ORNL FCU 75 Years

Nineteen sixty-one was an eventful year by any measure. The Berlin Wall sprang up in Europe, and the Soviets unleashed a fifty-seven-megaton hydrogen bomb, the largest artificial explosion in human history. But in Tennessee, it was a time of calm and prodigious growth. The lab began a slow pivot toward a “balanced laboratory” approach focused on environmental, health, and social initiatives that would solidly position it for years to come. At ORNL Employees Federal Credit Union, assets had doubled to $2.2 million. That year, the credit union relocated its office outside the lab, moving from the X-10 campus to the second floor of Cheyenne Hall at the corner of Tyrone and Tyndale Roads (currently the site of the Cheyenne Ambulatory Center).

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In 1962, American confidence surged as astronaut John Glenn orbited the Earth and President Kennedy prevailed against Soviet Premier Nikita Khrushchev in the Cuban Missile Crisis. With its staff now at five full-time workers, ORNL Employees Federal Credit Union completed a major efficiency effort by transferring the last of its member files to microfilm to simplify storage. That year, its new record highs included a 5.25 percent dividend, a membership of 3,563, and total shares of $2.1 million.

Originally constructed in 1944, the outdoor pool (shown here in 1962) continues to serve Oak Ridge residents. The pool is spring-water fed and considered one of the largest in the nation. In 2022, the Tennessee Historical Commission erected a historical marker to commemorate the site, with funding for the marker provided by ORNL FCU. (US Department of Energy)

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