EDITOR’S NOTE: This month marked the dropping of the atomic bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki, Japan, helping bring an end to World War II. Myra Mansfield shares an excerpt of her book “Robertsville,”recounting how her dad, then a 10-year-old boy, delivered the Knoxville Journal on Aug. 6, 1945 with news of the bombs and Oak Ridge’s role in enriching the uranium for “Little Boy,” the first bomb.
Ten-year-old Stanley Finch left the house to pick up his newspapers for his daily delivery of the Knoxville Journal. It was 1945. Up and down West Outer Drive and the surrounding streets he walked, house to house, passing the crowd of people waiting for the shuttle, or “cattle car” as the kids called the bus. He was maneuvering his way into the grass around them when someone saw the headlines, which Stan had not even noticed.
The man yelled, “Look! The boy’s got newspapers!” Stan turned to look. Now alerted to the bag full of papers, the crowd converged on Stan like a pack of wolves. The bus driver approached to see a crowd of arms and newspaper pages flailing in the air. Stan stood, buried inside the crowd, feeling terrified and overpowered. When the people turned to board the bus he looked around. He had many dollar bills clutched in his hands, and many more were littering the ground around him. Fear turned to concern. He stooped and picked up the money, stuffing it into his pockets. He ran for home and opened the screen door of the house, interrupting the sound of his sister Peggy playing the piano, and singing “Whispering Hope” in three-part harmony with her friends Nancy and Ann…