Last updated: January 22, 2025
Place
Oak Ridge Wayside: Jefferson Shopping Center
NPS
Quick Facts
Amenities
1 listed
Historical/Interpretive Information/Exhibits
Subtitle
Convenience for Community
Main Text
With a population of 45,000 by 1943, Oak Ridge quickly outpaced the Army Corps of Engineers’ initial estimates of 13,000 residents. The growing needs of the Manhattan Project required the architectural firm developing the city, Skidmore, Owings & Merrill, to quickly plan and construct new neighborhoods. The dispersed population within Oak Ridge and space constraints at the original shopping center, Town Center No.1 (later Jackson Square) necessitated multiple shopping centers serving the local community rather than a traditional downtown that residents may have been accustomed to back home. The West Town Shopping Center (later Jefferson) became a community hub, providing not only day-to-day necessities from private businesses but also community events at the Jefferson Recreation Hall, entertainment at the Jefferson Theatre, and transportation from a bustling bus terminal. With assigned housing by race, gender, marital status, and job title, new residents had no choice in where they would be assigned to live. Jefferson served this neighborhood of both family housing to the north and the dormitories to the south.
Exhibit Panel Description
A black and white exhibit panel on a black frame approximately four feet tall. The panel has a black band at the top and a title underneath that reads “Jefferson Shopping Center: Convenience for Community." The center of the panel is covered by a black and white aerial photo of a shopping center during World War II. The text describing Jefferson is located at the bottom of the panel.
Visit This Exhibit Panel
This wayside is located at 22 N Jefferson Cir, Oak Ridge, TN.
Convenience for Community
Main Text
With a population of 45,000 by 1943, Oak Ridge quickly outpaced the Army Corps of Engineers’ initial estimates of 13,000 residents. The growing needs of the Manhattan Project required the architectural firm developing the city, Skidmore, Owings & Merrill, to quickly plan and construct new neighborhoods. The dispersed population within Oak Ridge and space constraints at the original shopping center, Town Center No.1 (later Jackson Square) necessitated multiple shopping centers serving the local community rather than a traditional downtown that residents may have been accustomed to back home. The West Town Shopping Center (later Jefferson) became a community hub, providing not only day-to-day necessities from private businesses but also community events at the Jefferson Recreation Hall, entertainment at the Jefferson Theatre, and transportation from a bustling bus terminal. With assigned housing by race, gender, marital status, and job title, new residents had no choice in where they would be assigned to live. Jefferson served this neighborhood of both family housing to the north and the dormitories to the south.
Exhibit Panel Description
A black and white exhibit panel on a black frame approximately four feet tall. The panel has a black band at the top and a title underneath that reads “Jefferson Shopping Center: Convenience for Community." The center of the panel is covered by a black and white aerial photo of a shopping center during World War II. The text describing Jefferson is located at the bottom of the panel.
Visit This Exhibit Panel
This wayside is located at 22 N Jefferson Cir, Oak Ridge, TN.