Thank You!

The Metropolitan Museum of Modern History thanks you for your patronage of our Defining Moments Exhibit. We hope that our display has been informative, though provoking and given you a better understanding of the progression of the United States into a world leader. It is only by  understanding the past and where we have been that we may predict America's future role on the global stage.The past The museum would like to give special thanks to Dr. Dean Dohrman for all of his help with the development of the exhibit!

Forward to Defend Freedom

President Bush's speech given immediately after the attacks of September 11. His speech captures the emotions and resolve of the United States post 9/11 and foreshadows the actions America would take to avoid another such tragedy in the future.

                                

9/11 - A New Conflict

This news report from the ABC network covers the confusion and panic in the moments after the Twin Towers began to collapse.

 The September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks mark the first attack on US soil since Pearl Harbor and the escalation of a new conflict for the United States. American activities in the Middle Eastern countries of Saudi Arabia and Iran through the 1980s and 90s combined with the United States' support of Israel earned us the animosity of the terrorist group Al Qaeda and their leader Osama Bin Laden. Bin Laden declared a Holy War on Americans in 1998, and in 2001 executed the largest, deadliest terrorist attack to date. At 8:46 and 9:03 AM EDT respectively, Al Qaeda terrorists flew two hijacked American airplanes into the twin towers of the World Trade Center in New York City. They crashed another plane into the US Pentagon at 9:37 AM that day and a final hijacked airliner speculated to be on course for the White House was overtaken by the flight's passengers and crashed into a Shanksville, Pennsylvania field at 10:03 AM (Lavender, 2011). Death tolls remain inconclusive, even over a decade later, largely due to the fact that the Twin Towers crumbled to the ground soon after they were hit, burying bodies under tons of rubble and making recovery difficult. The New York City Police Department lists 2,823 people as missing or dead from the World Trade Center site. 40 people died in Pennsylvania and 184 were killed at the Pentagon (Overberg, 2008). The terrorist attacks ushered the United States into a new era of global relations, fraught with uncertainty and threats from terrorist groups such as Al Qaeda and Middle Eastern factions such as the Taliban. President Bush declared a War on Terror and vowed revenge against those responsible for the attacks, taking America's involvement in the Middle East to a new level. The War on Terror and the question of how the US should handle our interests in the Middle East have defined the last decade of American history and will likely continue to do so for some time. America's global role as a leader has attracted new enemies and the US must now be vigilant of quite different threats than we experienced during the Cold War.

Lavender, P. (2011). 9/11 timeline: Key events of september 11, 2001. The Huffington Post, Retrieved from http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/09/10/911-timeline-september-11-anniversary_n_953873.html

Overberg, P. (2008). Final sept 11 death toll remains inconclusive . USA Today, Retrieved from http://www.usatoday.com/news/sept11/2002-08-22-death-toll_x.htm

"Beginning of the End"

The cover of The London Herald on November 11, 1989. The paper prophetically declares that the fall of the Berlin Wall is the "Beginning of the End for Communism." 

Mr. Gorbachev, tear down this wall!

An image of the Berlin Wall taken from the American side. The sign is warning travelers that they are leaving the American, capitalist side and entering the communist sector ran by the USSR

The fall of the Berlin Wall, which divided West Germany from East Germany was a pivotal moment in the overall dissolution of the USSR. Germany marked the event as representing the final unification of the country, and for the U.S. the tear down symbolized the end of the long lived Cold War. The Iron Curtain lifted from Soviet Russia and a new age of foreign relations not focused on the looming threat of communism began for America. President Ronald Reagan was integral in negotiating with Russian leader Mikhail Gorbachev for Germany's reunification from the very beginning of his terms in office. Reagan's famous demand was given in a speech at Brandenburg Gate in 1987. He sent Gorbachev a message with his demand telling the Russian leader that if the USSR desired an end to hostilities with the capitalist world, Russia would "tear down this wall!" Two years later, Russia followed through with Reagan's request. The US triumphed in a global conflict between differing political outlooks which had consumed the world since the end of World War II. America's biggest competitor on the world stage was now declining and dissolving, leading the US to take on the role as the number one global power.

This clip is from Ronald Reagan's speech at Brandenburg Gate. Ronald Reagan made it clear in this speech that he would work with the Soviet Union if they were willing; however, if the USSR continued on its current path, the US would not be lenient.

Trouble on the Home Front

"Ohio"
By: Crosby, Stills, Nash and Young

Tin soldiers and Nixon coming,
We're finally on our own.
This summer I hear the drumming,
Four dead in Ohio.

Gotta get down to it
Soldiers are cutting us down
Should have been done long ago.
What if you knew her
And found her dead on the ground
How can you run when you know?

Gotta get down to it
Soldiers are cutting us down
Should have been done long ago.
What if you knew her
And found her dead on the ground
How can you run when you know?

Tin soldiers and Nixon coming,
We're finally on our own.
This summer I hear the drumming,
Four dead in Ohio.

The song Ohio was written by the band Crosby, Stills, Nash and Young as a protest of the Ohio National Guards actions in response to protesting students at Kent State in 1970. Four students were shot and killed on May 4, 1970 and nine others were wounded. The gunfire sparked more anger about the war and mistrust of authority within the protest movement nationwide.

This video from CBS news is an example of the coverage Americans could expect to see in their living rooms of the Vietnam War. This and even more graphic images shocked and in many cases angered the public, creating discord about the war and leading many Americans to wonder if the government was lying about American successes in Vietnam.

The Jungles of Vietnam to the living rooms of America: The Vietnam War

The Cover of Life Magazine, November, 1965, suggesting the future role the media would play in changing ordinary American's feelings about the war through reporting

It is difficult to assign a defined start and end date to America's involvement in the war in Vietnam. The Gulf of Tonkin incident on August 2, 1964, when a naval battle occurred in the North Vietnam ocean between the USS Maddox, the USS Ticonderoga and North Vietnamese patrols is often marked as a start date. Congress passed the Gulf of Tonkin resolution shortly after the incident, giving Lyndon B. Johnson the ability to use any means necessary to resolve conflict in Vietnam and prevent South Vietnam from falling to communism (u.s. history). The Vietnam war created conflict on the U.S. home front and generated rampant mistrust of authority as the media brought the horrors of war from the battlefields to American television screens and the American people began to feel that they had been lied to about the conflict's progress by government officials. In 1975,  the Montreal Gazette's Marshall Mcluhan stated that "Television brought the brutality of war into the comfort of the living room. The war was lost in the living room of America -- not the battlefields of Vietnam" (Quotes in Vietnam, 2011) Vietnam was the first war that the US had ever lost and this fact had a disheartening and divisive effect on the American public. Protests such as the 1970 student protest at Kent State characterized a growing antiwar sentiment on the home front. The effects of the Vietnam war and the divisions it caused between Americans would linger beyond the war itself making the US people nervous about involving themselves in future foreign conflicts and more cynical about the true intentions of government. The US remained a strong global force after losing Vietnam, but she was a shaken nation. Loss was unprecedented in American history and the division created between pro and anti war fronts at home would haunt American society through foreign actions and policy decisions to come.

References:

            U.S. History.com. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://www.u-s-history.com/pages/h1983.html

           Quotes in Vietnam War. (2011, November 26). Retrieved from http://www.notable-quotes.com/v/vietnam_war_quotes.html

            Sitikoff, H. (1999). Modern american poetry. Retrieved from http://www.english.illinois.edu/maps/vietnam/postwar.htm

American Technology

The Apollo 11 Command Module, "Columbia", was made out of aluminum alloy, titanium and steel. It carried Buzz Aldrin, Michael Collins and Niel Armstrong thoughout their voyage to the moon and was the only portion of the spacecraft to return to the Earth. The Columbia accomplished what many Soviet modules could not by safely and successfully reentering the Earth's atmosphere.

The Saturn V rocket was the largest, most powerful rocket launched prior to 1969. It was significantly stronger and more well designed than its Soviet counterpart the N1/L3 rocket and was to a large degree the reason the Americans were able to win the space race.

American technology began to evolve at a rapid pace because of the demand the Space Race caused to keep ahead of the Soviets. The US Space Program pioneered numerous new technologies and discoveries that had benefits outside of space travel as they sought the best way to take astronauts to the lunar surface. The American idea of science and how it should be taught and applied changed radically during the Space Race. New inventions such as scratch proof lenses, MRI machines, and cordless electronics all found their roots in the Space Race (Sam, n.d.). Scientists discovered while working on information systems for rockets that they could apply transistors to microchips reducing the size of electronics, making them easier to fabricate in clean rooms and ultimately leading to the Information Revolution.  The imagination inspired by our quest for the moon is seen in popular culture from the time including shows such as Star Trek and Lost in Space.
Sam, J. (n.d.). Technology spin-offs. Retrieved from http://spaceracehistory.tripod.com/spin.shtml

    Star Trek's Spock and the Sub Space Communicator, the original smart phone. The Space Race fired American creativity. The United States public originally imagined many of the of the pieces of technology we rely on today on television show, such as Star Trek.

"One Small Step For Man...

One Giant Leap for Mankind." Niel Armstrong's quote, uttered as he became the first human to set foot on the lunar surface, has been immortalized over the decades. The lunar landing represented US victory over the Soviet Union and the culmination of the Space Race . The lunar landing was not just an American triumph, it was a triumph for all of humanity. The United States' role in leading the human race to extraterrestrial victory marked America as a global leader and a representative for all human life. The fact that the US and not Russia first achieved the lunar landing gave America a solid lead in the Cold War by boosting international opinion of US capabilities. The Soviet Union's space race achievements including launching Yuri Gagarin as the first man in space and Sputnik were dwarfed by the United States' colossal achievement. The lunar landing also provided a  morale boost on America's home front. The 1960's were a period of social upheaval as antiwar sentiment clashed with a strong desire to fight and contain communism worldwide. The tension resulted in protests, riots and discord among the US public. The moon landing united Americans and all of humanity in a common achievement.



The Apollo 11 flight plan, detailing minute by minute instructions for the flight crew to successfully execute the moon landing. This flight plan succeeded on landing Buzz Aldrin and Niel Armstrong on the lunar surface.

Truman to Senator Richard Russell

Harry Truman wrote this letter to Senator Richard Russell the day Nagasaki was bombed.  Russell had telegramed Truman to ask that more nuclear missiles be unleashed upon the Japanese. Truman mentions the possiblity of Russian involvement at this point in the Pacific hemisphere, however it would not be necessary. Tha Japanese surrendered on September 2, 1945. 

Scientists Warn of Arms Race Prior to Nuclear Strikes

This petition was written to Pesident Truman by Leo Slizard and other scientists and engineers involved with The Manhattan Project (The codename given to the development and building of the Nuclear weapons). The scientists realized the awesome destructive power the bombs could unleash and also predicted the difficulty the United States would have containing such technology and preventing rival powers from attain nuclear weapons.

 

A PETITION TO THE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES

Source: U.S. National Archives, Record Group 77, Records of the Chief of Engineers, Manhattan Engineer District, Harrison-Bundy File, folder #76.
On July 17, 1945, Leo Szilard and 69 co-signers at the Manhattan Project "Metallurgical Laboratory" in Chicago petitioned the President of the United States.

---

July 17, 1945

A PETITION TO THE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES

Discoveries of which the people of the United States are not aware may affect the welfare of this nation in the near future. The liberation of atomic power which has been achieved places atomic bombs in the hands of the Army. It places in your hands, as Commander-in-Chief, the fateful decision whether or not to sanction the use of such bombs in the present phase of the war against Japan.

We, the undersigned scientists, have been working in the field of atomic power. Until recently, we have had to fear that the United States might be attacked by atomic bombs during this war and that her only defense might lie in a counterattack by the same means. Today, with the defeat of Germany, this danger is averted and we feel impelled to say what follows:

The war has to be brought speedily to a successful conclusion and attacks by atomic bombs may very well be an effective method of warfare. We feel, however, that such attacks on Japan could not be justified, at least not unless the terms which will be imposed after the war on Japan were made public in detail and Japan were given an opportunity to surrender.

If such public announcement gave assurance to the Japanese that they could look forward to a life devoted to peaceful pursuits in their homeland and if Japan still refused to surrender our nation might then, in certain circumstances, find itself forced to resort to the use of atomic bombs. Such a step, however, ought not to be made at any time without seriously considering the moral responsibilities which are involved.

The development of atomic power will provide the nations with new means of destruction. The atomic bombs at our disposal represent only the first step in this direction, and there is almost no limit to the destructive power which will become available in the course of their future development. Thus a nation which sets the precedent of using these newly liberated forces of nature for purposes of destruction may have to bear the responsibility of opening the door to an era of devastation on an unimaginable scale.

If after this war a situation is allowed to develop in the world which permits rival powers to be in uncontrolled possession of these new means of destruction, the cities of the United States as well as the cities of other nations will be in continuous danger of sudden annihilation. All the resources of the United States, moral and material, may have to be mobilized to prevent the advent of such a world situation. Its prevention is at present the solemn responsibility of the United States -- singled out by virtue of her lead in the field of atomic power.

The added material strength which this lead gives to the United States brings with it the obligation of restraint and if we were to violate this obligation our moral position would be weakened in the eyes of the world and in our own eyes. It would then be more difficult for us to live up to our responsibility of bringing the unloosened forces of destruction under control.

In view of the foregoing, we, the undersigned, respectfully petition: first, that you exercise your power as Commander-in-Chief, to rule that the United States shall not resort to the use of atomic bombs in this war unless the terms which will be imposed upon Japan have been made public in detail and Japan knowing these terms has refused to surrender; second, that in such an event the question whether or not to use atomic bombs be decided by you in light of the considerations presented in this petition as well as all the other moral responsibilities which are involved.

Leo Szilard and 69 co-signers

Signers listed in alphabetical order, with position identifications added:

1. DAVID S. ANTHONY, Associate Chemist
2. LARNED B. ASPREY, Junior Chemist, S.E.D.
3. WALTER BARTKY, Assistant Director
4. AUSTIN M. BRUES, Director, Biology Division
5. MARY BURKE, Research Assistant
6. ALBERT CAHN, JR., Junior Physicist
7. GEORGE R. CARLSON, Research Assistant-Physics
8. KENNETH STEWART COLE, Principal Bio-Physicist
9. ETHALINE HARTGE CORTELYOU, Junior Chemist
10. JOHN CRAWFORD, Physicist
11. MARY M. DAILEY,Research Assistant
12. MIRIAM P. FINKEL, Associate Biologist
13. FRANK G. FOOTE, Metallurgist
14. HORACE OWEN FRANCE, Associate Biologist
15. MARK S. FRED, Research Associate-Chemistry
16. SHERMAN FRIED, Chemist
17. FRANCIS LEE FRIEDMAN, Physicist
18. MELVIN S. FRIEDMAN, Associate Chemist
19. MILDRED C. GINSBERG, Computer
20. NORMAN GOLDSTEIN, Junior Physicist
21. SHEFFIELD GORDON, Associate Chemist
22. WALTER J. GRUNDHAUSER, Research Assistant
23. CHARLES W. HAGEN, Research Assistant
24. DAVID B. HALL, position not identified
25. DAVID L. HILL, Associate Physicist, Argonne
26. JOHN PERRY HOWE, JR., Associate Division Director, Chemistry
27. EARL K. HYDE, Associate Chemist
28. JASPER B. JEFFRIES, Junior Physicist, Junior Chemist
29. WILLIAM KARUSH, Associate Physicist
30. TRUMAN P. KOHMAN, Chemist-Research
31. HERBERT E. KUBITSCHEK, Junior Physicist
32. ALEXANDER LANGSDORF, JR., Research Associate
33. RALPH E. LAPP, Assistant to Division Director
34. LAWRENCE B. MAGNUSSON, Junior Chemist
35. ROBERT JOSEPH MAURER, Physicist
36. NORMAN FREDERICK MODINE, Research Assistant
37. GEORGE S. MONK, Physicist
38. ROBERT JAMES MOON, Physicist
39. MARIETTA CATHERINE MOORE, Technician
40. ROBERT SANDERSON MULLIKEN, Coordinator of Information
41. J. J. NICKSON, [Medical Doctor, Biology Division]
42. WILLIAM PENROD NORRIS, Associate Biochemist
43. PAUL RADELL O'CONNOR, Junior Chemist
44. LEO ARTHUR OHLINGER, Senior Engineer
45. ALFRED PFANSTIEHL, Junior Physicist
46. ROBERT LEROY PLATZMAN, Chemist
47. C. LADD PROSSER, Biologist
48. ROBERT LAMBURN PURBRICK, Junior Physicist
49. WILFRED RALL, Research Assistant-Physics
50. MARGARET H. RAND, Research Assistant, Health Section
51. WILLIAM RUBINSON, Chemist
52. B. ROSWELL RUSSELL, position not identified
53. GEORGE ALAN SACHER, Associate Biologist
54. FRANCIS R. SHONKA, Physicist
54. ERIC L. SIMMONS, Associate Biologist, Health Group
56. JOHN A. SIMPSON, JR., Physicist
57. ELLIS P. STEINBERG, Junior Chemist
58. D. C. STEWART, S/SGT S.E.D.
59. GEORGE SVIHLA, position not identified [Health Group]
60. MARGUERITE N. SWIFT, Associate Physiologist, Health Group
61. LEO SZILARD, Chief Physicist
62. RALPH E. TELFORD, position not identified
63. JOSEPH D. TERESI, Associate Chemist
64. ALBERT WATTENBERG, Physicist
65. KATHERINE WAY, Research Assistant
66. EDGAR FRANCIS WESTRUM, JR., Chemist
67. EUGENE PAUL WIGNER, Physicist
68. ERNEST J. WILKINS, JR., Associate Physicist
69. HOYLANDE YOUNG, Senior Chemist
70. WILLIAM F. H. ZACHARIASEN, Consultant

America Flexes Her Muscles

Mushroom Cloud Over Nagasaki, Japan

August of 1945 marks the first and only instances of the use of nuclear weapons against a rival nation in world history. The United States spent years developing two missiles, Fat Man and Little Boy in a secret operation known as the Manhattan Project and declared a devastating victory over Japan after dropping the two hydrogen bombs on the major Japanese cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki. Hiroshima was bombed on August 6th, Nagasaki on August 9th. The combined death toll of both bombings would climb upward of 200,000 people in the following months as victims died of blast injuries and the lingering effects of radiation (Yamazaki, 2007).  The Atomic Bombings sparked instant reactions and a level of controversy around the world, but they were ultimately successful in indicating to the world the strength and power the United States possessed. The bombings launched an arms race between the United States and their tentative ally Russia and aided the US in intimidating Stalin from joining the war in the Pacific. Sources close to Stalin confirmed that in a meeting with Georgii Zhukov and Soviet Prime Minister Vyacheslav Molotov, Stalin stated "They [The United States] are killing the Japanese and intimidating us." (Clare, n.d.) The bombings would usher in an age which found the United States in a constant effort to monitor global nuclear activities and ensure that other nations could not gain similar capabilities and use them against the US. The coming cold war was marked with tensions and fears which found their roots in the destruction of Hiroshima and Nagasaki

Yamazaki, D. (2007, October 10). Children of the atomic bomb. Retrieved from http://www.aasc.ucla.edu/cab/200708230009.html

Clare, J. D. (n.d.). Publishing of john d. clare. Retrieved from http://www.johndclare.net/cold_war5.htm

Life Magazine's Bernard Hoffman wrote this to his editor after witnessing the aftermath of the destruction of Hiroshima. Hoffman's dismay at the terrible power of the atomic bomb was reflected worldwide. Attitudes and fears like Hoffman's would continue through the Cold War arms race and arguably, the fear of such destruction being unleashed worldwide helped keep the United States and the USSR from launching the first strike.

Defining Moments

   The Metropolitan Museum of Recent History and our board of directors would like to thank you in advance for your patronage of our newest exhibit! 

 The United States has rapidly advanced in the modern era, stepping into a role as a global force and world leader. The Metropolitan Museum of Recent History has compiled a list of events, from 1945 to present times, which allow us to track the evolution of our country's role on the world stage. The five points along our timeline have been carefully chosen because they illustrate events which have contributed significantly to the United States' role as a world power, increased American visibility around the globe or dynamically alterred the course of US foreign policy.