Should The United States Build An Atomic Weapon?

In 1939, the world’s scientists discovered that German physicists had learned the secrets of splitting a uranium atom. It was feared that the Nazi scientists would use that energy to product a bomb capable of total devastation.

Scientists Albert Einstein and Enrico Fermi were living in the United States at this time, both having fled their respective countries, Germany and Italy. They decided that the President of the United States should be informed of the possible dangers of atomic technology, although few government officials shared their unease when hearing the information. Einstein wrote President Roosevelt a letter recommending an atomic research program be developed in the United States.

President Roosevelt eventually agreed to design and build an atomic bomb. On May 12, 1942, he signed an order creating the secret project to develop the nuclear weapon. The program that developed the atomic bomb during World War II was the largest secret project ever undertaken by the U.S. Government. The project being kept a secret was crucial, so only a small group knew what was actually being developed, even though many Americans were employed assembling the parts.

The U.S. needed to build an atomic weapon before Germany or Japan did. The project was originally named “Development of Substitute Materials”, but people were afraid it was too suggestive of its real purpose. It received its code name at this time, The Manhattan Project. The name evolved from Col. Marshall, who was the chief of construction for the Army Corps of Engineers. He was appointed to take charge of the weapons project, and the first thing he did was name the project “The Manhattan Engineering District”, which eventually became known as The Manhattan