Bush's Letter to Roosevelt
March 9, 1942.
The President,
The White House,
Washington, D.C.
Dear Mr. President:
On October 9, 1941, Mr. Wallace and I presented to you the status of research in this country and Great Britain on a possible powerful explosive.
In accordance with your instructions, I have since expedited this work in every way possible. I now attach a brief summary report of the status of the matter.
Considerations of general policy and of international relations have been limited for the present to a group consisting of Mr. Wallace, Secretary Stimson, General Marshall, Dr. Conant, and myself. Mr. Wallace called a conference of this group, to which he invited also Mr. Harold D. Smith as the matter of funds was there considered.
The technical aspects are in the hands of a group of notable physicists, chemists, and engineers, as noted in the report. The corresponding British organization is also indicated. The work is under way at full speed.
Recent developments indicate, briefly, that the subject is more important than I believed when I last spoke to you about it. The stuff will apparently be more powerful than we then thought, the amount necessary appears to be less, the possibilities of actual production appear more certain. The way to full accomplishment is still exceedingly difficult, and the time schedule on this remains un-changed. We may be engaged in a race toward realization; but, if so, I have no indication of the status of the enemy program, and have taken no definite steps toward finding out.
The subject is rapidly approaching the pilot plant stage. I believe that, by next summer, the most promising methods can be selected, and production plants started. At that time I believe the whole matter should be turned over to the War Department.
You returned to me the previous reports, in order that I might hold them subject to you call. I shall be glad to guard this report also if you wish.
Respectfully yours,
V. Bush,
Director.
Appendix A
Tubealloy Organization
Appendix B
List of Contracts
| Contractor | Subject | Amount |
|---|---|---|
| Westinghouse Electric & Manufacturing Company | Experimental centrifuge. | 12,000.00 |
| Standard Oil Development Co. | Centrifuge method of separation leading to design of pilot plant. | 100,000.00 |
| M. W. Kellogg Company | Diffusion process of separating leading to design of a pilot plant. | 50,000.00 |
| Metal Hydrides, Inc. | Purchase of 30 tons of metal. | 400,000.00 |
| Consolidated Mining & Smeltin Company of Canada | Water electrolysis. | 5,000.00 |
| Westinghouse Elevator Co. | Preliminary engineering in connection with a pilot plant. | 10,000.00 |
| Westinghouse Electric & Manufacturing Company | Four meter gas separator | 30,000.00 |
| Westinghouse Elevator Co. | Twenty-four gas separators. | 193,000.00 |
| Westinghouse Electric & Manufacturing Company | Electric power units. | 37,890.75 |
| Standard Oil Development Co. | Studies of exchange reaction. | 75,000.00 |
| Westinghouse Electric & Manufacturing Company | Production of 6 tons of metal. | 250,000.00 |
| Standard Oil Development Co. | Pilot plant building. | 250,000.00 |
| University of California | Relation between electromagnetic methods and chemical processes. | 305,000.00 |
| Columbia University | Preparation of certain pure chemical substances by physical means. | 212,250.00 |
| University of Virginia | Chemical Research. | 23,500.00 |
| University of Chicago | Physics aspects of the tube alloy program. | 274,500.00 |
| Princeton University | Separation project. | 140,925.00 |
| Brown University | Research on separation. | 35,000.00 |
| Rockefeller Inst. for Medical Research | Separation of isotopes by mobility method. | 10,850.00 |
| Yale University | Methods of electrolytic separation. | 49,000.00 |
| Ethyl Gasoline Corporation | Study of possibility of producing volatile "X" compounds. | 18,000.00 |
| Iowa State College | Study of possibility of producing volatile "X" compounds. | 17,750.00 |
| University of Chicago | Study of possibility of producing volatile "X" compounds. | 15,000.00 |
| Standard Oil Development Co. | Search for suitable catalysts. | 75,000.00 |
| University of Wisconsin | Rapid rupture in metals. | 8,900.00 |
| University of Minnesota | Construction of 3 mass spectrographs, etc. | 23,000.00 |