Atomic Snapshots: Truman’s Reply

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In the Truman Presidential Library in Independence, Missouri, is a short, handwritten reply to Secretary of War, Henry Stimson. In effect, it was the authorization to drop the atomic bomb on Hiroshima.

Sec War
Reply to your 41011
suggestions approved
Release when ready
but not sooner than
August 2
HST

On July 30, 1945, Stimson sent an urgent, top secret message (No. WAR 41011) to Truman requesting approval of a statement announcing the use of the atomic bomb for release. A draft of the statement had been prepared previously, but with the Potsdam Declaration and the results of the Trinity test, the final draft and approval was needed.

General view of the conference table at the Potsdam Conference. This photograph is autographed on the border by Admiral Leahy, Charles Bohlen, Joseph E. Davies, President Truman, and Winston Churchill. Photos 72-4673 and 67-7587 show Winston Churchill signing this photo. Accession Number 80-133 Credit: United States Army Harry S. Truman Library & Museum.
Conference table at the Potsdam Conference (Harry S. Truman Library, Accession #80-133)

When the Japanese response to the Potsdam Declaration, Mokusatsu, was interpreted by the Allied command as a rejection of unconditional surrender, the machinations to carry out the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki began.

No known written record exists in which Harry Truman explicitly ordered the use of atomic bombs against Japan. The final puzzle piece needed by Stimson for the Manhattan Project was the public announcement by Truman.

Truman wrote his reply on the back of Stimson’s message.

This handwritten order to Stimson, authorizing the release of a public statement, in effect is the closest document to such an order. Thus, “release when ready” for the public statement served as the final authorization.

Truman Library Institute: The Potsdam Conference, 75 Years Later (Webinar; 1 hour lecture)

Atomic Snapshots: USS Indianapolis Memorial

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The north face of the monument depicts the heavy cruiser with inscriptions of her service history.

At the north end of Canal Walk in Indianapolis, IN, you’ll find the national memorial for the USS Indianapolis, which was torpedoed and sunk by Imperial Japanese Navy submarine I-58 on July 30, 1945. The memorial commemorates the 1,195 crewmen, of which only 316 survived the sinking, dehydration, exposure, and shark attacks.

The USS Indianapolis departed San Francisco’s Hunters Point Naval Shipyard on July 16, 1945, after repairs and an overhaul, on a top-secret mission to deliver enriched uranium and other parts for the Little Boy atomic bomb. After departing Pearl Harbor on July 19, Indianapolis made way, unaccompanied, to Tinian, arriving on July 26. Next, she sailed to Guam and began sailing toward Leyte to receive training before joining Task Force 95 near Okinawa. At 15 minutes past midnight on July 30, Indianapolis was struck by two torpedoes.

The south face of the monument bears the names of the ship’s company and passengers along with a description of the top-secret mission, attack, and rescue.

The memorial was formally dedicated in 1995, 50 years after the sinking. The memorial was designed by Joseph Fischer and is part of the Indiana War Memorial Commission. The holdings also comprise the Indiana War Memorial Plaza Historic District, Indiana War Memorial Museum, the Indiana Soldiers and Sailors Monument, the Medal of Honor Memorial, and the 9/11 Memorial.

The National WWII Museum video.

Atomic Snapshots: TRUPACT-II

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On display at a roadside park in Arco, ID, at the Idaho Science Center, is a TRUPACT-II (Transuranic Package Transporter Model 2) container.

Each stainless steel TRUPACT-II is approximately eight feet in diameter, 10 feet high, and constructed with leaktight inner and outer containment vessels. The TRUPACT-II can hold up to 14 fifty-five gallon waste drums, two standard waste boxes (63 cubic feet capacity each), or one 10-drum overpack (a container designed to provide additional protection for older, deteriorating drums).

On August 23, 2002, a shipment of contact-handled transuranic waste consisting of two TRUPACT-II containers, each containing 14 waste drums, was assembled at the Radioactive Waste Management Complex (RWMC) on the Idaho National Engineering Laboratory (INEEL), and transported to the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant (WIPP) in New Mexico for long-term storage.

On August 25, 2002, just prior to arriving at WIPP, the shipment was involved in a vehicle accident. During the shipment receipt process at WIPP, sampling of the radiological assessment filter (RAF) on shipping container TRUPACT-II 157 (one of the two containers) indicated airborne alpha-contamination of the inner containment vessel (ICV). Consequently, on August 29, 2002, TRUPACT-II 157 was returned to the INEEL to perform recovery and examination of the payload. No external radiation was detected, as the container worked as designed.

The park also displays the sail of the USS Hawkbill (SSN-666) or Devil Boat (otherwise called the “Submarine in the Desert”).

These outdoor displays are part of a tribute to Arco, Idaho’s long association with Idaho National Laboratory, the Navy, and the nuclear fleet in particular.