Rocky Flats Cold War Museum

Background Statement

Background: The site for the Rocky Flats Nuclear Weapons Plant, located in northern Jefferson County about 16 miles northwest of downtown Denver, was selected in 1951. The secret, high security plant produced cores for nuclear weapons for the nation's defense from about 1952-1989. A 1992 decision changed the plant's mission from production to cleanup and closure.

Superfund cleanup: About 800 structures and buildings at the nuclear site were torn down and decontaminated, nuclear materials were shipped to other sites, radioactive wastes were disposed and soil was remediated as part of the 10-year, $7 billion Superfund cleanup between 1995 and 2005. Groundwater treatment systems were installed and monitoring is ongoing.

Nonprofit organized: Interested citizens, including former Rocky Flats workers, government representatives and university professors, began meeting in the late1990s to preserve the history of the Rocky Flats Plant and to save artifacts before the buildings on the site were demolished and their contents all removed as part of the Superfund cleanup. They formed a board, which incorporated in July 2001 as a 501(c) 3 organization to develop the museum to document the historical, social, environmental and scientific aspects of Rocky Flats. The board is committed to telling all sides of the complex, often tumultuous history.

Feasibility: Early on, the board secured a planning grant from Kaiser-Hill, which operated the plant for the U.S. Department of Energy during the cleanup. Some of the funding was used for a feasibility study in 2003, which concluded that a museum would be economically viable. It suggested that the museum could work with other scientific and technology centers from Golden to Boulder as part of a "Technology Trail" and jointly market themselves.

Oral histories: A State Historical Fund grant was obtained in 2004 for videotaping and transcribing 90+ oral histories of former workers, activists, regulators and community and political leaders. The collection now has over 150 oral histories which are online via the Boulder Public Library's website, www.boulderlibrary.org/oralhistory.

Other accomplishments: A website was created and board members hosted an October 2006 teepee event for activists. A periodic online museum newsletter, Weapons to Wildlife, was begun in 2007. In late 2007, Sen. Allard helped the museum secure a $492,000 federal appropriation for development of the museum. In January 2009, volunteers moved the many artifacts collected into an Arvada warehouse and volunteers worked with a museum consultant to develop a database describing the collection. The consultant became a part-time project manager in mid-2011 and executive director in January 2013. Board members continue to make presentations about Rocky Flats to community and school groups.

Building & exhibit planning: The board leased a building in Olde Town Arvada in 2011 and contracted with Exhibit Design Associates of Estes Park to meet with stakeholders and plan exhibits. Fundraising efforts to complete the exhibit planning, construction and installation are ongoing. A temporary atomic photography exhibit was opened Sept. 28 and ran through Dec. 15, 2012. The Rocky Flats Stewardship Council and a number of area cities and counties have passed resolutions supporting this museum. In June 2013 the museum relocated to its current address. The board is actively seeking a permanent location and and developing partnerships with other organizations in the Denver metro area. 2-4-13