Atomic Bomb Island tells the story of an elite, top-secret team of soldiers, sailors, Marines, airmen, scientists, and engineers who came to Tinian in the Marianas in the middle of 1945 to prepare the island for delivery of the atomic bombs then being developed in New Mexico, to finalize the designs of the bombs themselves, and to launch the missions that would unleash hell on Japan. Almost exactly a year before the atomic bombs were dropped, strategically important Tinian was captured by Marines - because it was only 1,500 miles from Japan and its terrain afforded ideal runways for the new B-29 bombers that could launch here and pound Japan. In the months that followed, the U.S. turned virtually all of Tinian into a giant airbase, with streets laid out to resemble Manhattan, complete with a Broadway, Central Park, and Greenwich Village - a Marianas city where the bombs could be assembled, the heavily laden B-29s could be launched, and the Manhattan Project scientists could do their last work. Don Farrell has done this story incredible justice for the 75th anniversary. The book is a thoroughly researched, beautifully illustrated mosaic of the final phase of the Manhattan Project, from the Battle of Tinian and the USS Indianapolis to Hiroshima and Nagasaki.

About the Author
Don A. Farrell has been researching the history of the Mariana Islands for forty years and has written ten previous books on the subject. He is a graduate of Cal State Fullerton, a U.S. Air Force veteran, a former school teacher, and former chief of staff to the speaker of the Guam legislature. From 2011-2017, he served on the board of directors of the Humanities Council of the Commonwealth of Northern Mariana Islands; during that time he spent four years as vice-chairman of the Commonwealth's Historic Preservation Board. Don is the Marianas historian for Stephen Ambrose Historical Tours and regularly participates in its World War II tours of the Pacific and in symposia in the United States.


Book Information
ISBN 9780811739610
Author Don Farrell
Format Hardback
Page Count 464
Imprint Stackpole Books
Publisher Stackpole Books