James Edward "Ed" Westcott, the only photographer allowed to document the Manhattan Project in Oak Ridge, has died.

Oak Ridge Heritage and Preservation Association secretary Barbara “Bobbie” Martin confirmed Westcott’s death, saying his family members called to inform her. Westcott died peacefully around 7 a.m. Friday, she said.

Funeral arrangements have not yet been announced.

“Ed was the most beloved individual and was so kind and such an understanding person," she said.

Nearly every book, magazine and newspaper article about the Manhattan Project includes the photography of Westcott, according to Oak Ridge historian Ray Smith, also Westcott's friend.

Westcott amassed more than 15,000 photos of Manhattan Project work by the time he was 23. Many of the negatives are held in the National Archives in Washington, D.C., according to Smith.

He was nominated for the Presidential Medal of Freedom.

More:Ed Westcott, who documented the Manhattan Project, snubbed for presidential honor

'Secret City' a secret no longer

"The story of the Manhattan Project would be lost to history without the work of Oak Ridge’s own renowned photographer Ed Westcott. The city has gained international recognition for its work in the top-secret assignment — and continues to solve some of the world’s critical challenges to this day with our innovations — yet none of this would have been as well known without Ed’s photographs helping to seal the Secret City’s rightful place in history and science," Smith wrote in a guest column earlier this year for the News Sentinel.

Westcott turned 97 on Jan. 20.

"Often the images are just taken for granted and Ed is not even mentioned, as they are in the public domain," Smith wrote.

Martin said Westcott made it to the Oak Ridge History Museum’s grand opening last weekend, where the two took a photo, likely his last.

“When he had his stroke somewhere around 2005, he lost his ability to be able to speak, but he still had that tenderness and desire to be with people and tell us what he could. He still shared himself with us,” she said.

Last year, on his 96th birthday, the city of Oak Ridge issued an official proclamation naming Saturday, Jan. 20, 2018, "Ed Westcott Day," an official day of celebration during the city's 75th anniversary.

Westcott is 'my hero'

Smith said Westcott was a good, close friend and "my hero." The two were friends for 30 years, he said.

"Ed was a very giving and kind individual," Smith said. "He was very thoughtful. He never sought recognition for himself. ... He was sharp as a tack and his mind was clear as a bell up to the last time I spoke to him."

More:Without Ed Westcott, the Secret City would have stayed secret

In recent years Smith would print and frame Westcott photos and have him sign them to sell at local Oak Ridge charity auctions. Due to his stroke, Westcott had to sign them left-handed, his non-dominant hand, which took some time, but he always signed them, Smith said.

“They’d always do well in the auctions … we would milk the crowd for a good bit of money,” Smith said, laughing.

Praise rolls in

U.S. Rep. Chuck Fleischmann nominated Westcott for the Presidential Medal of Freedom. Friday, he called the late photographer an American hero.

“Thanks to his brilliant eye and tireless work ethic, generations of Americans have had the opportunity to peek inside the once Secret City of Oak Ridge, learn about the incredible mission that was the Manhattan Project, and gain an understanding of our nation’s history," he said in an emailed statement.

"I am deeply saddened to learn of his passing but incredibly thankful to have known him. Ed was beloved by the East Tennessee community and will be sorely missed, but certainly never forgotten," he continued. "My prayers are with his loved ones during this difficult time.”

Tennessee Lt. Gov. Randy McNally, R-Oak Ridge, said Westcott was "one of us."

"Ed Westcott served our nation and Oak Ridge like few others, documenting our history with accuracy, compassion and an artist's eye," he said in an emailed statement.

"He was a truly great photographer but, most of all, he was one of us," he continued. "Choosing to return to his roots after being summoned to Washington, D.C., he became one of Oak Ridge's most valued citizens and historians. Our hearts go out to his family and all who admired his great work. He will be missed."

Oak Ridge Mayor Warren Gooch said Westcott was Oak Ridge's "champion."

"While we mourn the passing of a great man and dear friend, we are comforted by the fact that we are better people for having known him, and Oak Ridge's contributions to our country and to the world are forever memorialized because of his vision and indomitable spirit," he said in an emailed statement.

History maker

Westcott's son-in law, Don Hunnicutt, told the USA TODAY NETWORK - Tennessee last year that Westcott joined the Army Corps of Engineers as a photographer at 19 and documented the construction of airstrips, dams and Camp Crossville, a World War II-era prisoner of war camp in Cumberland County.

Westcott was the 29th person hired onto the Manhattan Project, according to Hunnicutt. He was given a choice between an assignment in Alaska or in Oak Ridge.

MORE:Oak Ridge celebrates Manhattan Project photographer Ed Westcott's 96th birthday

He picked Oak Ridge, where he made history as the sole person allowed to have a camera on the secret reservation.

"Without Mr. Westcott's iconic photographs, the early history of the secret city of Oak Ridge would be lost to the ages," Gooch said last year. "His photos are recognized as the record of the Manhattan Project and early Oak Ridge."

Far and wide

Westcott's photographs are exhibited at the American Museum of Science and Energy and the Oak Ridge History Museum, as well as the Y-12 History Center in the New Hope Center at the Y-12 National Security Complex.

In 2005, the Ewing Gallery of Art and Architecture at the University of Tennessee in Knoxville had an exhibition of his photos dubbed “Through the Lens of Ed Westcott: A Photographic History of World War II’s Secret City.” Several traveling exhibits of Westcott's work have been featured in the National Archives in Atlanta, the U.S. Space & Rocket Center in Huntsville, Alabama, and throughout America, according to Smith.

In 2005 he published his first book of early photographs of the city in the Oak Ridge edition of the "Images of America" series.

Background

Westcott was born in 1922 in Chattanooga to Jamie and Lucille Westcott. His parents moved the family to Nashville when he was a boy.

He married Esther Seigenthaler, and was married for 56 years until she died in 1996. The couple had five children: Emily, William, James Jr. “Jim,” John and David.

Westcott lived with his daughter, Emily, and son-in-law, Don Hunnicutt. Don Hunnicutt said Friday afternoon that he was an icon but humble.

“He took me when I married his daughter, he took me in as part of the family and treated me like a son,” he said. “He was always willing to lend a hand if you were building something, whatever it might be. He’d go out of his way.”

Funeral service

Visitation for Westcott will be 4-7 p.m. Thursday, April 4, at Martin Funeral Home in Oak Ridge. The burial services will be 11 a.m. Friday, April 5, at Oak Ridge Memorial Park.

News Sentinel staff reporter Brittany Crocker contributed to this story.

COLUMN:Without Ed Westcott, the Secret City would have stayed secret