Exhibits
Permanent
BOOMERS ON WHEELS ©
1940s Trailer Living in the Tri-Cities
This outdoor exhibit features an original 1940s trailer from the North Richland construction camp. During and following World War II, small silver trailers offered less than 150 square feet of living space to accommodate an average of 3.7 people. The trailers were designed as travel trailers, but because of a severe housing shortage, many people brought their trailers with them. When completed, the Hanford Construction Camp included more than 3600 spaces and was the world's largest trailer camp. Trailers, in addition to barracks, brought the total camp population to about 51,000 people.
With the Cold War construction boom another trailer camp was constructed in North Richland and grew to include more than 2200 spaces. Originally spaces were plotted as 40 foot squares but later were shrunk to 25' by 40'. Bathhouses were provided as they were at Camp Hanford.
Like most trailers from this period, this trailer has kitchen, living room, bedroom but no bathroom. It was the property of Zane Mayberry who bought the trailer from a Mr. Hill who lived in it in North Richland. After his father's death, Ron Mayberry, donated the trailer to CREHST.
Tours inside the trailer will be available with prior arrangement.
Title, 1970 © Ted Van Arsdol
Lewis and Clark - Scientists in Buckskin
Nearly 200 years ago, the Corps of Volunteers for Northwest Discovery, more commonly known as the Lewis and Clark Expedition, traveled through the Snake and Columbia River Basins, searching for answers in the uncharted territory of the West. The Columbia River Exhibition of History, Science and Technology (CREHST) museum offers our newest exhibit, Lewis & Clark: Scientists in Buckskin to share the story of these intrepid explorers and the science behind the great expedition.
Signs of the Times
It was 1991 when several hundred historical signs were found in a Hanford pit. These signs date back to the dawn of the Atomic Age. The splitting of the atom, and the unleashing of its enormous power ranks among man's most momentous achievements. Hanford and the Tri-Cities had a key role in it. Several of these original signs are now incorporated into an exhibit at CREHST. One of the signs is a profile of Hitler. This sign hung on the outside of the Savings Bond building.
These signs are among the very few tangible items from Hanford's early days that show what life was like back then.
Geological History of the Northwest
Expanded Mural and Exhibit
CREHST is proud to showcase an expanded mural of Northwest Geology showing the Cascade volcanic activity and its relationship to the Northwest junction of the continental and oceanic plates. Dr. Stephen Reidel provided scientific material for the artwork by Cynthia Shaw. A new, Hands-On Pacific Northwest rock display accompanies the mural, showing where and how the rocks were formed.
Fish Species of the Columbia River
You can view the multitude of fish species that call the Columbia River system home. As you descend the stairway from the lobby at CREHST, you'll take a figurative trip down into the Columbia River and have the chance to examine detailed models of these many different fish, created by CREHST's Museum Designer, Jim Martin. Many of these fish are life-size!
More information on Columbia River fish is available at the Richland Public Library. A bibliography is available.
Hanford Site
The history of a large, secret project creating a new element to help win WWII is depicted with actual materials and exhibits. Continued production through the Cold War era is presented through displays, hand-on experiences, and operating tools used in the production of plutonium. Current and future efforts to clean up the legacy of plutonium production demonstrate the high price to both our pocketbooks and our environment that we paid for victory.
The history of Hanford is depicted in several exhibits, including
- the "Three Faces of Richland"
- Day's Pay, the B-17 donated by Hanford workers to the War effort
- guard shack security point
- an early engineering office
- single- and double-shell waste tanks
- hot cell
- remote manipulator (a hands-on exhibit)
- models of early reactors
- ...and much more!
The children's manipulator (downstairs exhibit) has been updated to include a Christmas theme. See how well you can decorate the Christmas tree or design the tracks for the toy train!
Related items . . .
- The U.S. Department of Energy covering this history and archeology of the Hanford Site, from prehistoric times through the Cold War. It is on the Hanford website
- Hanford B Reactor Page on the TRIDEC website
ABC Homes: the Houses that Hanford Built
Richland's "Alphabet Houses," designed by a regional architect and built by the federal government to house Hanford workers during and after WWII, are now recognized as important architectural and historical accomplishments. Seldom was a city conjured from the dust the way that Richland was, nor has there often been as coordinated a design for living as Richland with its groups of "Alphabet Houses" lending character to the neighborhoods.
Visitors can see plans and photographs of houses built during World War II, the interwar period and the Korean War. The houses were assigned according to work classifications: from blue collar workers to top DuPont management. In addition to the alphabet houses, prefabricated houses were built to accommodate part of the huge influx of workers that was greater than initially planned.
Dupus Boomer makes a comeback to provide colorful commentary on how housing and working was for Richland residents during World War II and the Cold War. Dupus was a cartoon character who came to life in 1945 and provided comic relief to the stark environment in which the early Hanford workers and their families found themselves. Many early cartoons have been incorporated into the ABC House exhibit and provide a social history not found anywhere else.
More information on ABC houses is available at the Richland Public Library. A bibliography is available.
Videos
A wide selection of videos may be viewed during your visit to CREHST. You are invited to come in and watch some of the more than 100 videos in the CREHST library including the history of the Hanford Site, the geology of the Columbia Basin, the Native Americans who lived in this area, to topics relating to the environment, science, and technology and all on a 10 foot by 10 foot screen!
History of the Hanford Reach
The Lloyd Wiehl Collection: Paintings by Don Crook
"David Thompson" a Northwest Company explorer flying the British flag, passes through the Hanford Reach on July 8, 1811, in this Don Crook painting. The Hanford Reach history reflects back to the coming of man to the Northwest. This stretch of the mighty Columbia River has a rich heritage that has been chronicled by the Wiehl family. Lloyd Wiehl, who grew up on this land, has compiled a pictorial record that preserves the character of the Reach. In order to bring this project to life, Wiehl commissioned nationally known artist and illustrator Don Crook to paint a series of seven paintings. Working together, Wiehl and Crook have created a visual trip through the past of the Columbia River, centering around an area known as White Bluffs.
CREHST is extremely proud to present this special collection of seven paintings showing the history of the Columbia Reach, painted by Don Crook, who is known as "The Norman Rockwell of Western Art". Mr. Crook collaborated on this series with Judge Lloyd Wiehl, who was born at White Bluffs, Washington, in 1909, a descendant of the first white family to settle on the Hanford Reach. Judge Wiehl has, for many years, documented the lives and surroundings of the people who lived in the Reach area for centuries before the Manhattan Project displaced them all. With that displacement and decades long exclusion, the Reach has been preserved in a near pristine condition as part of the Hanford Reservation. Judge Wiehl says, "I have fond memories of my life in this area. The paintings portray a rich and eventful heritage of the Hanford Reach and are based on recorded events and photos."
More information on the history of the time covered by this exhibit is available at the Richland Public Library. A bibliography is available.
Temporary Exhibits
Connections
Materials Technology is the first in a series of exhibits and programs exploring the connections between emerging technology applications in local businesses and their roots in Hanford programs.
Connections - Materials Technology, has learning opportunities for students and adults. This exhibit focuses on the following local companies: Allvac, Kaiser Aluminum, Sandvik Special Metals, Pacific Northwest National Laboratory, Ti-Sport, and Western Sintering.
Coming Soon!
Information Technology is the second in the Connections series of exhibits exploring the connections between emerging technology applications in local businesses and their links to Hanford applications and inventions.
Information Technology will feature the invention of the first digital optical recordings (forerunner to compact discs and DVDs), development of web-based training, and development of life-size training "props." With focus on the following local companies: Coinstar, HAMMER, Lockheed Martin, Pacific Northwest National Laboratory, RJ Lee Group, and Vivid Learning Systems.
This exhibit would not have been possible without the support of sponsors who provided funding. Lockheed Martin Information Technologies is a major sponsor and is providing $10,000 in-kind support; Bechtel National, the second major sponsor, is providing $7,500; in addition, contributing sponsors are the City of Richland Hotel/Motel tax fund, Washington Group International, ATI-Allvac, Frontier Fence and SMK Construction."