Abstract
This thesis examines the larger trends of the nuclear industrial complex and the expansion of the federal government through the case study of Southeastern Ohio and the Portsmouth Gaseous Diffusion Facility. The nuclear industrial complex refers to the connection between private companies and the government to facilitate the development of nuclear weaponry post World War Two. This thesis makes the argument that the federal government fundamentally changed the area in a way different than previous industries. In examining this trend through the people who live in the area, rather than scholars or those removed from the situation, this thesis takes a new approach to the scholarship of nuclear development and the industry that surrounds it. In adding to the literature on the impact of nuclear industry this thesis adds complexity to the existing narratives of fear and economic impact that dominate the discussion of nuclear development.
Advisor
Roche, Jeff
Department
History
Recommended Citation
Harley, Miriam E., "Sorting Rocks: The Nuclear Industrial Complex and Southeastern Ohio" (2024). Senior Independent Study Theses. Paper 11181.
https://openworks.wooster.edu/independentstudy/11181
Disciplines
Cultural History | History of Science, Technology, and Medicine | Law and Society | Military History | Military, War, and Peace | National Security Law | Oral History | Public History | Social History | United States History
Keywords
Nuclear, Industry, Ohio, Southeastern Ohio, Appalachia, Uranium, Oral History, Diffusion, Enrichment, Rocks
Publication Date
2024
Degree Granted
Bachelor of Arts
Document Type
Senior Independent Study Thesis
© Copyright 2024 Miriam E. Harley