Charles Vanden Bulck
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Charles Vanden Bulck | |
|---|---|
| Birth name | Carolus Joannes Cornelius Van den Bulck |
| Nickname(s) | Van |
| Born | 9 May 1904 Antwerp, Belgium |
| Died | 29 September 1962 (aged 58) Stamford, Connecticut |
| Allegiance |  United States of America |
| Service/ | United States Army |
| Years of service | 1942–1946 |
| Rank | Lieutenant Colonel |
| Unit | United States Army Corps of Engineers Manhattan Engineer District |
| Commands held | Chief Administrative Officer of the Manhattan Engineer District at Oak Ridge, Tennessee |
| Awards | Legion of Merit United States Atomic Energy Commission Distinguished Service Award |
| Memorials | Charles Vanden Bulck Bridge, Loudon County, Tennessee |
| Spouse(s) | Gertrude (Gerty) Korman |
| Children | 1 |
| Other work | Special assistant to the General Manager of the Atomic Energy Commission |
Charles Vanden Bulck (born Carolus Joannes Cornelius Van den Bulck, Antwerp, Belgium, May 9, 1904, died Stamford, Connecticut, September 29, 1962) was an American of Flemish origin who played an important roll as a United States Army Corps of Engineers officer in the Manhattan-project. He received several honors for his contribution to the success of the activities and the associated furtherance of the war effort. He also contributed to the post-war transition of the American nuclear military installations into a civil nuclear industry.
Biography
Migration - Ellis Island (NY)
May 10, 1914 his father Frans Van den Bulck left Antwerp on the and arrived in New York on May 21. He was registered as a 32 year old baker. Shortly after he found work as a longshoreman.[1] When in the same year mother and children arrive on October 11th they settle at 578 Hudsonstreet, Hoboken, New Jersey. The Van den Bulck family is listed on the SS Finlands manifest lines 23-25 as "Marie 28 years", "Charle 9 years" and "Martha 2 years".
Military service
On May 15, 1922, at the age of 18, Charles joined the Navy department of the New York Guard (3rd Div 2nd Bn). His enlistment paper showed as address 117 Wall Street, New York City.[2]
First jobs
Charles took a correspondence course accounting and general management and worked shortly for a bank and a sugar refinery.[3]
World War II
During World War II Charles worked for the US Army Corps of Engineers (USACE). He started as a civilian on the Broadway office in New York and in 1941 he joined the Rome Air Force project team of Kenneth Nichols.[4] After accepting Brigadier General James C. Marshall's secret mission request in 1942 he moved to Oak Ridge where he was promoted to major and soon after to lieutenant colonel.
Starting from May 1943 "Van" - as Charles was often called in those days - worked in the newly build "Castle on the Hill" headquarters of the Manhattan Engineer District.[5] It was a low building with a long central wing connecting to seven cross coupled administrative wings. The headquarters also had a heliport landing platform at the back. He worked closely together with General Leslie Groves known as project leader of the Pentagon building and Colonel Nichols.[6] the Manhattan District Engineer.
In day-to-day activities Charles was assisted by his secretary the tall blond well-dressed Sherry (Frances Rose McSherry 1921-2018)[7][8] or in her absence by one of her colleagues such as Celia Szapka Klemski.[9] [10] Sherry made such an impression on the physicist Richard Feynman that he would later mention her in his biography and refer to her as 'the movie queen'. [11] [12]
Charles was director of administration and special disbursing officer of the Manhattan Project. In more general terms he was the procurement manager in charge of the aquisition and administrative processing of all the materials and services. The project mainly contracted large American companies with prior army work experience. An important exception was the Belgian-Kongolese company Union Minière du Haut-Katanga or UMHK that took care of the supply of uranium via their director Edgar Sengier. An important part of the highly needed UMHK uranium stock was luckily already stored in New York.[13]
During the war years about 2 billion USD Manhattan project cost in terms of materials and services would be processed by his administration.[14] spend on the Manhattan Project making this is a success.[15] In 2023 the estimated cost would represent a relative value of almost 34 billion USD[16]. Most of it was spend on the K-25 Gaseous diffusion plant and the Y-12 electromagnetic plant.
His ASN - Army Service Number was O-490878
| Code | Meaning |
|---|---|
| O | Commissioned Officer |
| 4 | drafted in either Alabama, Florida, Georgia Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee |
| 90878 | "Special Use" service numbers range 90.001 – 99.999 |
The detailed Manhattan project timeline
Atomic Energy Commission
The United States Atomic Energy Commission (AEC) was created in 1946 after signing the McMahon/Atomic Energy act in order to transfer the military nuclear knowledge and infrastructure to the civil world.
After World War II Charles continued the administration at the Oak Ridge site until November 1946.
Returning to civilian life he then worked 2 months for the United States Army Corps of Engineers to transfer in Januari 1947 with his relevant knowledge and experience to the non-military Atomic Energy Commission.[3]
In 1953 he was promoted to "assistant manager of the operations offices" to lead 6 divisions including budgetting and rapporting.[3]
He was listed among others in the January 3, 1956, edition of the Congressional Directory[17] - FOR THE USE OF THE UNITED STATES CONGRESS, onder het "Office of the General Manger" als "Special Assistant to the General Manager", extensie 452. His home at the time near Washington D.C. is mentioned as 6017 Kirby Road, Bethesda,_Maryland.
In Augustus 1960 he retired from the Atomic Energy Commission but not without informing Kenneth Nichols by letter and looking back on their common history (see attached letter).
American Machine and Foundry
After his retirement from the Atomic Energy Commission in August 1960, he took one more job with the American Machine and Foundry (AMF) that originally started as a recreational equipment company.[18] At that time however one of their products was the launching system for the U.S. Army's Inter Continental Ballistic Missiles (ICBM). [19] This required a thorough investigation into his past, revealing details about his birth and younger life in Antwerp, Belgium.
Passing
After fighting cancer he passed away September 29, 1962, at Stamford Hospital at the age of 58.[20][21]
The year after on May 25, 1963 a new bridge on the Tennessee State Route 95, crossing the Clinch river, was dedicated in honor of his person and his achievements.
Honours
- October 2, 1945, for services rendered in the period 1942-1945 he was awarded the Legion of Merit.[22][23]
- Washington D.C. 1956, he receives the highest Atomic Energy Commission price "the gold Distinguished Service Award".[24]
- Loudon County 1962, a bridge on the Tennessee SR95, White Wing Road nearby Clinch View Church northeast of Bradbury Valley was named the Charles Vanden Bulck bridge in his honour.
- 1962, after his passing a certificate by president John F. Kennedy send in honor of the memory to Charles Vanden Bulck.[25]
- Honored by the National Civil Service League.[26]
Appraisals
- Several appraisals by General Kenneth David Nichols in his book "The Road to Trinity" (1987).
- Award quotation in the Manhattan History - book 1, volume 4, chapter 8, page 364 on the distinguished medals awards":
"TO: CHARLES VANDEN-BULCK, Lieutenant Colonel, U.S. Army, Box 231, Mountain View, NJ
FOR:As Chief Administrative Officer of the Manhattan Engineer District of October 1942 to August 1945. Although handicapped by rigid security control which at times required wide variation from normal War Department administrative procedures, he ingeniously devised many new means for effecting special administrative requirements. By his initiative, great force, and unusual comprehension of detail, he rendered service of outstanding value to the Government and assisted materially in the furtherance of the war effort.[15]
Charles Vanden Bulck Bridge
The Charles Vanden Bulck Bridge is located on Tennessee State Route 95, White Wing Road, Loudon county, Tennessee. The current modern bridge replaced an old floating bridge and got its name on May 25, 1963.
The name was officialized March 2, 1965 by Tennessee governor Frank G. Clement via Public Act, House Resolution No. 37. [27] [28]
| Feature | Value |
|---|---|
| GeoNames id. | 4612803 |
| Classification | Structure with physical, cultural and historical features |
| ZIP code | 37771 |
| County | Loudon |
| State | Tennessee |
| Country | United States |
| Latitude | 35.8870216 |
| Longitude | -84.3240905 |
| Elevation | 741 feet or 226m above sea level |
Family
Born May 9, 1904, in Antwerp, Belgium, as son of Frans - Francois - Van den Bulck (1880 – 1948) and his wife Maria Josephina Pauwels (1885 - 1969). Once in the US their first names morph into more English sounding variants like Francis, Marie Jo, Charles en Marth. His parents found their last resting place on the Holy Cross Cemetery and Mausoleum of North Arlington, Bergen, County, New Jersey.[29]
According to his birth certificate (see gallery) his official given name was Carolus Joannes Cornelius Van den Bulck.
In 1933 he married Gertrude (Gerty) Korman (May 13, 1910), who was of German descend. Together they have a son Charles Franz Vandenbulck who was born September 1, 1934, in Hoboken, New Jersey, two grandchildren and several great grandchildren.
His sister Martha Marie (May 27, 1911-August 7, 2001) and her husband Joseph Paul Vidosic had 2 children Dorothy Marie Vidosic and Richard Paul Vidosic and several grandchildren.
References
- ↑ "Charles Vanden bulck – The story of the name and a man of integrity". The Oak Ridger's Historically Speaking. 2011.
They settled first in Hoboken, NJ, where Charles' father worked as a longshoreman.
- ↑ See military draft document Charles Vanden Bulck.
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 Statement United States Supreme Court page 169
- ↑ [https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/7/7a/Charles_Vanden_Bulck_retirement_letter_to_Kenneth_Nichols.pdf Retirement letter to Kenneth Nichols
- ↑ "Castle on the Hill". The Historical Marker Database.
The Administration Building for the Clinton Engineering Works opened March 15, 1943. Dubbed "The Castle", it became headquarters for the Manhattan Engineering District, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, from which all Manhattan Project construction was directed, 1943-1945. The Atomic Energy Commission assumed control of the property on January 1, 1947. "The Castle" was demolished and replaced by the Federal Building in 1970.
- ↑ * Kiernan, Denise (March 11, 2014). The Girls of Atomic City: The Untold Story of the Women Who Helped Win World War II. Simon and Schuster. ISBN 978-1-4516-1753-5.
- ↑ Obituary and biography Frances Rose McSherry
- ↑ Kiernan, Denise (11 March 2014). The Girls of Atomic City: The Untold Story of the Women Who Helped Win World War II. Simon and Schuster. p. 286. ISBN 978-1-4516-1753-5.
Lieutenant Colonel Vanden Bulck's secretary was tall, blond, always well-put together, and rarely seen wearing the same thing twice.
- ↑ Interview Celia Szapka-Klemski
- ↑ Kiernan, Denise (11 March 2014). The Girls of Atomic City: The Untold Story of the Women Who Helped Win World War II. Simon and Schuster. ISBN 978-1-4516-1753-5.
- ↑ Gleick, James (2 April 1994). Genius : The Life and Science of Richard Feynman. 978-0349105321. pages 263 and 266
- ↑ "Obituary and biography Frances Rose McSherry".
Also here, her romance with the famous physicist, Richard P. Feynman blossomed through letters and a rarely allowed visit. She was mentioned in the New York Times best seller, "Genius," (a biography of Richard Feynman) as Feynman's "movie queen," seen by his friends as likely soon-to-be the fiancée of Feynman
- ↑ Edgar Sengier and his uranium
- ↑ Manhattan project costs
- ↑ 15.0 15.1 theblackvault.com document bottom of page 164
- ↑ USD inflation calculator
- ↑ Congressional directory 1956
- ↑ "Charles Vanden bulck – The story of the name and a man of integrity". The Oak Ridger's Historically Speaking. 2011.
After his retirement from the Atomic Energy Commission in 1960, he took a job with the American Machine and Foundry or AMF a recreational equipment company for many years that started out as the first automated cigarette manufacturer.
- ↑ "Charles Vanden bulck – The story of the name and a man of integrity". The Oak Ridger's Historically Speaking. 2011.
One of their product lines was the launching system for Inter Centennial Ballistic Missiles for the U. S. Air Force.
- ↑ The New York Times - C. VANDEN BULCK, 58, AIDED ATOM PROJECT
- ↑ Charles Franz VandenBulck. "Charles Vanden Bulck – Procurement Manager for Manhattan Project" (PDF).
Charles Vanden Bulck died of cancer on September 29, 1962 at age 58. At the time he and his wife, Gertrude, were living in Stamford, CT. A certificate was sent from President John F. Kennedy honoring the memory of Charles Vanden Bulck.
- ↑ Legion of Merit according to official act
- ↑ "Manhattan Project History - 54 Officers receive awards for work on atomic bomb project - Distinguished Service Medal" (PDF). theblackvault.com. p. 164.
TO: CHARLES VANDEN-BULCK, Lieutenant Colonel, U.S. Army, Box 231, Mountain View, NJ. FOR: As Chief Administrative Officer of the Manhattan Engineer District of October 1942 to August 1945. Although handicapped by rigid security control which at times required wide variation from normal War Department administrative procedures, he ingeniously devised many new means for effectivly special administrative requirements.By his initiative, great force and unusual comprehension of details, he rendered service of outstanding value to the Government and assisted materially in the furtherance of the war effort.
- ↑ Charles Vanden Bulck – Procurement Manager for Manhattan Project
- ↑ The Oak Ridger’s Historically Speaking
- ↑ The Oak Ridgers newspaper article
- ↑ Charles Franz VandenBulck. "Charles Vanden Bulck – Procurement Manager for Manhattan Project" (PDF).
The bridge was officially named in his honor by Public Act, House Resolution No. 37, on March 2, 1965. As noted in The Oak Ridger, "Actually the Saturday May 25, 1963 ceremonies will not make the name of the bridge official, the state legislature ultimately must act on all public bridge names."
- ↑ Senate Journal of the 48th General Assembly of the State of Tennessee (1965) - Charles Vanden Bulck bridge naming
- ↑ Cross Cemetery and Mausoleum of North Arlington, Bergen County, New Jersey
External links
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