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90-625: Eleven rowing conferences each get one Automatic Qualifier spot by winning their conference points championship, except for the Ivy League whose Automatic Qualifier goes to the Varsity Eight winner. There are another 11 At-Large spots. The NCAA Division I Women's Rowing Championships have three events (I Eights, II Eights, Fours), and twenty-two teams compete. Eleven teams are selected through automatic qualification based on conference results. An additional eleven at-large teams are selected by

180-717: A small modular reactor and/or a light-water reactor , two nuclear fuel plants, a nuclear research reactor , a nuclear medicine plant, and a uranium processing centrifuge . Boeing operated a manufacturing plant in the city beginning in the early 1980s which closed in 2007. IPIX , Remotec (now a subsidiary of Northrop Grumman ), ZYP Coatings, and several other technology-based companies have been founded in Oak Ridge, including Greg LeMond 's carbon fiber -manufacturing business, LeMond Composites. Several radioactive waste processing companies, including EnergySolutions , have operations in Oak Ridge. The infrastructure that

270-399: A symphony orchestra , sporting facilities, church services for 17 denominations, and a Fuller Brush Company salesman served the new city and its 75,000 residents. No airport was built, for security reasons. Prefabricated modular homes , apartments, and dormitories, many made from cemesto (bonded cement and asbestos ) panels, were quickly erected. Streets were laid out in the manner of

360-557: A " planned community ". The original streets included several main east-to-west roads, namely the Oak Ridge Turnpike, Tennessee Avenue, Pennsylvania Avenue, Hillside Road, Robertsville Road, and Outer Drive. North-to-south oriented streets connecting these main roads were designated "avenues", and streets branching off from the avenues were designated "roads", "places", "lanes", or "circles". "Roads" connected two streets, while "lanes" and "places" were dead ends . The names of

450-415: A base there in 1567 called Fort San Juan . Expedition documentation and archaeological evidence of the fort and Native American culture both exist. The soldiers were at the fort about 18 months (1567–1568) before the natives killed them and destroyed the fort. (They killed soldiers stationed at five other forts as well; only one man of 120 survived.) Sixteenth-century Spanish artifacts have been recovered from

540-485: A city on Black Oak Ridge and the center of authority will be on a spot middle-way between Sevier Tadlock's farm and Joe Pyatt's Place. A railroad spur will branch off the main L&;N line, run down toward Robertsville and then branch off and turn toward Scarborough. Big engines will dig big ditches, and thousands of people will be running to and fro. They will be building things, and there will be great noise and confusion and

630-487: A government contract. In 1959 the town was incorporated. The community adopted a city manager and City Council form of government rather than direct federal control. The S-50 liquid thermal diffusion plant was demolished soon after the war. K-25, where uranium was enriched by the gaseous diffusion process until 1985, was demolished in 2013–15. Two of the four major facilities created for the wartime bomb production remain standing: The Department of Energy (DOE) runs ORNL,

720-591: A low during late summer. The rainiest calendar day on record is August 10, 1960, when 7.45 inches (189 mm) of rain fell; monthly precipitation has ranged from trace amounts in October 1963 to 19.27 inches (489 mm) in July 1967. As of the 2020 United States census , there were 31,402 people, 12,008 households, and 7,641 families residing in the city. As of the 2010 United States Census , there were 29,330 people, 12,772 households, and 7,921 families residing in

810-579: A message from the principal: Senator McKellar wants me to tell you to go home and tell your parents you are going to have to find another place to live." There was no further explanation as to why. All the students were told was this: "The government is going to take your property for the war effort." By March 1943 the Corps had removed the area's earlier communities and established fences and checkpoints. Anderson County lost one-seventh of its land and $ 391,000 in annual property tax revenue. The manner by which

900-533: A minimum". The name was formally adopted in 1949. The architectural and engineering firm Skidmore, Owings & Merrill was contracted to provide the layout for the town and house designs. John O. Merrill moved to Tennessee to take charge of designing the secret buildings at Oak Ridge. He directed the creation of a town, which soon had 300 miles (480 km) of roads, 55 miles (89 km) of railroad track, ten schools, seven theaters, 17 restaurants and cafeterias, and 13 supermarkets. A library with 9,400 books,

990-614: A nuclear and high-tech research establishment. In 1983, the DOE declassified a report showing that significant amounts of mercury had been released from the Oak Ridge Reservation into the East Fork Poplar Creek between 1950 and 1977. A federal court ordered the DOE to bring the Oak Ridge Reservation into compliance with federal and state environmental regulations. In June 2018 IBM and ORNL unveiled Summit ,

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1080-482: A regional ceramic style in the southeast involving surface decorations applied with a carved wooden paddle. By the late 1960s, archaeological investigations had shown the similarity of the culture that produced the pottery and the midwestern Mississippian pattern defined in 1937 by the Midwestern Taxonomic System. In 1967, James B. Griffin coined South Appalachian Mississippian to describe

1170-655: A string". In October 1942, the United States Army Corps of Engineers began acquiring more than 60,000 acres (24,000 ha) in the Oak Ridge area for the United States' Manhattan Project . Due to the urgency and secrecy of the Manhattan Project, the Corps' "declaration of taking" was swift and final. Many residents came home to find eviction notices tacked to their doors. Others found out when their children came home from school with

1260-585: A tool or ally in long-standing native feuds. In one example, de Soto negotiated a truce between the Pacaha and the Casqui . De Soto's later encounters left about half of the Spaniards and perhaps many hundreds of Native Americans dead. The chronicles of de Soto are among the first documents written about Mississippian peoples and are an invaluable source of information on their cultural practices. The chronicles of

1350-457: A variety of functions. Villages with single platform mounds were more typical of the river valley settlements throughout the mountainous area of southwest North and South Carolina and southeastern Tennessee that were known as the historic Cherokee homelands. In Western North Carolina for example, some 50 such mound sites in the eleven westernmost counties have been identified since the late 20th century, following increased research in this area of

1440-468: Is a component of the U.S. nuclear weapons complex. The DOE's Environmental Management office is conducting an extensive program of decontamination and decommissioning , environmental cleanup, and waste management to remove or stabilize the hazardous residues remaining from decades of government production and research activities. The DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information disseminates government research and development information and operates

1530-534: Is also located in the city. ATDD began under AEC sponsorship in 1948 as a Weather Bureau research office providing meteorological information and expertise for the AEC. Currently its main function is to perform air quality -related research directed toward issues of national and global importance. The nuclear industry continues to grow in Oak Ridge following the demolition of the K-25 site. Currently planned in Oak Ridge are

1620-487: Is believed that the peoples of this area adopted Mississippian traits from their northwestern neighbors. Typical settlements were located on riverine floodplains and included villages with defensive palisades enclosing platform mounds and residential areas. Etowah and Ocmulgee in Georgia are both prominent examples of major South Appalachian Mississippian settlements. Both include multiple large earthwork mounds serving

1710-486: Is now the Midwestern , Eastern , and Southeastern United States from approximately 800 to 1600, varying regionally. It was known for building large, earthen platform mounds , and often other shaped mounds as well. It was composed of a series of urban settlements and satellite villages linked together by loose trading networks. The largest city was Cahokia , believed to be a major religious center, located in what

1800-555: Is present-day southern Illinois . The Mississippian way of life began to develop in the Mississippi River Valley (for which it is named). Cultures in the tributary Tennessee River Valley may have also begun to develop Mississippian characteristics at this point. Almost all dated Mississippian sites predate 1539–1540 (when Hernando de Soto explored the area), with notable exceptions being Natchez communities. These maintained Mississippian cultural practices into

1890-710: Is the chronological stage, while Mississippian culture refers to the cultural similarities that characterize this society. The term Middle Mississippian is also used to describe the core of the classic Mississippian culture area. This area covers the central Mississippi River Valley, the lower Ohio River Valley, and most of the Mid-South area, including western and central Kentucky, western Tennessee, and northern Alabama and Mississippi. Sites in this area often contain large ceremonial platform mounds, residential complexes and are often encircled by earthen ditches and ramparts or palisades . Middle Mississippian cultures, especially

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1980-400: Is usually divided into three or more chronological periods. Each period is an arbitrary historical distinction varying regionally. At a particular site, each period may be considered to begin earlier or later, depending on the speed of adoption or development of given Mississippian traits. The "Mississippian period" should not be confused with the "Mississippian culture". The Mississippian period

2070-443: Is −17 °F (−27 °C), set on January 21, 1985, while the all-time record high is 105 °F (41 °C), set on June 30, 2012, and July 28, 1952. However, temperatures reaching either 0 °F (−18 °C) or 100 °F (38 °C) are uncommon, having last occurred February 5, 1996 (the date of the all-time record low for February) and July 1, 2012. Precipitation averages 59.70 inches (1,516 mm) annually and reaches

2160-790: The Hasinai , Kadohadacho , and Natchitoches , which were all linked by their similar languages. The Plaquemine culture was an archaeological culture in the lower Mississippi River Valley in western Mississippi and eastern Louisiana . Good examples of this culture are the Medora site (the type site for the culture and period) in West Baton Rouge Parish, Louisiana , and the Anna , Emerald Mound , Winterville and Holly Bluff sites located in Mississippi. Plaquemine culture

2250-753: The Narváez expedition were written before the de Soto expedition; the Narváez expedition informed the Court of de Soto about the New World. After the destruction and flight of the de Soto expedition, the Mississippian peoples continued their way of life with little direct European influence. Indirectly, however, European introductions dramatically changed these native societies. Because the natives lacked immunity to infectious diseases unknowingly carried by

2340-647: The National Park Service and the Department of Energy. A bus tour and several virtual tours are available for the public. In 2003, the city extended its borders west beyond the Clinch River boundary for the annexation of the master planned community, the Preserve at Oak Ridge, paving the way for economic growth into the 21st century. In January 2020, the city council of Oak Ridge approved

2430-548: The Ridge-and-Valley Appalachians physiographic province. The main section of the city is located in the northeast, where East Fork and Pine Ridge give way to low, scattered hills. Many of the city's residences are located along the relatively steep northeastern slope of Blackoak Ridge. The completion of Melton Hill Dam (along the Clinch near Copper Ridge) in 1963 created Melton Hill Lake, which borders

2520-645: The Southern bloc of Democrats in Congress to authorize funding for the project. Due to generally holding lower-ranked jobs, their assigned dwellings were predominantly government-built "hutments" (one-room shacks) located very close to the Y-12 plant, in the one residential area designated as colored. Nichols, the MED District Engineer, was told by the main construction contractor for the K-25 plant that

2610-680: The Tennessee Senate , Oak Ridge is represented in the 5th district in Anderson County and the 12th district in Roane County, by Lieutenant Governor of Tennessee and Senator Randy McNally , and Senator Ken Yager respectively, both of whom are Republican. Oak Ridge is represented in the United States House of Representatives by Republican Chuck Fleischmann of the 3rd congressional district . Unlike

2700-512: The United States Census Bureau , the city has an area of 90.0 square miles (233.0 km ), of which 85.3 square miles (220.8 km ) is land and 4.7 square miles (12.2 km ), or 5.25%, is water. The highest point is Melton Hill ( 35°54′35″N 84°18′19″W  /  35.90962°N 84.30525°W  / 35.90962; -84.30525 ) on the DOE reservation, at elevation 1,356 feet (413 m). Like much of

2790-547: The fissile isotope uranium-235 from natural uranium , which consists almost entirely of the isotope uranium-238 . During construction of the electromagnets required for the uranium separation process at the Y-12 site, a shortage of copper forced the MED to borrow 14,700 tons of silver bullion from the United States Treasury as a copper substitute in wire for the electromagnet coils. The X-10 site, now

NCAA Division I rowing championship - Misplaced Pages Continue

2880-488: The science.gov website. The Oak Ridge Institute for Science and Education , operated by Oak Ridge Associated Universities , conducts research and education programs for the DOE, Department of Homeland Security , and other federal agencies. The Atmospheric Turbulence and Diffusion Division (ATDD), one of several field divisions of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Air Resources Laboratory ,

2970-468: The "Wilson Street Corridor" project plan, intended to develop and construct a downtown area in the city situated along Wilson Street. The plan consists of a mixed-use development of retail, residential usage, and restaurants with a primary focus of multi-story residential space. Immediately northeast of Oak Ridge, the southwestward-flowing Clinch River bends sharply to the southeast for roughly 6 miles (10 km) toward Solway , where it turns again to

3060-687: The "world's fastest supercomputer", claimed to be more than twice as powerful as the previous world leader, with a peak performance of 200,000 trillion calculations per second. Oak Ridge's scientific heritage is curated in the American Museum of Science and Energy . Its role in the Manhattan Project is preserved in the Manhattan Project National Historical Park (along with sites in Hanford, Washington and Los Alamos, New Mexico ), run cooperatively by

3150-664: The 18th century. A number of cultural traits are recognized as being characteristic of the Mississippians. Although not all Mississippian peoples practiced all of the following activities, they were distinct from their ancestors in the adoption of some or all of these traits. The Mississippians had no writing system or stone architecture. They worked naturally occurring metal deposits, such as hammering and annealing copper for ritual objects such as Mississippian copper plates and other decorations, but did not smelt iron or practice bronze metallurgy . The Mississippian stage

3240-535: The 1930s as part of the Norris Basin salvage excavations. Both sites were just southeast of the former Scarboro community. The Bull Bluff site, which was occupied during the Woodland and Mississippian (c. 1000–1600) periods, was uncovered in the 1960s in anticipation of the construction of Melton Hill Dam . Bull Bluff is a cliff immediately southeast of Haw Ridge, opposite Melton Hill Park. The Oak Ridge area

3330-414: The 1950s and converted to an indoor shopping mall in the 1980s, sat largely empty in the years leading to its eventual partial demolition and redevelopment. The city operates a preschool, four elementary schools enrolling kindergarten through grade 4, two middle schools enrolling grades 5 through 8, and one high school enrolling grades 9 through 12. The Oak Ridge school district was ranked number one in

3420-561: The Cahokia polity located near East St. Louis, Illinois , were very influential on neighboring societies. High-status artifacts, including stone statuary and elite pottery associated with Cahokia, have been found far outside of the Middle Mississippian area. These items, especially the pottery, were also copied by local artists. The term South Appalachian Province was originally used by W. H. Holmes in 1903 to describe

3510-598: The Cherokee homeland. The Caddoan Mississippian area, a regional variant of the Mississippian culture, covered a large territory, including what is now eastern Oklahoma , western Arkansas , northeastern Texas , and northwestern Louisiana . Archaeological evidence has led to a scholarly consensus that the cultural continuity is unbroken from prehistory to the present, and that the Caddo and related Caddo language speakers in prehistoric times and at first European contact are

3600-540: The Europeans, such as measles and smallpox , epidemics caused so many fatalities that they undermined the social order of many chiefdoms. Some groups adopted European horses and changed to nomadism . Political structures collapsed in many places. At Joara , near Morganton, North Carolina , Native Americans of the Mississippian culture interacted with Spanish colonizers of the Juan Pardo expedition, who built

3690-521: The II-Eights there are 44 points for the winner, and the points obtained go down in steps of two for each next spot in the final ranking. For the event with Fours, the winner gets 22 points, and the subsequent finishers get 21, 20, 19, etc. When teams are tied for points after the three events, the NCAA champion is determined by the team with the higher placing in the I Eight event. At-large participants in

NCAA Division I rowing championship - Misplaced Pages Continue

3780-542: The NCAA Rowing Committee. In previous years an additional, four at-large I Eights are selected. As of 2009 all bids must be full teams. Teams are awarded points by their final placing in each event. The NCAA Champion is determined by the team which accumulates the most points. Since 2013, the winner of the I-Eights event gets 66 points, and the team that places second gets 63 points, third gets 60, etc. For

3870-718: The National Women’s Rowing Association National Championships (what is now the USRowing National Championships). Below is a list of NWRA open eights champions from 1971–79 (no eights prior to 1971). The top college finisher is in parentheses: Oak Ridge, Tennessee Oak Ridge is a city in Anderson and Roane counties in the eastern part of the U.S. state of Tennessee , about 25 miles (40 km) west of downtown Knoxville . Oak Ridge's population

3960-550: The Oak Ridge Heritage and Preservation Association are fighting to have a monument placed on the site of his grave. In 1942, the United States federal government chose the area as a site for developing materials for the Manhattan Project . Major General Leslie Groves , military head of the Manhattan Project, liked the area for several reasons. Its relatively low population made acquisition affordable, yet

4050-449: The Oak Ridge area was acquired by the government created a tense, uneasy relationship between the Oak Ridge complex and the surrounding towns. Although the area's original residents were allowed to be buried in existing cemeteries, every coffin was reportedly opened for inspection. The Corps' Manhattan Engineer District (MED) managed the acquisition and clearing. The K-25 , S-50 , and Y-12 plants were each built in Oak Ridge to separate

4140-535: The Scarboro community were the first to enter all-white classes in Oak Ridge High School and Robertsville Junior High School (now Robertsville Middle School). In 2023, on the 68th anniversary, a Scarboro 85 Monument was erected in Oak Ridge. Robertsville Junior High School, serving the west half of Oak Ridge, was desegregated at the same time as the high school. Elementary schools in other parts of

4230-445: The area was accessible by highway and rail, and utilities such as water and electricity were readily available with the recent completion of Norris Dam . The project location was established within a 17-mile-long (27 km) valley. This feature was linear and partitioned by several ridges, providing natural protection against the spread of disasters at the four major industrial plants—so the plants would not blow up "like firecrackers on

4320-569: The black construction labor force had a large turnover rate, so Nichols gave permission to set up a separate black women's camp. When Groves visited the plant with K. T. Keller of Chrysler, Keller saw twelve Black women sweeping the 30-foot wide alley between the production units, and said "Nichols, don't you know there is a machine made to sweep a concrete floor like this?" Nichols replied "Sure I do, but these gals can do more than one of those machines". The men now had an opportunity to "fracas" on Saturday night, and labor turnover had reduced. During

4410-576: The championships are selected by the NCAA Division I Women’s Rowing Committee. The following criteria are used in selecting teams and individual boats: Key The first women’s collegiate championship was held in 1980 at Oak Ridge, Tennessee . National champions were declared from the varsity eight race. California won the first collegiate championship. Below is a list of Women’s National Collegiate varsity eight champions: (Source: Washington Crew Press Guide ) Prior to 1980, college boats entered

4500-470: The city and Jefferson Junior High School, serving the east half of the city, were desegregated slowly as African-American families moved into housing outside of Gamble Valley. In 1967 Scarboro Elementary School was closed, and African-American students from Gamble Valley were bused to other schools around the city. The nearby high school in Clinton was desegregated in the fall of 1956. On October 5, 1958, it

4590-469: The city on the northeast and east. The lakefront on the east side of the city is a popular recreation area, with bicycling trails and picnic areas lining the shore. The lake is well known as a venue for rowing competitions. Watts Bar Lake , an impoundment of the Tennessee River which covers the lower 23 miles (37 km) of the Clinch, borders Oak Ridge to the south and southwest. According to

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4680-462: The city. The population density was 344.0 inhabitants per square mile (132.8/km ). There were 14,494 housing units at an average density of 161.2 per square mile (62.2/km ). The racial makeup of the city was 86.8% White (81.8% non-Hispanic ), 8.1% African American , 0.4% Native American or Alaska Native , 2.5% Asian , 0.03% Pacific Islander , 2.0% from other races , and 3.0% from two or more races . Hispanics or Latinos of any race were 4.6% of

4770-557: The direct ancestors of the modern Caddo Nation of Oklahoma . The climate in this area was drier than areas in the eastern woodlands, hindering maize production, and the lower population on the plains to the west may have meant fewer neighboring competing chiefdoms to contend with. Major sites such as Spiro and the Battle Mound Site are in the Arkansas River and Red River Valleys, the largest and most fertile of

4860-500: The earth will shake. I've seen it. It's coming. Hendrix, in light of his tales of prophetic visions, was considered insane by most and at one point was institutionalized. His grave lies in an area of Oak Ridge now known as the Hendrix Creek Subdivision. There are ongoing concerns over the preservation of his gravestone, as the man who owns the lot adjacent to the grave wishes to build a home there, while members of

4950-468: The eastern end of the valley. The time required for the project's completion caused the Army to opt for a relatively permanent establishment rather than an enormous camp. The name "Oak Ridge" was chosen for the settlement in 1943 from suggestions submitted by project employees. The name evoked the settlement's location along Black Oak Ridge, and officials thought the rural-sounding name "held outside curiosity to

5040-477: The evolving understanding of the peoples of the Southeast. South Appalachian Mississippian area sites are distributed across a contiguous area including Alabama, Georgia, northern Florida, South Carolina, central and western North Carolina, and Tennessee. Chronologically this area became influenced by Mississippian culture later than the Middle Mississippian area (about 1000 as compared to 800) to its northwest. It

5130-528: The federal sites and maintains a major office in the city. Oak Ridge National Laboratory is the largest multipurpose lab in the DOE's National Laboratory system . It is home to the Spallation Neutron Source , a $ 1.4 billion project completed in 2006, and " Titan ", one of the world's most powerful scientific supercomputers, which has peak performance of more than one quadrillion operations per second. The Y-12 National Security Complex

5220-430: The main avenues generally progressed alphabetically from east to west (e.g., Alabama Avenue in the east, Vermont Avenue in the west), and the names of the smaller streets began with the same letter as the main avenue from which they started (e.g., streets connected to Florida Avenue began with "F"). The dramatic population increase, and the secret nature of the project, meant chronic shortages of housing and supplies during

5310-750: The majority of the American Indian nations living in this region when European trade began. The historic and modern day American Indian nations believed to have descended from the overarching Mississippian culture include: the Alabama , Apalachee , Arikara , Caddo , Chickasaw , Catawba , Choctaw , Muscogee Creek , Guale , Hitchiti , Ho-Chunk , Houma , Iowa , Kansa , Koroas , Missouria , Mobilian , Natchez , Omaha , Osage (possibly), Otoe , Pawnee , Ponca , Quapaw (possibly), Seminole (broad origins), Taensas , Tunicas , Yamasee , Yazoos , and Yuchi . Scholars have studied

5400-512: The many Caddoan languages . These languages once had a broad geographic distribution, but many are now extinct. The modern languages in the Caddoan family include Caddo and Pawnee . Hernando de Soto led an expedition into the area in the early 1540s, he encountered several native groups now thought to have been Caddoan. Composed of many tribes, the Caddo were organized into three confederacies,

5490-439: The median income for a family was $ 69,333. Full-time, year-round male workers had a median income of $ 54,316 versus $ 36,140 for females in the same employment situation. The per capita income for the city was $ 30,430. About 10.7% of families and 16.0% of the population were below the poverty line , including 28.1% of those under age 18 and 6.7% of those age 65 or over. Oak Ridge uses the council-manager government system, which

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5580-772: The northeast, east, and southwest—in which Oak Ridge is situated. The Oak Ridge area is striated by five ridges that run roughly parallel to one another in a northeast-to-southwest direction. In order from west-to-east, the five ridges are Blackoak Ridge (which connects the Elza and K-25 bends of the Clinch and thus "walls off" the half-rectangle), East Fork Ridge, Pine Ridge, Chestnut Ridge, and Haw Ridge. The five ridges are divided by four valleys: East Fork Valley (between Blackoak Ridge and East Fork Ridge), Gamble Valley (between East Fork Ridge and Pine Ridge), Bear Creek Valley (between Pine Ridge and Chestnut Ridge), and Bethel Valley (between Chestnut and Haw). These ridges and valleys are part of

5670-450: The population. There were 12,772 households, with 25.2% having children under the age of 18 living with them, 45.2% being married couples living together, 12.9% having a female householder with no husband present, 3.9% having a male householder with no wife present, and 38.0% being non-families. 33.3% of all households were made up of individuals, and 14.0% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size

5760-608: The project (except for the production facilities under construction) on November 3, 1943; and he appreciated the bourbon-laced punch served (although Anderson County was "dry"). House and dormitory accommodations at the Clinton Engineer Works (CEW) in Oak Ridge and Hanford Engineer Works in Washington were basic, with coal rather than oil or electric furnaces. But they were of a higher standard than Groves wanted and were better than at Los Alamos. Medical care

5850-408: The project began. Hendrix lacked any formal education and was a simple logger for much of his life. Following the death of his youngest daughter, Ethel, to diphtheria, and the subsequent departure of his wife and three remaining children, Hendrix began hearing voices in his head. These voices urged him to stay in the woods and pray for guidance for 40 days and 40 nights, which Hendrix proceeded to do. As

5940-509: The records of Hernando de Soto 's expedition of 1539–1543 to learn of his contacts with Mississippians, as he traveled through their villages of the Southeast. He visited many villages, in some cases staying for a month or longer. The list of sites and peoples visited by the Hernando de Soto Expedition chronicles those villages. Some encounters were violent, while others were relatively peaceful. In some cases, de Soto seems to have been used as

6030-490: The rest of Anderson County, Oak Ridge, along with nearby Norris , has voted Democratic in recent federal elections, with the majority of the city having voted for Democratic presidential candidate Joe Biden in 2020. The federal government projects at Oak Ridge are reduced in size and scope but are still the city's principal economic activity and one of the largest employers in the Knoxville metropolitan area . The DOE owns

6120-569: The rest of the state, Oak Ridge has a humid subtropical climate ( Cfa in the Köppen climate classification ); it is part of USDA hardiness zone 7a. The normal monthly mean temperature ranges from 37.9 °F (3.3 °C) in January to 77.5 °F (25.3 °C) in July, while on average there are 4.3 days where the temperature stays at or below freezing and 39 days with a high at or above 90 °F (32 °C) per year. The all-time record low

6210-678: The role played by Oak Ridge and other institutions in the state in its discovery. The earliest substantial occupation of the Oak Ridge area occurred during the Woodland period ( c.  1000 BC – 1000), although artifacts dating to the Paleo-Indian period have been found throughout the Clinch River valley. Two Woodland mound sites—the Crawford Farm Mounds and the Freels Farm Mounds —were uncovered in

6300-715: The site of Oak Ridge National Laboratory , was established as a pilot plant for production of plutonium using the Graphite Reactor. When the Tennessee Governor Prentice Cooper was officially handed the July 1943 presidential proclamation by a junior officer (a lieutenant)—making Oak Ridge a military district not subject to state control—he tore it up and refused to see the Manhattan Project engineer, Lieutenant Colonel James C. Marshall . The new district engineer, Lieutenant Colonel Kenneth Nichols , had to placate him. Cooper came to see

6390-477: The site, marking the first European colonization in the interior of what became the United States. By the time more documentary accounts were being written, the Mississippian way of life had changed irrevocably. Some groups maintained an oral tradition link to their mound-building past, such as the late 19th-century Cherokee . Other Native American groups, having migrated many hundreds of miles and lost their elders to diseases, did not know their ancestors had built

6480-555: The southeast. The European-American settlers who founded these communities arrived in the late 1790s after the American Revolutionary War and after the Cherokee signed the Treaty of Holston , ceding what is now Anderson County to the United States. A popular legend holds that John Hendrix (1865-1915), a largely unknown local man, predicted the creation of the city of Oak Ridge around 40 years before construction on

6570-423: The southwest. After flowing for approximately 17 miles (27 km), the river bends sharply to the northwest at Copper Ridge, and continues in this direction for nearly 7 miles (11 km). At the K-25 plant, the Clinch turns southwest again and flows for another 11 miles (18 km) to its mouth along the Tennessee River at Kingston . This series of bends creates a half-rectangle formation—surrounded by water on

6660-600: The spring-fed Oak Ridge Municipal Outdoor Swimming Pool, which had been completed in June 1945, became integrated. In the early 1960s, Oak Ridge briefly experienced protest picketing against racial segregation in public accommodations, notably outside a local cafeteria and a laundromat. Two years after World War II ended, Oak Ridge was shifted to civilian control, under the authority of the U.S. Atomic Energy Commission . The Roane Anderson Company administered community functions, including arranging housing and operating buses, under

6750-645: The state of Tennessee, and Oak Ridge High School was ranked the number three high school in the state of Tennessee, in the Niche 2017 Best School Districts. Independent schools in the city include the Montessori School of Oak Ridge, St. Mary's School, and several preschools. The Oak Ridge Institute for Continued Learning offers a diverse array of educational opportunities for adults. Mississippian culture The Mississippian culture were collections of Native American societies that flourished in what

6840-433: The story is told, following these 40 days spent in rugged isolation, Hendrix began seeing visions of the future, and he sought to spread his prophetic message to any who would listen. According to published accounts, one vision that he described repeatedly was a description of the city and production facilities built 28 years after his death, during World War II. The version recalled by neighbors and relatives reported: In

6930-486: The war years. The town was administered by Turner Construction Company through a subsidiary named the Roane-Anderson Company. For most residents, however, their "landlord" was known as "MSI" (Management Services, Inc.). All workers wore badges. The town was surrounded by guard towers and a fence with seven gates. Oak Ridge was developed by the federal government as a segregated community, required by

7020-490: The war, plans were made for a colored neighborhood of houses equal in quality to those provided for whites, but it was not implemented because of limited resources. After the war, all hutments were dismantled, and a colored neighborhood of permanent houses was developed in the Gamble Valley area of Oak Ridge, which during wartime had been occupied by a white trailer community. Oak Ridge elementary education prior to 1954

7110-525: The waterways in the Caddoan region, where maize agriculture would have been the most productive. The sites generally lacked wooden palisade fortifications often found in the major Middle Mississippian towns. Living on the western edge of the Mississippian world, the Caddoans may have faced fewer military threats from their neighbors. Their societies may also have had a somewhat lower level of social stratification . The Caddoan people were speakers of one of

7200-440: The woods, as I lay on the ground and looked up into the sky, there came to me a voice as loud and as sharp as thunder. The voice told me to sleep with my head on the ground for 40 nights and I would be shown visions of what the future holds for this land.... And I tell you, Bear Creek Valley someday will be filled with great buildings and factories, and they will help toward winning the greatest war that ever will be. And there will be

7290-411: Was 2.26 and the average family size was 2.86. The age distribution was 22.0% under the age of 18, 7.1% from 18 to 24, 22.8% from 25 to 44, 28.9% from 45 to 64, and 19.3% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 43.5 years. For every 100 females, there were 89.4 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 86.3 males. The median income for a household in the city was $ 48,716, and

7380-794: Was 31,402 at the 2020 census. It is part of the Knoxville Metropolitan Area . Oak Ridge's nicknames include the Atomic City , the Secret City , and the City Behind a Fence . In 1942, the United States federal government forcibly purchased nearly 60,000 acres (240 km ) of farmland in the Clinch River valley for the development of a planned city supporting 75,000 residents. It was constructed with assistance from architectural and engineering firm Skidmore, Owings & Merrill , from 1942 to 1943. Oak Ridge

7470-455: Was bombed and closed while being rebuilt. Oak Ridge provided space at a recently vacated elementary school building (the original Linden Elementary School) for the education of high school students from Clinton for two years while Clinton High School was being rebuilt. Following the Brown decision , public accommodations in Oak Ridge were gradually integrated, which took several years. In 1955,

7560-557: Was contemporaneous with the Middle Mississippian culture at the Cahokia site near St. Louis , Missouri. It is considered ancestral to the Natchez and Taensa Peoples. Although the Mississippian culture was heavily disrupted before a complete understanding of the political landscape was written down, many Mississippian political bodies were documented and others have been discovered by research. Mississippian peoples were ancestral to

7650-440: Was established in 1942 as a production site for the Manhattan Project —the massive American, British, and Canadian operation that developed the atomic bomb . Being the site of Oak Ridge National Laboratory and Y-12 National Security Complex , scientific and technological development still plays a crucial role in the city's economy and culture in general. In 2016, the element tennessine was named for Tennessee, in recognition of

7740-464: Was established in 1959 when the city was incorporated. It is governed by a seven-member city council composed of the mayor and six council members. Oak Ridge is represented in the Tennessee House of Representatives in the 33rd District in Anderson County, and the 32nd district in Roane County, by Representatives John Ragan and Kent Calfee respectively, both of whom are Republican . In

7830-479: Was largely uninhabited when Euro-American explorers and settlers arrived in the late 18th century, although the Cherokee claimed the land as part of their hunting grounds . During the early 19th century, several rural farming communities developed in the Oak Ridge area, namely Edgemoor and Elza in the northeast, East Fork and Wheat in the southwest, Robertsville in the west, and Bethel and Scarboro in

7920-535: Was new in the 1940s is aging. The once-isolated city is now incorporated into the Knoxville metropolitan area. Oak Ridge is now challenged to blend into the suburban orbit of Knoxville as its heritage as a "super secret" government installation subsides. Changing economic forces have led to continuing changes in the commercial sector. For example, the Oak Ridge City Center , a shopping center built in

8010-414: Was provided by Army doctors and hospitals, with civilians paying $ 2.50 per month ($ 5 for families) to the medical insurance fund. The location and low population helped keep the town a secret, though the settlement grew from 3,000 to 3,750 in 1942 to about 75,000 by 1945. Because of the large number of workers recruited to the area for the Manhattan Project, the Army planned a town for project workers at

8100-544: Was segregated; it was legally part of the Anderson County system though built and operated primarily with federal funds. Black children could attend only the Scarboro Elementary School. Oak Ridge High School was closed to black students, who had to be bused to Knoxville for an education. Starting in 1950, Scarboro High School was established at Scarboro Elementary School to offer classes for African-American students. In 1955, 85 young Black students from

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