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David Charles “Nuclear Boy Scout” Hahn

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David Charles “Nuclear Boy Scout” Hahn Veteran

Birth
Royal Oak, Oakland County, Michigan, USA
Death
27 Sep 2016 (aged 39)
Shelby Township, Macomb County, Michigan, USA
Burial
Holly, Oakland County, Michigan, USA Add to Map
Plot
SECTION 13 SITE 119
Memorial ID
View Source
The "Nuclear Boy Scout", was an American who attempted to build a homemade breeder nuclear reactor in 1994, at age 17. A Scout in the Boy Scouts of America, Hahn conducted his experiments in secret in a backyard shed at his mother's house in Commerce Township, Michigan. While his reactor never reached critical mass, Hahn attracted the attention of local police when he was stopped on another matter and they found material in his vehicle that troubled them and he warned that it was radioactive. His mother's property was cleaned up by the Environmental Protection Agency ten months later as a Superfund cleanup site. Hahn attained Eagle Scout rank shortly after his lab was dismantled.

While the incident was not widely publicized initially, it became better known following a 1998 Harper's article by journalist Ken Silverstein. Hahn was also the subject of Silverstein's 2004 book, The Radioactive Boy Scout
The "Nuclear Boy Scout", was an American who attempted to build a homemade breeder nuclear reactor in 1994, at age 17. A Scout in the Boy Scouts of America, Hahn conducted his experiments in secret in a backyard shed at his mother's house in Commerce Township, Michigan. While his reactor never reached critical mass, Hahn attracted the attention of local police when he was stopped on another matter and they found material in his vehicle that troubled them and he warned that it was radioactive. His mother's property was cleaned up by the Environmental Protection Agency ten months later as a Superfund cleanup site. Hahn attained Eagle Scout rank shortly after his lab was dismantled.

While the incident was not widely publicized initially, it became better known following a 1998 Harper's article by journalist Ken Silverstein. Hahn was also the subject of Silverstein's 2004 book, The Radioactive Boy Scout

Inscription

LCPL US MARINE CORPS
SN US NAVY
PERSIAN GULF


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  • Created by: Ion Hunter
  • Added: Oct 28, 2016
  • Find a Grave Memorial ID:
  • Find a Grave, database and images (https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/171937685/david_charles-hahn: accessed ), memorial page for David Charles “Nuclear Boy Scout” Hahn (30 Oct 1976–27 Sep 2016), Find a Grave Memorial ID 171937685, citing Great Lakes National Cemetery, Holly, Oakland County, Michigan, USA; Maintained by Ion Hunter (contributor 49135950).