American World War II Heritage City

The Designation

World War II permeated every aspect of American life and resulted in a large migration of people within the United States. Many industrial centers became “boom towns," growing at phenomenal rates, forever changing the cultural landscape of the United States. To recognize the historic importance, one city in each state is given the recognition as an American World War II Heritage City.

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Other Designated Cities

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Heritage Cities Stories

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Local Site Search

Browse the locations and landmarks, or enter the location code found on the wayfinding marker to learn more.

Location Code: K4BT

Location Code: 6J7T

Location Code: KT8A

Location Code: H3ZP

Location Code: TV0X

Location Code: QMVJ

Location Code: 8PKL

Location Code: 089B

Location Code: X40H

Location Code: GDCB

Naval Air Station Pasco

Location Code: 5S7K

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Uptown Center

Location Code: Y4R8

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Local Legacies

Local Legacy

Day’s Pay

Every employee at the Hanford Engineer Works donated one day’s pay to purchase the airplane, a B-17 bomber, as their contribution to the war effort. The plane is christened “Day’s Pay,” and is presented to the U.S. Army Air Forces.

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Local Legacy

Spudnut Shop

A local legend, The Spudnut Shop in Richland's Uptown Shopping Center has stood the test of time. Opened in 1948, the delectable shop utilized the unique craft of making its pastries from potato flour.

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Historic Structure

Richland Players

The isolated nature secret city life during World War II was curbed by entertainment provided by The Richland Players, a theater that continues to operate and captivate locals and tourists today.

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Historic Structure

C.C. Anderson’s Department Store

During the Manhattan Project, architect Gustav Pehrson transformed the pre-war farming community of Richland into a compact, walkable city that offered residents a variety of services. This building housed C.C. Anderson’s Department Store. As the only department store in town, it was a hive of activity located in the center of the community.

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Historic Structure

Morning Start Baptist Church

Morning Star Baptist Church was the literal and figurative center of East Pasco’s African American community. Reverend Johnnie Steward founded the church in 1946 to support the growing Black population’s spiritual and social needs. Its long history of service extended to congregants and community members forced to settle in East Pasco due to housing segregation and discrimination in Richland, Kennewick, and Pasco with the exception of East Pasco.

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Gathering Place

Kurtzman Park

Separated from the rest of Pasco by railroad tracks, East Pasco lacked many city services, including a city park. In the 1950s, local children created a baseball diamond in the field that became Kurtzman Park, clearing tumbleweeds, filling holes, and wiring in a backstop.

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Gathering Place

Leslie Groves Park

This park honors General Leslie R. Groves, the US Army officer in charge of the Manhattan Project. It was Groves who in January 1943 selected a 670 square miles swath of eastern Washington State as the center for plutonium production for the Manhattan Project, the American effort to develop an atomic bomb.

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Gathering Place

Rodney Block Park

The Army Corps of Engineers hired Gustav Pehrson, an architect from Spokane, to design and develop Richland. His plan included “an abundance of open green spaces running into the center of the town, with tree-lined parkways dividing the town naturally into neighborhoods.” Alphabet homes designed predominately by Pehrson surround this park.

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Historic Structure

Gress’s Meat Market

Built in 1915, this unassuming brick building anchored the community that changed around it. George Gress built and operated Gress’s Meat Market here from 1915 until 1943 when the Manhattan Project displaced most of Richland’s existing businesses and residents.

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Historic Structure

Lewis Street Underpass

Designed by the Northern Pacific Railway, the Lewis Street Underpass was constructed along a main east-west arterial through downtown Pasco in 1937. Previously, citizens were forced to walk over the railroad tracks to get between downtown and East Pasco. The underpass allowed cars and pedestrians to travel between the two areas even when long trains rolled on the tracks above.

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Local Legacy

Atomic Frontier Days

A local festival held by the residents of Richland, celebrating the unique culture of this "Atomic Town".

Historic Structure

Dyer Building

The Dyer Building became Richland’s first library and was an important community center for new residents. Formal and informal arts classes also began during the Manhattan Project and led to the 1948 founding of Allied Arts, an organization dedicated to bringing more creative opportunities to the postwar atomic city.

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