I visited the CREHST (Columbia River Exhibition of History, Science and Technology) Museum in Richland, WA just before its closure at end of January.
I was distressed to learn that the new museum, the Hanford Reach Interpretive Center, which will open in July 2014, will include only the early Manhattan Project period in its displays. This would mean that photos, displays, and exhibits would cover only the period from construction to start up in November 1944 through detonation of the plutonium A-bomb over Nagasaki August 1945. The entire Cold War production era which began just after use of the atomic bombs against Japan, a time of rushed plutonium production and major offsite radiation releases, will not be included.
The CREHST Museum was rich in artifacts from the time my father worked at Hanford as an engineer, and from my childhood. It also had an excellent display of the Alphabet Houses. I grew up in an “F,” so seeing this display meant a lot to me. But, I found no mention of the human toll of Hanford operations in the CREHST Museum.
If the Reach Interpretive Center neglects the Downwinders’ story, as did the CREHST Museum, Hanford’s history, as depicted, will continue to be tragically flawed, and a disservice will be done to all who now bear the physical scars of living downwind of Hanford.
Leave a Reply