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Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission
Bureau of Archives and History
Pennsylvania State Archives

MG-471

HAROLD AND LUCINDA DENTON PAPERS

Series Descriptions


General Correspondence,
1979-1984.
(2 boxes)

{series #471.1}

Arranged alphabetically by first letter of correspondent's surname and thereunder arranged chronologically by date of correspondence.

Correspondence received by Harold and Lucinda Denton relating to the accident at Three Mile Island. Consists primarily of letters and cards from the general public expressing their views on the accident and Denton's handling of it, invitations and acknowledgements for speaking engagements, and letters from strangers and acquaintances concerning travel and leisure activities during the Dentons' stay in central Pennsylvania. Many of the letters express gratitude for Denton's handling of the crisis, though some correspondents sought answers to questions or criticized the public health hazards posed by nuclear power plants.

Official Correspondence,
1978-1981.
(1 folder)

{series #471.2}

Arranged chronologically.

Official correspondence sent or received by Harold Denton concerning the accident at Three Mile Island and its aftermath. Correspondents include D. F. Bunch, Chief of the Program Support Branch of the Nuclear Regulatory Commission; Ben Rush, Executive Director of the Energy Research Institute; Richard Pontz of the Fund-Raising Counsel for Philanthropic Institutions; Fred Young of The Hearst Corporation; F. Marshall Rock, Jr., Director of the Pennsylvania House Select Committee; Raymond Reedy, Mayor of Lititz; and Peter H. Kostmayer of the United States House of Representatives. Also present are two White House press releases dated September 9, 1980 designating Harold Denton a "Distinguished Execitive" for outstanding performance in handling the Three Mile Island accident. Finally, there are several copies to Harold Denton of correspondence passing between others.

Reports,
1979-1981.
(5 volumes and 1 folder)

{series #471.3}

Arranged chronologically.

Reports issued by the U. S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission and the Department of Energy in the wake of the Three Mile Island accident.

* "Three Mile Island Telephone Survey: Preliminary Report on Procedures and Findings," by Dr. Cynthia Bullock Flynn of the University of Kansas and Social Impact, Inc. for the U. S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission as part of Post Licensing Studies of the Impacts of Nuclear Power Stations, September 5, 1979.

* Crisis Contained, The Department of Energy at Three Mile Island, A History, prepared by Philip L. Cantelon and Robert C. Williams for the U. S. Department of Energy, December, 1980.

* Three Mile Island, A Report to the Commissioners and to the Public by Mitchell Rogovin and George T. Frampton, Jr., Director and Deputy Director respectively of the Nuclear Regulatory Commission Special Inquiry Group, Vol. 1, 1980.

* Executive Summary of the Working Conference on Advanced Electrotechnology Applications to Nuclear Power Plants sponsored by the Nuclear Regulatory Commission and the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers that was held in Washington, D.C., January 15-17, 1980.

* U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission 1979 Annual Report.

* U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission 1981 Annual Report.

Commencement Addresses and Related Materials,
1979
(2 folders)

{series #471.4}
Grouped by school and arranged thereunder chronologically.
Transcripts of speeches, letters of invitation and acceptance, commencement programs, and related materials.

* Commencement materials and transcript of the May 20, 1979 commencement address entitled "Energy, Anergy, and Ethics" that Dr. Denton delivered at Lebanon Valley College.

* Commencement program and correspondence arranging for Dr. Denton to deliver the commencement address at Gettysburg College on June 3, 1979.

* Commencement programs and letters of invitation and acceptance arranging for Dr. Denton to deliver the commencement address at the Pennsylvania State University Capitol Campus on June 7, 1979.

Newspaper and Magazine Articles and Newsletters,
1979-1999.
(3 folders)

{series # 471.5}

Grouped chronologically.

Copies of newspaper and magazine articles concerning the accident at Three Mile Island and newsletters issued by various advocacy organizations.

* A copy of an article by Cyril L. Colmar entitled "Risk: A Pragmatic De Minimis Approach" that appeared in the January 26, 1979 issue of Science, official journal of the American Association for the Advancement of Science.

* A copy of article entitled Chronology of Events at Three Mile Island" in the April 4, 1979 issue of THE NEWS, Mexico City.

* A copy of article entitled "Lawsuits Begin: A Burden of Proof" in April 8, 1979 issue of the Philadelphia Inquirer.

* A copy of the April 16, 1979 issue of the Harrisburg Patriot News with lead article entitled "The Agony of the Atom" by Staff Writer Pat Carroll.

* A Copy of a May 1, 1979 newsletter entitled Access to Energy, A Pro-Science, Pro-Technology, Pro-Free Enterprise Monthly Newsletter published in Boulder, Colorado.

* A photocopy of an article by Mike Gray entitled "What Really Happened at Three Mile Island" that appeared in the May 17, 1979 issue of Rolling Stone.

* A Copy of newspaper entitled Energy News Digest of Nuclear Hazards versus Alternative Energies dated February 28, 1980 published by the Energy Awareness Center of Woodstock, New York.

* A Copy of a newspaper dated July, 1980 entitled TMI Today that was published by the Three Mile Island Nuclear Power Station.

* A copy of the December 6, 1983 newsletter entitled The Energy Daily published in Washington, D. C.

* Media Update: A Summary of the Important Newspaper Articles Regarding Three Mile Island for the week of April 6, 1989.

*A copy of article entitled "TMI Ten Years Later, Still a Center of Nuclear Debate" in the March 20, 1989 issue of USA Today.

*Copy of an article entitled "TMI: It Touched the Way We Lived" in March 24, 1989 issue of Lancaster Intelligencer Journal.

* "Three Mile Island: 10 Years After," Centre Daily Times, March 26, 1989.

Energy Policy Forum Papers,
1981
(1 folder)

{series #471.6}

Two copies of an Energy Policy Forum paper entitled "Nuclear Power: Epilogue or Prologue?" Denton delivered at the Conference on Nuclear Energy and the Media on June 28, 1981.

Miscellaneous,
[c. 1978-1979]
(2 folders)

{series #471.7}

Unarranged.

A collection of mostly undated items such as brochures for historic and tourist sites, restaurants, and special events in the area near Three Mile Island. The second folder contains random and mostly undated papers and scraps of paper, some of which contain calculations regarding iodine levels and apparent release rates.

Magazines,
1979-1999
(1 box)

{series #471.8}

Grouped by tyoe and arranged thereunder chronologically by date of issue.

* Three issues of People Magazine, two of which are dated April 23, 1979 and one dated March 24, 1980, featuring articles on Harold Denton.

* A copy of the February 1980 issue of Susquehanna Magazine containing a biographical sketch on Harold Denton.

* Life Magazine, May 1979 containing an article entitled "Crisis in the World of Nuclear Power: After Three Mile Island, Big Questions About Safety and the Future."

* The New Yorker, October 19, 1981 containing an article entitled "A Reporter at Large, Nuclear Waste" by Fred C. Shapiro.

* Newsweek, June 27, 1983 containing article entitled "The Lessons Learned at Three Mile Island" by Eileen Keerdoja, Sylvester Monroe and Mary Lord.

* Atari Connection, Fall 1983 containing an article entitled "Nuclear Troubleshooter Stays Sharp with Scram: Video Game Imitates Life" by Paul Cohen.

* Nuclear News, A Publication of the American Nuclear Society, March 1985 containing an article entitled "The Nuclear Construction Predicament - Part 1: A Regulator Responds to an Interview with the NRC's Harold Denton" by John Graham.

* Three copies of George Magazine, March 1999 containing an article entitled "Nightmare at Three Mile Island" by Harold Denton.

* U.S. News and World Report, March 29, 1999 containing an article entitled "When the World Stopped, Twenty Years After the Three Mile Island Accident the Debate Still Rages.

Newsprint Scrapbooks,
March 29, 1979 - March, 1980.
(1 carton)

{series #471.9}

Arranged chronologically by date of news article.

Three scrapbooks compiled by Harold and Lucinda Denton containing newspaper and magazine articles related to the Three Mile Island accident.

Mounted News Clippings,
1979 & undated.
(1 folder)

{series #471.10}

Arranged chronologically.

Contemporary news clippings concerning the Three Mile Island accident mounted on white sheets of paper. The newspapers from which the clippings were taken include The State of Columbia, South Carolina, Harrisburg Evening News, Lancaster New Era, Lititz Record Express, Harrisburg Sunday Patriot News, Rocky Mountain, North Carolina Telegram, The Detroit News, The Miami Herald, The Plain Dealer, The Kansas City Times, Washington Post and Washington Star.

Photocopies of News Clippings,
undated.
(1 folder)

{series #471.11}

Original arrangement.

Photocopies of contemporary newspaper articles concerning the Three Mile Island accident. Most of the articles are dated April and May, 1979 and are from newspapers all over the United States.

TMI Memorabilia,
undated.
(1 folder)

{series #471.12}

Unarranged.

Bumper stickers and miscellaneous advertising for purchasing bumper stickers, Three Mile Island Creamy Mushroom Dressing, collector's edition TMI lamps, and tours of the TMI countryside. Also present is an invitation to the Denton family to attend an evening treasure hunt at Hersheypark on May 9, 1980.

Photograph and ID Cards,
1979.
(1 folder)

{series #471.13}

No arrangement.

A publicity photograph of Harold Denton, his Atomic Energy Commission identification badge, and the Emergency Movement Instruction card issued to him when he was first dispatched to the accident site.

Video and Audio Tapes,
1999.
(1 box)

{series #471.14}

Arranged chronologically.

Video tapes of Pennsylvania Cable News Network interviews of the 20th Anniversary Press Conference of Harold Denton held on March 25, 1999 and of related PCN broadcasts entitled "Remembering Three Mile Island," "Three Mile Island and Media Relations" and "Three Mile Island Call-in Program." Also present is a video tape for a WITF program on Three Mile Island and original audio tapes of Historian Ken Wolensky's interviews with Harold Denton and retired General Public Utilities President Robert Long that were conducted on March 25 and March 26, 1999 respecively. Transcripts are present for the latter two interviews.



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