This 1” button has bold initials at the top “C.E.W.” with text below “Oak Ridge/Tenn.” Button carries symbols in blue and red which apparently relate to radiation or the enrichment of Uranium-235. Button reverse has oxidation a little heavier than usual, but not severe, and a partial union bug can be seen. The celluloid part of the button is Exc. and essentially Mint. This is the only example we’ve seen. Here in condensed form is the story behind the button – in 1939 Albert Einstein and others warned FDR that Hitler could possibly construct a revolutionary weapon using atomic fission. After Pearl Harbor, FDR took the warning seriously and what became known as the “Manhattan Project” was pursued with urgency. This brought Brigadier General Leslie Groves to East Tennessee in September 1942. It was his job to head the project and supervise the location, planning and construction of whatever facilities were needed to construct an atomic bomb prior to the Germans. Because the remote area was sparsely populated and because the TVA could supply vast amounts of electricity, land acquisition began and the town “Oak Ridge” created by the project was 8 miles from Clinton, the seat of Anderson County which gave its name to the ambiguously-titled plant site Clinton Engineering Works (C.E.W. as appearing on the button). Secrecy and security were high priorities regarding all plant operations and personnel. By 1945 the population of Oak Ridge had peaked at 75,000. Likely this button dates from just after the end of the war when secrecy was no longer an issue. Only example we’ve seen. See following related A-Bomb item.