LibGuides: Primary Sources: America in World War II: The U.S. Atomic Bombs

Atomic Bombs during World War II

The atomic bombs dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki during World War II were among the most devastating weapons ever unleashed in human history, marking a pivotal moment in warfare and international relations. The decision to use atomic weapons by the United States remains one of the most contentious and debated aspects of the war.

On August 6, 1945, the United States dropped the first atomic bomb, code-named "Little Boy," on the city of Hiroshima. The bomb exploded with an unprecedented level of destruction, instantly killing tens of thousands of people and leveling buildings for miles around. The devastation was compounded by the intense heat, radiation exposure, and subsequent fires, resulting in widespread death and suffering.

Just three days later, on August 9, 1945, a second atomic bomb, "Fat Man," was dropped on the city of Nagasaki. The impact was similarly catastrophic, causing widespread death and destruction in an instant.

The use of atomic bombs against Hiroshima and Nagasaki led to Japan's unconditional surrender on August 15, 1945, effectively ending World War II. However, the decision to use atomic weapons remains deeply controversial, with critics arguing that the bombings constituted unnecessary and disproportionate acts of violence against civilian populations.

The atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki had far-reaching consequences, both immediate and long-term. The death toll from the bombings and their aftermath numbered in the hundreds of thousands, with many more suffering from radiation-related illnesses in the years that followed. The bombings also ushered in the nuclear age, raising profound ethical, moral, and existential questions about the use of atomic weapons and the nature of warfare in the modern world.

Online Sources: Atomic Bomb during World War II

Atomic Archive "This site explores the complex history surrounding the invention of the atomic bomb - a crucial turning point for all mankind." Access is provided to a variety of information including historic documents, treaties, etc.
The Atomic Bomb and the End of World War II
The Atomic Bomb and the End of World War II (National Security Archive) A Collection of Primary Sources Updated National Security Archive Posting Marks 75th Anniversary of the Atomic Bombings of Japan and the End of World War II Extensive Compilation of Primary Source Documents Explores Manhattan Project, Eisenhower’s Early Misgivings about First Nuclear Use, Curtis LeMay and the Firebombing of Tokyo, Debates over Japanese Surrender Terms, Atomic Targeting Decisions, and Lagging Awareness of Radiation Effects
The Atomic Bomb and the End of World War II - update August 2020 (The National Security Archives) A Collection of Primary Sources - To mark the 75th anniversary of the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki in August 1945, the National Security Archive is updating and reposting one of its most popular e-books of the past 25 years. While U.S. leaders hailed the bombings at the time and for many years afterwards for bringing the Pacific war to an end and saving untold thousands of American lives, that interpretation has since been seriously challenged. Moreover, ethical questions have shrouded the bombings which caused terrible human losses and in succeeding decades fed a nuclear arms race with the Soviet Union and now Russia and others. Three-quarters of a century on, Hiroshima and Nagasaki remain emblematic of the dangers and human costs of warfare, specifically the use of nuclear weapons. Since these issues will be subjects of hot debate for many more years, the Archive has once again refreshed its compilation of declassified U.S. government documents and translated Japanese records that first appeared on these pages in 2005.
The Atomic Bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, August 1945 (National Archives) The United States bombings of the Japanese cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki on August 6 and August 9, 1945, were the first instances of atomic bombs used against humans, killing tens of thousands of people, obliterating the cities, and contributing to the end of World War II. The National Archives maintains the documents that trace the evolution of the project to develop the bombs, their use in 1945, and the aftermath.
The Decision to Drop the Atomic Bomb (Harry S. Truman Library) Truman Library Documents
Decision To Drop The Bomb (1965) Documentary (NBC Broadcast) "Combines historic film clips, an analysis of the facts behind the decision to drop the atomic bomb on the city of Hiroshima, and personal interviews with the men who helped make the decision in an attempt to answer questions about how and why the decision was made."
FBI Vault: Harry Gold (FBI Records; The Vault) Records Collected through the Harry Gold from the FBI Vault
FBI Vault: J. Robert Oppenheimer (FBI Vault) FBI Documents on J. Robert Oppenheimer
Featured Document Display: The Atomic Bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki (National Archives Museum) World War II marked the first—and only—wartime use of atomic weapons.
The Most Fearsome Sight: The Atomic Bombing of Hiroshima (The National WW II Museum) On the morning of August 6, 1945, the American B-29 bomber Enola Gay dropped an atomic bomb on the Japanese city of Hiroshima.
Nagasaki City: Peace and Atomic Bomb At 11:02 a.m. on August 9, 1945, the sky above Nagasaki was filled by a white flash, and all the clocks stopped. A gigantic mushroom-shaped cloud soared up towards the blue sky. What’s going on? What’s happened to everyone? Even now the debris of the magnificent collapsed cathedral, torn clothes and melted bottles silently tell a story. We will continue to relay a message of peace from Nagasaki, a message passed on by the survivors, who overcome great difficulties. In the hope that the people of the world can join hands and face a future free of nuclear weapons.
Nagasaki Journey: The Photographs of Yosuke Yamahata In observance of the 59th Anniversary of the Bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki.
Voice of Hibakusha: Eye-Witness Accounts of the Bombing of Hiroshim The first atomic bomb actually used in war time was dropped on Hiroshima on August 6th, 1945 killing between 130,000 and 150,000 people by the end of that year. Those who survived the bombing are rapidly aging now after struggling for many years. The Hiroshima Peace and Culture Foundation has decided to newly videotape the testimonies of 100 A-bomb victims to commemorate the International Year of Peace 1986 to record the precious experiences of these survivors to be handed down to the future generations.
“The World Will Note”: President Truman Announces the Atom Bomb (History Matters0 " In this dramatic radio address, Truman told the nation that a bomb had been dropped on the city of Hiroshima on August 6. Truman inaccurately described Hiroshima as a “military base.” It was the base of the Second General Headquarters of the Imperial Army, but civilians outnumbered army personnel by about six to one."

Click the title for location and availability information.

Atomic Energy for Military Purposes by Henry De Wolf Smyth
Call Number: View Online HathiTrust & Boca Raton General Collection QC173 .S4735 1945
In the shadow of the bomb : Bethe, Oppenheimer, and the moral responsibility of the scientist by Silvan S. Schweber
Call Number: Boca Raton General Collection QC774.O56 S32 2000
ISBN: 0691049890
Publication Date: 2000-05-07
The Effects of Atomic Weapons by Los Alamos Scientific Laboratory
Call Number: View Online - Gov Docs
Publication Date: 1977
Hiroshima : the world's bomb by Andrew J. Rotter
Call Number: Boca Raton General Collection QC773 .R67 2008
ISBN: 9780192804372
Publication Date: 2008-04-07
Resurrecting Nagasaki : reconstruction and the formation of atomic narratives by Chad R. Diehl
Call Number: View Online
ISBN: 1501755250
Publication Date: 2021-03-15

Videos on the Atomic Bomb during World War II

Atomic Bombs dropped on Japan (Playlist of 12 videos)

The links below are videos taken from the database listed below. They will require you to be affiliated with Florida Atlantic University with an active username/password to log in and view them.

Harry Truman: Bombing of Hiroshima - American History Streaming Video Databas This speech, by Harry Truman, informs the nation that an atomic bomb has been dropped in Japan.
Hiroshima Japan - American History Video Streaming Database Hiroshima, Japan: On the 6th of August 1945, the US B29 dubbed the Enola Gay flew over the Japanese city of Hiroshima and dropped a nuclear bomb called Little Boy. The plane, piloted by 509th composite group commander Paul Tibbets was launched from the airbase in the West Pacific, 6 hours flight time from Japan. When it was launched it exploded about 600 meters above the city, 80,000 people were killed outright and an estimated further 60,000 deaths occurred in the following months. There were many reasons why Hiroshima was targeted. The research and development project that resulted in the design and construction of the world's first atomic bombs was named 'the Manhattan Project'. After test in New Mexico in July, Little Boy was dropped on Hiroshima under the order of President Harry S. Truman, as was 'Fat Man,' the second bomb was dropped on Nagasaki three days later. The US made the momentous decision to use nuclear weapons in a bid to force Japan's surrender and end the six-year-old Second World War. The Japanese surrendered on August 15.
Hiroshima - American History Video Streaming Database In 1942, the United States government embarked upon an endeavor it hoped would put a quick and definite end to World War II. Under extraordinary secrecy and with unlimited funds, the top scientists of the day were brought together to work on the Manhattan Project - and on August 6, 1945, three years of technological advancements were exploded above Hiroshima in the form of a uranium-fission bomb. This episode of Tech Effect profiles the technology surrounding that fateful moment. The advanced B-29 bomber, the sophisticated Norden bombsight, Mamiya and K-20 aerial cameras, telemetry canisters, and even Teflon have a place in this grim yet remarkable story.
Rain of Ruin: The Bombing of Nagasaki -American History Streaming Video Database This powerful video features a comprehensive examination of one of the most important, yet little-understood episodes in modern history - the several months leading up to the atomic bombings of Japan, which both ended World War II and shaped the world's geo-political landscape for the next 50 years. To compel Japan's unconditional surrender, President Truman threatened a "rain of ruin," culminating in the bombing of Nagasaki on August 9, 1945. RAIN OF RUIN investigates the key political and military motivations for the atomic bombings, especially the Nagasaki bombing. Did Japan finally surrender because of the atomic bombs or were there other reasons? Was the bomb’s true aim to make an impression on Stalin? And, why did the Soviet Union enter the Pacific War on the very date Nagasaki was bombed? Top historical scholars present and discuss the principal theories, revealing the bombing to be a more complex historical event than commonly believed. The program draws on previously unpublished and declassified documents from the U.S., Japanese and Soviet archives, as well as remarkable film footage.
Pictures from a Hiroshima Schoolyard - American History Streaming Videos Database Pictures from a Hiroshima Schoolyard presents the aftermath of the first atomic bomb through the remarkable drawings and untold stories of surviving Japanese school children who were part of an extraordinary exchange with their American counterparts. In 1995, a parishioner of the All Souls Church in Washington, D.C., discovered a long-forgotten box containing dozens of colorful drawings made by Japanese children from the Honkawa Elementary School in Hiroshima just two years after their city was destroyed. The surprisingly hopeful drawings were created and sent to the church nearly 50 years earlier in appreciation for much-needed school supplies received as part of the church’s post-war humanitarian efforts. The Honkawa school was just 1100 feet from ground zero on August 6, 1945. Nearly 400 children died in the schoolyard that fateful morning. Surviving students and teachers describe the horror of that day and reflect on their difficult lives amidst the rubble of their decimated city, as well as the hope they shared through their art. Classes resumed soon after in the window-less concrete shell of the remaining Honkawa school building to provide some sense of normalcy. The film features recently found archival footage that shows what life was like in the weeks and months after the bomb fell and how Hiroshima gradually recovered. The rediscovered drawings were restored by members of the All Souls Church, who several years later embarked on an emotional journey to Japan to exhibit the artwork at the Honkawa school and reunite the surviving artists for the first time with the drawings they created as children. The artists and church members reflect on the lessons that resulted from a compassionate exchange nearly 70 years ago between American and Japanese children following a bitter and devastating World War.
Summer of the Bomb - American History Streaming Video Database A drama-documentary examining why America felt it necessary to use Atomic weapons on Hiroshima and Nagasaki at the end of World War II, and what other options were open to them, using diaries, manuscripts and archive footage.