Oak Ridge Friendship Bell Ringing

At dawn on August 6 the public is encouraged to ring the International Friendship Bell at A.K. Bissell Park in Oak Ridge, TN.

NPS/KLEIN

 

“The bell was built to honor the workers of the Manhattan Project, to commemorate the 50th birthday of Oak Ridge, and to become a symbol and everlasting monument for the peace. The bell is for everyone, the young and the old. I feel something very special about this town, the town borne of war, living for peace and growing through science.”

- Shigeko Yoshino Uppuluri, co-creator of Project Peace Bell, the initiative that led to the International Friendship Bell

 

Reflection

• More Days of Peace & Remembrance
• Hanford Lights for Peace
• Los Alamos Lights for Peace

On August 6, 1945, the US Army Air Forces dropped the uranium-fueled Little Boy atomic bomb over Hiroshima in the first of only two atomic bombings of a population in history. The Manhattan Project facility at Oak Ridge produced the enriched uranium used in the Little Boy atomic bomb.

The International Friendship Bell is a symbol of unity that carries the message of peace and friendship into the future. At nearly seven feet (2.13 meters) tall and five feet (1.5 meters) wide, this 8,000-pound (3629 kilograms) bronze bell hangs at A. K. Bissell Park in Oak Ridge, Tennessee, where the enriched uranium for the world’s first atomic weapons was manufactured. Designed in Oak Ridge and cast in Kyoto, Japan, the relief panels on the bell show peaceful imagery inspired by Tennessee, Japan, and the tragedies of war between the two nations.

Oak Ridge Friendship Bell Ringing

Each year on August 6 the park hosts a sunrise (6:49 am EDT) ceremony to commemorate the anniversary of the atomic bombing of Hiroshima, Japan. The event takes place at the International Friendship Bell in Bissell Park and features music from an Oak Ridge Civic Music Association quartet. The ceremony allows for somber quiet reflection. Members of the public are invited to ring the International Friendship Bell in Oak Ridge to commemorate the number of years since the atomic bombing of Hiroshima. Participants may ring the bell for whatever reason speaks to them including for lives lost, service and sacrifice, and peace. A photo gallery of the event is at the bottom of this page.

One hour before dawn park rangers light luminarias decorated with messages of peace by community members. The luminarias remain lit throughout the event.

Every July, the park posts a full schedule of events on the park's online calendar, and Facebook page.

More Commemoration Events

For those who are unable to attend the August 6 event in person, a virtual bell ringing is available from 6:00 am EDT on August 6 through 11:59 pm PDT on August 9. A virtual Lights for Peace is available year-round.

As part of the Days of Peace and Remembrance, the park solicits Messages of Peace from the public in advance of the August commemoration events.