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<p>[QUOTE=&quot;NSP, post: 6603593, member: 74849&quot;]<b>Babcock &amp; Wilcox Medal</b></p><p><br /></p><p>It’s been awhile since I’ve purchased a piece&nbsp; for my “Nuclear Navy” collection, but this Babcock &amp; Wilcox medal arrived this weekend and is now the newest addition to the group. This medal appears to be made of brass, and is approximately 38 millimeters in diameter. The medal is definitely not in perfect condition, since it exhibits wear and a couple of rim nicks, suggesting that this may have been a Babcock &amp; Wilcox employee’s pocket piece.</p><p><br /></p><p>[ATTACH=full]1266471[/ATTACH]</p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p>[ATTACH=full]1266474[/ATTACH]</p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p>Babcock &amp; Wilcox (B&amp;W) was founded in 1867 for the purpose of making boilers. B&amp;W made boilers for a wide variety of applications, including power generation, locomotives, and naval propulsion. B&amp;W proved to be incredibly proficient boilermakers, and during World War II, B&amp;W manufactured over 4,000 boilers to support the US Navy and Merchant Marine.</p><p><br /></p><p>Since B&amp;W wielded such dominance over the boiler market, it shouldn’t be much of a surprise that they played a significant role in the development of nuclear power. In 1953, B&amp;W established an Atomic Energy Division in Barberton, Ohio to consolidate their work in the nuclear power industry. In the 1950s, B&amp;W supplied components for the USS Nautilus, the very first nuclear powered vessel.</p><p><br /></p><p>In May 1956, B&amp;W opened a nuclear facilities plant in Lynchburg, Virginia. According to B&amp;W’s website, this facility was dedicated to the fabrication of nuclear fuel elements. This medal was evidently commissioned to commemorate the opening of the Lynchburg location. The obverse features the traditional B&amp;W aeolipile logo with orbiting electrons superimposed over it, creating an image reminiscent of Niels Bohr’s model of the atom. The reverse features an image of a building at the new Lynchburg facility.</p><p><br /></p><p>B&amp;W’s involvement in nuclear power definitely did not end with the USS Nautilus, and the company continued to be involved in the commercial nuclear and naval nuclear industries. In fact, B&amp;W got to be part of some other nuclear power “firsts.” B&amp;W manufactured components for the Shippingport Atomic Power Station, the first civilian nuclear power plant, and designed and built the nuclear reactor for the NS Savannah, the first nuclear powered commercial ship.</p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p>[ATTACH=full]1266472[/ATTACH]</p><p><br /></p><p>Component for Shippingport Atomic Power Station (Credit: Babcock &amp; Wilcox).</p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p>[ATTACH=full]1266473[/ATTACH]</p><p><br /></p><p>NS Savannah, the first nuclear powered commercial ship (Credit: Wikipedia).[/QUOTE]</p><p><br /></p>

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