Manhattan Project National Historical Park Becoming a Reality

In December 2014 President Obama signed the Carl Levin and Howard P. "Buck" McKeon National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2015, directing the United States Department of Energy (DOE) and the Department of the Interior (DOI), through the National Park Service (NPS), to work together to establish a new national park to improve the understanding of the Manhattan Project.

DOE and DOI, tasked with creating a Memorandum of Agreement by the end of the year, has already released the MOA ahead of schedule.  Public comments will be accepted through August 28.  Once the MOA is signed the park will be considered an established park.

The first of its kind, this new park will be located in three locations: Oak Ridge, Tennessee; Hanford, Washington; and Los Alamos, New Mexico.  The purpose is to create an opportunity for people from around the world to visit these historic sites and gain a deeper understanding of history and world-changing events that happened as part of the Manhattan Project.

Two of the four sites chosen for the Oak Ridge part of the park is located in Roane County – X10 Graphite Reactor (at ORNL) and K-25 Building Site (at East Tennessee Technology Park).  For more information about the park as it becomes a reality in Roane County visit www.ManhattanProjectTN.com.