Synopses & Reviews
Synopsis
An eyewitness account of the first postwar atomic bomb tests by award-winning author and atomic veteran William L. McGee. On July 1, 1946, millions of people around the world waited anxiously by their radios for the results of the first postwar atomic bomb tests code-named Operation CROSSROADS.
Award-winning World War II military historian William L. McGee provides an eyewitness account of his participation at Crossroads. McGee, a twenty-year old U.S. Navy Gunner's Mate at the time, had served in the Pacific theater in WWII. After the war, he was one of 42,000 military, scientists, and civilian personnel assembled at the Bikini Atoll in the Marshall Islands for two postwar atomic bomb tests: Test Able from the air on 1 July and Test Baker from underwater on 25 July. McGee was on the heavy cruiser USS "Fall River" (CA-131), the Flagship for the Target Fleet at Crossroads and responsible for the positioning of the 95 target vessels in the Bikini Lagoon.
In his signature spare and straightforward writing style, McGee provides his account of Tests Able and Baker, starting with the plan, the preparations, the build-up, the rehearsals, and the tests themselves. He fleshes out his personal account with entries from the "Fall River" ship logs and quotes from "Fall River" shipmates and other Crossroads participants.
IN THE AUTHOR'S WORDS: "I wrote this book to help preserve a part of history few know about today. The subject is timely with the threat of nuclear warfare in the news today. We have to learn from history... lest we forget."
Bill McGee is one of the few surviving "atomic veterans" from Operation CROSSROADS. He is a Lifetime Member of the National Association of Atomic Veterans (NAAV).
132 pp, 59 b/w photographs & illustrations
Synopsis
On 1 July 1946, millions of people around the world waited anxiously by their radios for the results of the first postwar atomic bomb test, code name Operation CROSSROADS. No one knew what to expect. William L. McGee, USN, was one of 42,000 military, scientists, and civilian personnel assembled at the Bikini Atoll in the Marshall Islands for Operation Crossroads: Test Able from the air (1 July 1946) and Test Baker from underwater (25 July 1946). He had a front row seat aboard the heavy cruiser, USS Fall River (CA-131), Flagship for the Target Fleet, responsible for positioning the 90-plus target vessels in the Bikini Lagoon.
Written in his signature journalistic and spare style, McGee adds to his own observations entries from the Fall River ship log, interviews with shipmates and other Crossroads participants, and commentary from three Crossroads experts on the later lessons learned about the devastating effects of ionizing radiation on man, animal, and ships - that no one saw coming.
"Operation Crossroads in 1946 was one of the most important events of the twentieth century... the dawning of the nuclear age. I wrote this book to help preserve a part of history few know about today." -William L. McGee, author and atomic veteran
Bill McGee is an award-winning World War II Pacific war historian. He is a Lifetime Member of the National Association of Atomic Veterans (NAAV).
Foreword by F. Lincoln Grahlfs, Ph.D., author Voices From Ground Zero
132 pp, 59 B&W photographs & illustrations
BMC Publications (2016)
Synopsis
"A sobering, but entertaining read." -Mark Barnes, War History Online APublishers Weekly BookLife selection for the November 2020 Spotlight
2021 Marks the 75th Anniversary of the Bikini Atomic Bomb Tests in 1946
"On 1 July 1946 by the Bikini calendar (30 June in New York), millions of people around the world waited anxiously by their radios for the results of Test Able. No one knew what to expect," writes William L. McGee in his naval memoir, Operation Crossroads, Lest We Forget An Eyewitness Account, Bikini Atomic Bomb Tests 1946
In the summer of 1946, McGee was one of the 42,000 military, scientists, and civilian personnel assembled at the remote Bikini Atoll in the Marshall Islands. The objective: to conduct postwar testing of the atomic bomb on wartime vessels, equipment, and animals. Code name: Operation CROSSROADS.
In August 1945, the Allied forces dropped two atomic bombs on Japan: one, on 6 August on Hiroshima; the other, on 9 August on Nagasaki. The Japanese surrendered on 14 August and World War II ended.
Now the U.S. military wanted to conduct tests of the atomic bomb specifically on wartime vessels.
In the words of Vice Admiral W. H. P. Blandy, USN, Commander of Joint Task Force One for Operation Crossroads:
"In the face of this new knowledge, these recently discovered truths concerning the atom, so suddenly thrust upon an already chaotic world, not only warfare but civilization itself literally stands at the Crossroads. Hence the name of this Operation."
Bill McGee had a front row seat from aboard the USS Fall River (CA-131), Flagship for the Target Fleet. The relatively new heavy cruiser was responsible for positioning 90-plus target vessels in the Bikini Lagoon for two atomic tests: Test Able from the air on 1 July and Test Baker from underwater on 25 July.
In his signature journalistic writing style, McGee bottomlines his eyewitness account in a slim memoir (134 pp):
-The Fall River's four-month voyage from Norfolk, Virginia to the Bikini Atoll
-The plans and preparations for Tests Able and Baker
-The Queen Day and William Day rehearsals for the two tests
-Reproductions of the Fall River ship log
-Interview excerpts with Fall River shipmates and other Crossroads participants
-The early opinions of the media and military
-The later opinions of Crosswords experts, who address the deadly effects of ionizing radiation
-The fate of the USS Fall River (CA-131) after Crossroads
Foreword by F. Lincoln Grahlfs, Ph.D., author of "Voices From Ground Zero
134 pp, 52 b/w photographs & illustrations