This year, 2020, both the Town of Deep River and the Chalk River Laboratories (CRL) are celebrating 75th anniversaries. Many events are planned to celebrate the town’s creation in 1945. To commemorate the September 5, 1945 start-up of the ZEEP (Zero Energy Experimental Pile) reactor at CRL, the Society for the Preservation of Canada’s Nuclear Heritage Inc (SPCNHI) has produced a commemorative postage stamp.
ZEEP was the first reactor in the world outside of the USA to go into operation. An invitation was made to the nuclear and local communities last July to provide a suitable design for a stamp and two recent arrivals at CNL from Alberta, Herbert Mueller and Abra O’Leary, took on the challenge. Their design is based on a photo of the top of ZEEP from the mid 1950’s with two researchers, Bill Dickerson and Dave Hone, making adjustments to the fuel strings. Sourena Golesorkhi provided the physics calculations seen in the background. The stamps are recognized by Canada Post as official Canadian “permanent stamps” and can be used as such for domestic letters. In addition to the stamps, Morgan Brown has designed a companion commemorative ZEEP envelope.
Both the stamp, in booklets of twelve (for $25), and the envelope with the commemorative stamp (for $5), are available to the public. They will be on sale at the SPCNHI display at Mackenzie Community School during the Deep River Players’ performances of The Sound of Neutrons, at other events throughout the year, or by contacting Abra O’Leary directly at abraoleary@gmail.com or 403-707-7434. Mail orders should be addressed to SPCNHI, PO Box 441, Deep River ON, K0J 1P0.