Quads, Shoeboxes and Sunken Living Rooms; A History of Los Alamos Housing

Los Alamos, NM: Los Alamos Historical Society, 2000. First Edition [stated], presumed first printing. Trade paperback. Very good. [4], 149, [5] pages. Maps. Illustrations. Monograph Number 4. Includes Field Guide to Los Alamos Housing. Bibliography, Index. The contents are presented chronologically after the initial requirement was stated as "Sufficient Housing for a dozen scientists'; 1942-1945: Wartime Housing--The Good, The Bad and the Ugly; 1946-1948: Post-War Difficulties--Prefabricated City vs. Permanent Housing; 1948-1952: Growing Pains--North Community and White Rock Construction Camp; 195201957: Eastern Area Revamped--Groups 16, 17 and 18; 1958-1968: Privitization--Baranca Mesa Developed and White Rock Reborn; 1965-2000: Almost Normal--Filling in the Gaps; and 2000 Housing Destroyed--The Cerro Grande Fire. The author begins with an initial group of people who gathered on the New Mexico plateau in 1942 to build the atomic bomb. From there he traces the community development patterns and domestic architecture of those who stayed after the war to form a permanent community, to the end of the century. The volume continues the Society's publication series. Craig Martin has put his own name on a series of books about the outdoors—trout fishing, mountain biking, hiking, hot springs, and wild plants—plus one about the history and lingo of neighborhoods built by the U.S. government for scientists building a bomb. (A "Group 18 Two-Bedroom" may not mean much to you, but if you're what locals call a "labbie," you get it.) Fourth in the series of monographs, THE LOS ALAMOS STORY. A fascinating look at how the Atomic Energy Commission built the town, housing project by housing project, after World War II. An often humorous account of the growing pains caused by the ubiquitous "point system" and the difficulty it caused in obtaining housing, as well as the unique architecture of a government-built community.