Target Hiroshima: Deak Parsons and the Creation of the Atomic Bomb [Hardcover]

Albert B. Christman (Author), Al Christman (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: May 1998

For better or worse, Navy captain William S. "Deak" Parsons made the atomic bomb happen. As ordnance chief and associate director at Los Alamos, Parsons turned the scientists' nuclear creation into a practical weapon. As weaponeer, he completed the assembly of "Little Boy" during the flight to Hiroshima. As bomb commander, he approved the release of the bomb that forever changed the world. Yet over the past fifty years only fragments of his story have appeared, in part because of his own self-effacement and the nation's demand for secrecy. Based on recently declassified Manhattan Project documents, including Parsons' logs and other untapped sources, the book offers an unvarnished account of this unsung hero and his involvement in some of the greatest scientific advances of the twentieth century.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Making extensive use of recently declassified archival material, retired Air Force major Christman takes on a distinctively 20th-century military figure: the uniformed technocrat. The growing synergy of science and war making in the industrial age created a zone in which officers like U.S. Navy Rear Admiral William "Deak" Parsons (1901-1953) became necessary links between laboratories on the one hand, cockpits and ships' bridges on the other. Parsons was at heart a line officer, with extensive experience in the surface fleet, who developed as an ordnance specialist in the line of duty. His 1939 assignment to the Naval Proving Ground coincided with a "weapons revolution" focused on electronics. Parsons emerged as a sailor able to speak the language of scientists in a forced-draft environment that left no time for misunderstandings. He played a key role in the design and deployment of the proximity fuse and, in 1943, was assigned to the atomic bomb program. As ordnance chief and associate director at Los Alamos, Parsons emerged as the project's "fixer," an invaluable team builder, committee chair and watchdog whose intellect and integrity inspired respect in military, bureaucratic and intellectual cultures. At the heart of the book are three nearly minute-by-minute chapters charting Parson's arming of the bomb on the fateful flight of the Enola Gay. Parsons became the postwar Navy's leading figure on nuclear issues, representing the interests of his service in the new contexts of the Atomic Energy Act of 1946, before dying of a heart attack. In addition to its fresh perspective on the administrative aspects of the Hiroshima project, Christman's work highlights the open-minded flexibility that was arguably the dominant characteristic before and during WWII of America's professional military. 30 photos.
Copyright 1998 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Library Journal

Although technological innovation and scientific research plays an important part in achieving military success, key players in those processes are often overlooked. Such is the case with one naval officer, William S. Parsons, whose participation in the evolution of American nuclear weapons has not received sufficient recognition. Naval historian Christman (U.S. Army and Air Force, retired) remedies that neglect in this lively account. Drawing upon an extensive collection of interviews, he traces Parsons's work at Los Alamos and at Tinian, the island that served as the point of departure for the bombing runs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki. Parsons personally assembled Little Boy aboard the Enola Gay on August 6, 1945. He also contributed to the development of radar, the proximity fuse, nuclear-powered naval vessels, and rockets and missiles?all part of a revolution in weapon systems. Some readers may find this an overly sympathetic account that verges on hero-worship, but that is far outweighed by the rich, behind-the-scenes detail rendered in compelling prose. For academic libraries and military collections.?Brooks D. Simpson, Arizona State Univ., Tempe
Copyright 1998 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 305 pages
• Publisher: US Naval Institute Press; First Printing edition (May 1998)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1557501203
• ISBN-13: 978-1557501202
• Product Dimensions: 9.3 x 6.3 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.4 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,277,317 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Most Helpful Customer Reviews

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Target Hiroshima, June 26, 2002

By 

Beverly de Geus (Ridgecrest, CA USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Target Hiroshima: Deak Parsons and the Creation of the Atomic Bomb (Hardcover)

Recently I was given a copy of this book. I glanced through it, and reading the jacket decided to read a bit more. Well, I became so interested in it I have read it all through and must say I thoroughly enjoyed it. I am not one who is truly interested in war stories, but I enjoy biographies, history, and historical fiction, and this being history as well as a biography of Deak Parsons, the book offered me much that I did not know. I always had a questionable feeling about the atom bomb, what it did, and was it really worth all the lives lost. After reading this book and getting a better understanding of the whole situation, from a better perspective, I can say I now feel better about it. Deak Parsons was quite a man who did so much for his country. The book is plainly written and offers a personal insight into the lives of all who were involved in the events of that time, and made it clear for non-military people like me to understand those events better.

11 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars He paved a path to the 21st century; we follow., May 1, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: Target Hiroshima: Deak Parsons and the Creation of the Atomic Bomb (Hardcover)

Parsons showed how to bridge the gap between 20th century pure science and engineering application. In so doing, he provided the blue print for all of the successful technological enterprises of the past few decades. Knowingly or not, the model has been followed by the likes of Jobs, Gates, the bio-tech industry among others. Before Parsons, science could split the atom, but not build a bomb (or other useful application). Christman shows us Parsons, and how his unique knowledge and skill allowed him to make the connection, first in the early development of radar, then in the development of the proximity fuze (which together are the ancestors of all modern "smart weapons." Finally, in the paradigm of scientific enterprise, the development of the first a-bombs at Los Alamos. Before an early death, he began to realize the tragic long-term consequences of some of his work, but never lost sight of the need to harness scientific discovery into meaningful and practical uses. Arguably, without his demonstration of how to coordinate science with meaningful enterprise (in his case, the military), reaching the moon in the sixties, user-friendly computers on every desktop with internet access in the nineties, and scores of other tools we take for granted would not have been available and accessible to us common people. A must read for anyone entering, establishing or participating in technological enterprise, and a fascinating window on some of the "secrets" of the World War II era.

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars an excellent book, April 10, 2002

By 

mike shapiro (the south pole) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Target Hiroshima: Deak Parsons and the Creation of the Atomic Bomb (Hardcover)

Target Hiroshima by Albert B. Christman is great book that you would enjoy reading. It tells the story of William S. "Deak" Parsons, the man that played a great part in researching, assembling, and finally, dropping the atomic bomb on Hiroshima, Japan. If you read this book you will learn about the life and hardships of Parsons as you also receive information on the development of the atom bomb and proximity fuse. An interesting and educational book that I recommend you read.