KINGSTON DEMOLITION RANGE PHOTOGRAPHS

CD-ROM NOW AVAILABLE FOR ALL SECTIONS A B C D E F G H IJKM. See order information on HOME page. No pictures were found for Sections "L""N""O"

The Source for appraisal photos of 1942 homes removed for Manhattan Project in Oak Ridge

Welcome to a history project to preserve the memory of homes that were removed to build Oak Ridge Tennessee. In 1942 more than 1000 families were displaced from 56,000 acres in Roane and Anderson Counties. Photographs were taken by Corps of Engineers as the War Department took the property for demolition to build facilities that would become known as Oak Ridge. This Secret Project would bring an end to World War II as the atomic bomb was developed. Very few lives in East Tennessee have not been touched by this historic event. With the help of Pellissippi Genealogical and Historical Society I was able to retrieve and make available to the public these photos from the National Archives. Some photos displayed on SAMPLE PHOTOS are of the original homes and farm buildings that once existed on the Oak Ridge Reservation. As they have been removed and no longer can be seen or visited I take great pleasure to present them here. If your family or ancestors lived in this area there will probably be photos available for them. Some names of the 1942 properties had previously belonged to others who moved from the area before 1942. If your family lived there we wish to document more history and stories connected with them. Please contact me to help trace this information and location of their property.

The name "Kingston Demolition Range" was the first name given to the Top Secret Project. After removal of the residents it was changed to Clinton Engineering Works and finally the enigmatic MANHATTAN PROJECT. After the War the area was named Oak Ridge for the city where Scientists and Engineers lived behind the fence with security and secrecy predominant.

The photos posted on this site are available as permanent high quality photographic prints. A 7 inch Print is $4 (20 or more $3 each).(Download Print Order Form)

Please contact me by email deraby AT att.net for more information. Please include the name, number and description from the Surname list for the items you want.

The Earliest Days: Kingston Demolition Range

The Dogs barked all night.....for weeks. The traumatic sounds of change rolled over the ridges and deep into the hollows. The placid solitude of just enough space between neighbors was about to be interrupted by the chaos of construction and the whirl of industry.

The secret weapon's identity never passed tight lips. Not even enough was told to comfort distraught mothers concerned for their little children's security.

Army men in civilian uniforms stood out as threatening aliens bringing unknown damage. They marched unwelcome in metered paces as they probed and measured every structure. Even the out houses were subjected to close scrutiny.

Some folks submitted to the usurp of their privacy, but there was enough resistance that required a Court Order threatening to punish those who would interfere.

In the Federal District Court it was ordered, ".... that duly authorized representatives of the United States.... be permitted to enter upon any or all of said tracts of land.... for the purpose of examining the premises, including dwellings and out houses thereon and any other improvements and if deemed necessary to survey the same, so that said agents.... may fairly appraise said premises. Any failure or refusal on the part of any land owner.... tenant or agent thereof to permit the duly authorized representative of the United States to make such entry, survey, inspection or appraisal shall be reported forthwith to the court or a judge thereof." November 13 1942.

Residents were not to blame as they felt the right to protect life, liberty and security of the family. It was just that the gov't was too forthright in the exercise of imminent domain to condemn properties with little or no explanation.

The Corps was neither to blame as they were following orders of their master. It produced an uncomfortable clash as the force of authority met the instinct of preservation.

One might think that the people would have expected something after hearing of the visions of John Hendrix. But the facts remain that family security was threatened as the United States of America had laid claim to 56,200 acres on the Clinch River in Roane and Anderson Counties.

Folks in East Tennessee were somewhat accustomed to such intrusion since TVA in 1936 had displaces 2200 families to build Norris Dam. They had heard of it in 1933 when people were forced to leave the Great Smokey Mountains National Park. Some from both of these resettled in Freels Bend and Robertsville. Now they were being upset again. One fellow it is told, said he preferred seeing revenuers coming because at least they did not make him move.

People were afraid. People were angry. People were saddened and to some the bitterness never subsided until their life was over.

The nation had given its sons in combat and now these are told to give up their homesteads for the cause that would end the WAR. Most young men were already gone to join the effort. Who could dispute such a request!?! The ones who returned would find a different valley without the old homeplaces.

It was not all negative as the influx of thousands of workers demanded homes and provisions. Many timbers were sold to build housing and merchants inventories were increased. Road builders and Sawmill operators flourished as the flood of workers outstretched the capacity to provide shelter.

It was a serious time. War called for action as no other season. It was a time for safety. On September 25 these valleys on the Clinch River were chosen and the men assigned here soon found they were not welcomed prying and measuring.

The name Kingston Demolition Project was the first name given to the Top Secret Project. After removal of the residents it was changed to Clinton Engineering Works and finally the enigmatic MANHATTAN PROJECT. After the War the area took the name Oak Ridge after the city where Scientist and Engineers lived behind the fence with security and secrecy predominate. The names of the Scarbrough, Elza, Robertsville, Wheat, Gravel Hill and others have been wiped from map and nearly lost to the memory of the present generation. The communities once existed on the site of what is now Oak Ridge, K-25, Y-12, X-10 and the newest Nuetron Spallation Project. There are many folks around who still remember these communities and a few who actually lived there.

This collection which I name KINGSTON DEMOLITION RANGE after the first name given to this project has over 5600 images of houses, barns, smokehouses, hen houses, hog pens, out houses and any other structure considered an improvement. These pictures tell a story of what was in that place before and something of the people who once lived there. Many may imagine that this was just vacant untended wilderness, or that the farmers were subsistence at best. Some even looked at the rolling fields and said, "This looks like a nice place for a town..."

My great great grandfather Samuel A Raby was a blind 47 years old Union Veteran when he moved into Bear Creek Valley at the base of Pine Ridge. He was in sight of New Hope Baptist Church. He remarried there after the mother of his five children died. He is buried in the little cemetery beside the gate of Y-12 weapons plant. The New Hope Church stood nearby and about 200 of its members rest in this cemetery next to the atomic weapons plant.

In October 2001 I visited the National Archives in East Point, Georgia and saw this collection. I began to seek a way to make these available to the public as they belong to us. I continued to learn as much as possible about the history and development of this area. In October 2002 I ask PGHS to sponsor this work and provide this collection on CD-ROM. June 2004 we completed the project to place this collection in public libraries. I am very grateful to those who have helped me in this endeavor including Ed Westcott, Grace Raby Crawford, Flossie Raby, Gladys Raby Hunt, Louise Freels Reed, Lucille Hackworth Farmer, James Brennan and many others too numerous to name. Pellissippi Genealogical and Historical Society is sponsoring this work. I also thank Bob Presley, Robertsville Reunion, and DOE Photographer Lynn Freeney. I am thankful to have their encouragement and have been blessed to hear about life in Scarbrough. Thanks to Reid Gryder and Fred Cannon whose technical expertise made this website possible sooner rather than later. Thanks to all my family for their present and future patience to see this done.

This collection is valuable to family members who may still remember their early days of removal. They will be useful to architects who want to view stages of development in housing. Archaeologist and Anthropologist will find them helpful in study of the regional culture at a point in time. And they are just fun to look and imagine living just down the road 60 years ago.

On June 11, 2003 I completed the scanning of the entire collection of photos in the Archives. We have published these 6000+ images on CD-ROM for viewing on Personal Computers.
ALL CDs for Sections "A" "B" "C" "D" "E" "F" "G" "H" "I" "J" "K" "M" are now available for purchase from PGHS by mail from PGHS, 118 South Hicks St., Clinton, TN 37716. Price is $12 each plus $2 shipping.(Download CD-ROM Order Form)

They can also be obtained from the Discovery GIFT SHOP in the AMERICAN MUSEUM OF SCIENCE AND ENERGY in Oak Ridge, 300 Tulane Ave. Mary Harris also has the CDs in the vault in ANDERSON COUNTY COURTHOUSE on 3rd floor.

Your support in this project makes it possible to place these Photo CDs in local libraries. We have donated currently to Oak Ridge Public Library, UT Library Special Collections, McClung Collection in East Tennessee Historical Center, Loudon County Library, Roane County Archives in Kingston, AMSE Museum in Oak Ridge, Clinton Public Library and Harriman Library. Folks seeking family history information will be able to access the pictures in the libraries even if they have no computer at home. Thanks for visiting

 Donald E Raby Knoxville TN