To contact Abandoned But Not Forgotten please e-mail us at abnfco@gmail.com. Now abandoned, the world's first torpedo factory is crumbling into the sea. Unbeknownst to many Connecticut residents, the small state was home to no less than 12 Nike Missile sites during the Cold War. Granite Nike Missile Base BA-79 Active 1954–1974: Just North of the historic quarrying community of Granite in Baltimore County, Maryland lies a field of abandoned radar towers, military barracks, and other buildings surrounded by chain link fencing and guarded by an empty sentry box. The Middletown site, which was the scene of an accidental missile explosion three years after the 1955 opening, closed in 1963. Old submarine parts have been converted into faux whale fins. In Waukesha, one of the abandoned Nike missile sites is part of a public park and a local group would like it turned into a Cold War Museum. Let me know if you are interested. Underwater Happy Hour w/ the NY Aquarium: SHARKS! As many of our readers will be well aware, Avro Lancaster B.VII NX611 Just Jane is under restoration to airworthy condition with the Lincoln Aviation Heritage Center at former RAF East Kirkby in Lincolnshire, England. © 2021 Atlas Obscura. Although they still run the place (parts of it were briefly used by local vocational colleges), much of it has fallen to ruin. Were the Russians to target Anchorage, they would find the Alaskan population ready for them.Although the site was deactivated in the 1970s, parts of it remain standing to this day. Specifically, I am interested to know whether any sites still exist and are accessible. In its semi-isolation among the fields, D-57 has seemingly fallen prey to the whims of local vandals. An 11/16/19 photo by Paul Freeman of one of 2 massive steel doors protecting the control room adjacent the Granite BA-79 Launch Site's southwest Nike Ajax magazine. Concerns about Missile sites buried deep in the Mid East desert bring back Cold War summer memories of buried missiles site in the sand much closer to home. I live in Riverview Michigan, a old base and fly Rc airplanes at the Newport Michigan site. Researchers are encouraged to review the appropriate finding aids at the National Archives at Chicago for additional records. This was one of several Nike missile sites protecting the Hampton Roads area. Consider supporting our work by becoming a member for as little as $5 a month. Tiles have been torn from the walls. catalina island is in the background, right. Nike Missile Type Key. U.S. Army Nike sites were also operational in South Korea, Japan and were sold to Taiwan. Come with us as we venture inside the silo of an abandoned Cold War missile site! Western Digital MIM-14B Nike Hercules at Nike Missile Site SF-88L, located in the Golden Gate National Recreation Area near San Francisco, is the only Nike launch site in the country that has been restored for public visitation. However, unlike many NIKE sites, which were constructed on previously unused or vacant land, NIKE Missile Battery D-57/58 was constructed on the site of the former Newport Naval Air Station at N. Telegraph and Newport Roads in Monroe County, Michigan. A handful still remain out there, rusting reminders of a time when the entire world teetered on the brink of Armageddon. Summit has since been added to the National Register of Historic Places and hosts guided tours during summer months. Every weekday we compile our most wondrous stories and deliver them straight to you. We have covered abandoned coastal fortresses in Rhode Island, deserted Air Force bases in Massachusetts, and of course the decaying Nike Missile bases in Connecticut. Minimum bid - $1.8million +18 The site … It seems hard to believe now, but the 20th century was marked by a very real belief that the world’s great superpowers would destroy one another in a nuclear holocaust. Leftover traces of the approximately 265 Nike missile bases can still be seen around cities across the United States. The NIKE Battery is also referred to in some government documents as the Carelton NIKE Battery D-58, and in the early 1960's became popularly known as the Monroe NIKE Base. You can even arrange guided tours. What sort of crumbling artifacts line its cracked floors? An abandoned Cold War missile radar site is now home to several mysterious cat statues. Note that Nike Hercules missile elevator had been left in the raised position when the launch site was abandoned, the opposite of what was done with the battery's Nike Ajax launchers. Seen in winter, under a layer of heavy snow, it looks almost magical; a living ghost of a long-gone war. A typical examples was the BA-79 site in Granite.Just beyond the outer suburbs of the city, Granite was home to four launchers, each with a magazine of nuclear-tipped Nike missiles. There were nearly a dozen of these missile launchers in the Seattle area during the mid-20th century, as a precautionary point of attack against Russian missiles and aircrafts. Offer subject to change without notice. For a moment, close your eyes and imagine you’ve been stationed in an area that you’ve been told is the last line of defense against your country’s enemy. Although the housing used by personnel has since been turned into homes for the local population, the rest of the base has fallen into ruin. The Capital takes a look at the abandoned Nike missile site outside of Annapolis. Of all the places you might expect to find an abandoned Nike missile base, a national park is probably not very high up the list. Situated on a concrete plateau overlooking the valley, it was relatively intact, although spoiled by graffiti. We’re aware that these uncertain times are limiting many aspects of life. D= Either, increaed access room in the magazine Missile Launcher: A=Ajax AA=Double Ajax launchers AG=Above Ground H=Hecrules L=Launcher K=Unoffical designation for Alaskan above ground launchers U=Uniersal … Your email address will not be published. Along a partially-collapsed corridor, someone has scrawled ‘God has left the house.’ Elsewhere, echoing the entrance to Hell in Dante’s Inferno, has been written ‘abandon hope all who enter here.’ Although no doubt the work of bored kids, the words still have a hunting resonance in a building once dedicated to preventing the Apocalypse. I was a 1st class missile radar operater at the Dorseyville site from 1956 to1959, went to Red Canyon NM three times and had 9 kills. Water collects on the floor. All rights reserved. In accordance with the Transfer Plan, on-site orientation and familiarization took place on Nike sites, with 30th ADA Brigade and JASDF advance party personnel working and living together on site. Two of the upgraded missile sites were located within the Hartford region, at East Windsor and Cromwell. Most Nike Ajax sites not converted closed. Some were repurposed for various uses, either within the military or for the improvement of the local town. Small areas of the site have since been converted into the “Nike Park,” though the vast majority of the large, tree-spotted site is rundown, littered with trash, and overgrown with moss and vines. -Tom Koedel. Adak Station, Alaska. Offer available only in the U.S. (including Puerto Rico). Now it stands as a dilapidated, overgrown memory of … You can see the rusty twin-door rectangular shaped doors in the center. 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