly overnight, during WW2. At the time, there was no official town center, and roads were alphabetical and named after states, to help orient the new arrivals. In 1943, construction began on Jackson Square, which became the community's first business district, with a theaer, shops, restaurants, and even tennis courts. The Oak Ridge Playhouse (in Jackson Square) and Blankenship Field (across the street from the square), both dating back to 1943, are still in use and remain important gathering places for the Oak Ridge community. And Big Ed's Pizza, perhaps Oak Ridge's most famous restaurant, was founded in 1970 down the block from Jackson Square and remains thriving today.
Oak Ridge had mulitple facilities working on the project, including Y-12 and K-25. Along roadways leading to these facilities, the goverment erected gate houses, which are still standing, reminders of Oak Ridge's secret birth.
While most of the facilities have since been decommissioned, aspects of Y-12 still remain. And the Oak Ridge National Labratory, which was created in 1943, still remains.
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