Hanford, Washington

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Main street in Hanford, 1915

Hanford High School, 1925

Service station in Hanford, 1930

Hanford was a small agricultural community in Benton County, Washington. It was evacuated in 1943 along with the town of White Bluffs in order to make room for the nuclear production facility known as the Hanford Site. The town was located in what is now the "100F" sector of the site.

The original town was settled in 1907 on land bought by the local power and water utility. In 1913, the town had a spur railroad link to the transcontinental Chicago, Milwaukee and St. Paul Railroad. By 1925 the town was booming thanks to high agricultural demand, and it boasted a hotel, bank, and its own elementary and high schools.

The town was condemned by the federal government to make way for the Hanford site. All town buildings were destroyed with the exception of the high school. The school still stands today, marred by age as well as its use in SWAT practice, and can be seen from the Hanford tour bus operated by the U.S. government.