Edgewood Arsenal experiments
Encyclopedia
The Edgewood Arsenal experiments (also known as Project 112
) are said to be related to or part of CIA mind-control
programs after World War II
, such as MKULTRA. Journalist Linda Hunt, citing records from the U.S. National Archives, revealed that eight German scientists worked at Edgewood, under Project Paperclip: see "Secret Agenda: the United States Government, Nazi Scientists and Project Paperclip" St. Martin's Press, 1991; ABC PrimeTime Live, Operation Paperclip, 1991, and hearings before the House Judiciary Committee, 1991. The experiments were performed at the Edgewood Arsenal, northeast of Baltimore, Maryland, and involved the use of hallucinogens such LSD
, THC
, and BZ
, in addition to biological and chemical agents. Experiments on human subjects utilizing such agents goes back to at least World War I. In the mid-1970s, in the wake of many health claims made from exposure to such agents, including psychotropic and hallucinogenic drugs administered in later experiments, the U.S. Congress began investigations of misuse of such experiments, and inadequate informed consent
given by the soldiers and civilians involved.
The Edgewood experiments took place from approximately 1952 to 1974 at the Bio Medical Laboratory, which is now known as the U. S. Army Medical Research Institute of Chemical Defense. Each volunteer would spend the weekend on-site. They would perform tests and procedures (math, navigation, following orders, memory and interview) while sober. Each volunteer would then be dosed by a scientist and perform the same tests. These tests occurred in the building/hospital under the care of doctors and nurses. At times, the tests would be taken outside to study the effects while in the field. For example the volunteer would have to guard a check point, while under the influence, to see what effects certain drugs had on the patient.
A pamphlet produced by the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, Health Effects from Chemical, Biological, and Radiological Weapons (Oct. 2003), discusses the Edgewood Arsenal Experiments in some detail:
The report cites three earlier studies for its data, namely;
The Veterans Affairs pamphlet, written to aid government clinicians in understanding the presence of various symptoms in presenting patients at their clinics and hospitals, also discusses the use of psychoactive drug
s on human subjects:
The Vanderbilt University
Television News Archive has two videos about the experiments, both from a July 1975 NBC Evening News segment. In one, NBC newsman John Chancellor
reported on how Norman Augustine, then-acting Secretary of Army, ordered a probe of Army use of LSD in soldier and civilian experiments. In a separate piece, by reporter Tom Pettit
, Major General Lloyd Fellenz, from Edgewood Arsenal, explains how the experiments there were about searching for humane weapons, adding that the use of LSD was unacceptable.
A Washington Post article, dated July 23, 1975, by Bill Richards ("6,940 Took Drugs") reported that a top civilian drug researcher for the Army said a total of 6,940 servicemen had been involved in Army chemical and drug experiments, and that, furthermore, the tests were proceeding at Edgewood Arsenal as of the date of the article. A Government Accounting Office May 2004 report, Chemical and Biological Defense (p.24), states that there were even more victims of the experimental program, a number that may never be completely known:
GAO explains at the outset of their report the rationale for the study:
Finally, it appears there were similar experiments conducted at the UK Ministry of Defence establishment at Porton Down
, Wiltshire, England, into at least the 1970s. See: Liddell Hart Centre for Military Archives at King's College London.
Project 112
Project 112 was a biological and chemical weapons experimentation project conducted by the US Army from 1962 to 1973. The project started under John F. Kennedy's administration, and was authorized by his Secretary of Defense Robert McNamara, as part of a total review of the US military. The name...
) are said to be related to or part of CIA mind-control
Mind control
Mind control refers to a process in which a group or individual "systematically uses unethically manipulative methods to persuade others to conform to the wishes of the manipulator, often to the detriment of the person being manipulated"...
programs after World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
, such as MKULTRA. Journalist Linda Hunt, citing records from the U.S. National Archives, revealed that eight German scientists worked at Edgewood, under Project Paperclip: see "Secret Agenda: the United States Government, Nazi Scientists and Project Paperclip" St. Martin's Press, 1991; ABC PrimeTime Live, Operation Paperclip, 1991, and hearings before the House Judiciary Committee, 1991. The experiments were performed at the Edgewood Arsenal, northeast of Baltimore, Maryland, and involved the use of hallucinogens such LSD
LSD
Lysergic acid diethylamide, abbreviated LSD or LSD-25, also known as lysergide and colloquially as acid, is a semisynthetic psychedelic drug of the ergoline family, well known for its psychological effects which can include altered thinking processes, closed and open eye visuals, synaesthesia, an...
, THC
THC
THC commonly refers to tetrahydrocannabinol, the main active chemical compound in Cannabis.THC may also refer to:* Tan Holdings Corporation...
, and BZ
3-Quinuclidinyl benzilate
3-quinuclidinyl benzilate , IUPAC name 1-azabicyclo[2.2.2]Oct-3-yl α-hydroxy-α-phenylbenzeneacetate, is an odorless military incapacitating agent. Its NATO code is BZ...
, in addition to biological and chemical agents. Experiments on human subjects utilizing such agents goes back to at least World War I. In the mid-1970s, in the wake of many health claims made from exposure to such agents, including psychotropic and hallucinogenic drugs administered in later experiments, the U.S. Congress began investigations of misuse of such experiments, and inadequate informed consent
Informed consent
Informed consent is a phrase often used in law to indicate that the consent a person gives meets certain minimum standards. As a literal matter, in the absence of fraud, it is redundant. An informed consent can be said to have been given based upon a clear appreciation and understanding of the...
given by the soldiers and civilians involved.
The Edgewood experiments took place from approximately 1952 to 1974 at the Bio Medical Laboratory, which is now known as the U. S. Army Medical Research Institute of Chemical Defense. Each volunteer would spend the weekend on-site. They would perform tests and procedures (math, navigation, following orders, memory and interview) while sober. Each volunteer would then be dosed by a scientist and perform the same tests. These tests occurred in the building/hospital under the care of doctors and nurses. At times, the tests would be taken outside to study the effects while in the field. For example the volunteer would have to guard a check point, while under the influence, to see what effects certain drugs had on the patient.
A pamphlet produced by the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, Health Effects from Chemical, Biological, and Radiological Weapons (Oct. 2003), discusses the Edgewood Arsenal Experiments in some detail:
Renewed interest led to renewed human testing by the Department of Defense (DoD), although ultimately on a much smaller scale. Thus, between 1950 and 1975, about 6,720 soldiers took part in experiments involving exposures to 254 different chemicals, conducted at U.S. Army Laboratories at Edgewood Arsenal, MD (NRC 1982, NRC 1984, NAS 1993). Congressional hearings into these experiments in 1974 and 1975 resulted in disclosures, notification of subjects as to the nature of their chemical exposures, and ultimately to compensation for a few families of subjects who had died during the experiments (NAS 3).
These experiments were conducted primarily to learn how various agents
would affect humans (NRC 1982). Other agencies including the CIA and the
Special Operations Division of the Department of the Army were also
reportedly involved in these studies (NAS 1993). Only a small number of all
the experiments done during this period involved mustard agents or
LewisiteLewisiteLewisite is an organoarsenic compound, specifically an arsine. It was once manufactured in the U.S. and Japan as a chemical weapon, acting as a vesicant and lung irritant...
. Records indicate that between 1955 and 1965, of the 6,720 soldiers
tested, only 147 human subjects underwent exposure to mustard agent at Edgewood (NRC 1982).
According to the 1984 NRC review, human experiments at DoD's Edgewood
Arsenal involved about 1,500 subjects who were experimentally exposed to irritant and blister agents including:
- lachrymatory agents, e.g., CN
CN gasPhenacyl chloride is a substituted acetophenone. It is a useful building block in organic chemistry. Apart from that, it has been historically used as a riot control agent, where it is designated CN.-Preparation:...
;- riot control agents, e.g., CS
CS gas2-chlorobenzalmalononitrile is the defining component of a "tear gas" commonly referred to as CS gas, which is used as a riot control agent...
;- chloropicrin
ChloropicrinChloropicrin, also known as PS, is a chemical compound with the structural formula Cl3CNO2. This colourless highly toxic liquid was once used in chemical warfare and is currently used as a fumigant and nematocide.-History:...
(PS);- Diphenylaminochlorarsine
AdamsiteAdamsite or DM is an organic compound; technically, an arsenical diphenylaminechlorarsine, that can be used as a riot control agent. DM belongs to the group of chemical warfare agents known as vomiting agents or sneeze gases...
(DM, Adamsite);- other ocular and respiratory irritants; and
- mustard agents.
For example, from 1958 to 1973 at least 1,366 human subjects underwent
experimental exposure specifically with the riot-control agent CS at
Edgewood Arsenal (NRC 1984). Of those involved in the experiments:
- 1,073 subjects were exposed to aerosolized CS;
- 180 subjects were exposed dermally;
- 82 subjects had both skin applications and aerosol exposures;
and finally
- 31 subjects experienced ocular exposure via direct CS application to their eyes.
Most of these experiments involved tests of protective equipment and of
subjects' ability to perform military tasks during exposure.
The report cites three earlier studies for its data, namely;
- Veterans at Risk: Health Effects of Mustard Gas and Lewisite (March 2005)
- Possible Long-Term Health Effects of Short-Term Exposure to Chemical Agents, Vol. 1.
- Possible Long-Term Health Effects of Short-Term Exposure To Chemical Agents, Vol. 2.
The Veterans Affairs pamphlet, written to aid government clinicians in understanding the presence of various symptoms in presenting patients at their clinics and hospitals, also discusses the use of psychoactive drug
Psychoactive drug
A psychoactive drug, psychopharmaceutical, or psychotropic is a chemical substance that crosses the blood–brain barrier and acts primarily upon the central nervous system where it affects brain function, resulting in changes in perception, mood, consciousness, cognition, and behavior...
s on human subjects:
About 260 subjects were experimentally exposed to various psychochemicals including phencyclidine (PCP), and 10 related synthetic analogs of the active ingredient of cannabis (NRC 1984). The NRC report also mentions human experiments involving exposure of 741 soldiers to LSD (NRC 1984).
The Vanderbilt University
Vanderbilt University
Vanderbilt University is a private research university located in Nashville, Tennessee, United States. Founded in 1873, the university is named for shipping and rail magnate "Commodore" Cornelius Vanderbilt, who provided Vanderbilt its initial $1 million endowment despite having never been to the...
Television News Archive has two videos about the experiments, both from a July 1975 NBC Evening News segment. In one, NBC newsman John Chancellor
John Chancellor
John William Chancellor was a well-known American journalist who spent most of his career with NBC News...
reported on how Norman Augustine, then-acting Secretary of Army, ordered a probe of Army use of LSD in soldier and civilian experiments. In a separate piece, by reporter Tom Pettit
Tom Pettit
William Thomas "Tom" Pettit was a television news correspondent for NBC from the 1960s through 1995...
, Major General Lloyd Fellenz, from Edgewood Arsenal, explains how the experiments there were about searching for humane weapons, adding that the use of LSD was unacceptable.
A Washington Post article, dated July 23, 1975, by Bill Richards ("6,940 Took Drugs") reported that a top civilian drug researcher for the Army said a total of 6,940 servicemen had been involved in Army chemical and drug experiments, and that, furthermore, the tests were proceeding at Edgewood Arsenal as of the date of the article. A Government Accounting Office May 2004 report, Chemical and Biological Defense (p.24), states that there were even more victims of the experimental program, a number that may never be completely known:
We also reported that the Army Chemical Corps conducted a classified medical research program for developing incapacitating agents. This program involved testing nerve agents, nerve agent antidotes, psycho chemicals, and irritants. The chemicals were given to volunteer service members at Edgewood Arsenal, Maryland; Dugway Proving Ground, Utah; and Forts Benning, Bragg, and McClellan. In total, Army documents identified 7,120 Army and Air Force personnel who participated in these tests.15 Further, GAO concluded that precise information on the scope and the magnitude of tests involving human subjects was not available, and the exact number of human subjects might never be known.
GAO explains at the outset of their report the rationale for the study:
In the 1962-74 time period, the Department of Defense (DOD) conducted a classified chemical and biological warfare test program —- Project 112 —- that might have exposed service members and civilian personnel to chemical or biological agents. In 2000 the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) began obtaining information from DOD about the program. Concerned that veterans and others might have health problems from exposure during Project 112 and similar DOD tests, Congress required DOD in the 2003 Defense Authorization Act to identify Project 112 tests and personnel potentially exposed—service members and the number of civilian personnel—and other chemical and biological tests that might have exposed service members.
Finally, it appears there were similar experiments conducted at the UK Ministry of Defence establishment at Porton Down
Porton Down
Porton Down is a United Kingdom government and military science park. It is situated slightly northeast of Porton near Salisbury in Wiltshire, England. To the northwest lies the MoD Boscombe Down test range facility which is operated by QinetiQ...
, Wiltshire, England, into at least the 1970s. See: Liddell Hart Centre for Military Archives at King's College London.
See also
- Edgewood Chemical Biological Center
- Human experimentation in the United StatesHuman experimentation in the United StatesThere have been numerous experiments performed on human test subjects in the United States that have been considered unethical, and were often performed illegally, without the knowledge, consent, or informed consent of the test subjects....
- Swords to PlowsharesSwords to PlowsharesSwords to Plowshares is a veterans organization that provides job training, housing, and benefits advocacy to low income and homeless U.S. military veterans. Swords to Plowshares also operates a drop-in center for veterans requiring emergency services, and engages in policy work...