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In New Jersey
Due to its strategic location, New Jersey played a significant
role in the Cold War defense of the North American continent. Within
the Garden State, air defense
radar sites, bases for interceptor aircraft, anti-aircraft gun batteries,
surface to air missile sites, and command and control facilities were
constructed in order to defend against the threat of
attack by long range, nuclear-armed aircraft of the
Soviet Air Force. Throughout the Cold War, these sites were manned on a 24 hour
per day basis on constant alert, ready to defend the region, the
nation and the North American continent.
For two decades, spanning some of the most troubled years of the Cold War era,
New Jersey was the location of more than one dozen U.S. Army Nike missile
installations.
Named for the mythical Greek goddess of victory, Nike missiles were designed
to shoot down attacking aircraft. The Nikes were deployed at missile sites which
completely encircled major metropolian areas with overlapping
fields of fire, providing a vital last line of defense against an attack by air.
Nike missile
sites in the Garden State were located within two distinct groups. The sites in
northern
New Jersey were associated with the former New York Defense Area. Those located in
southern half of the state were important components of the former
Philadelphia Defense Area.
The Nike missile sites remained in service in New Jersey from 1954 until 1974,
when the last remaining operational sites were inactivated. For a concise overview
of the Nike missile system, information about Nike missiles and
a description of a typical Nike missile site click here.
The history of these Cold War missile sites and their
present condition is now being documented by means of a self-sponsored
project of Bender Associates, the New Jersey Nike Missile Site Survey. Founded
in 1995, the Survey has conducted archival research, visited and photographed former
Nike missile sites, gathered historical photographs and interviewed former personnel.
The result is a significant and growing historical resource which is helping to
preserve this fascinating chapter in our recent, Cold War past.
A very small portion of the information gathered for this project has
been placed online at this Web site. Additional information and
photographs will be placed online in the future. Those wishing to
contribute information, photographs, documents or their personal
recollections of these sites should contact Don Bender who is managing
this project. Click here to send an e-mail
to him at [email protected]
For more information about each of the 14 former Nike missile batteries
and related facilties located
within the Garden State, click on a site below. NOTE: Please use your Web browser's
"back" button to return to this page.
Copyright 1999 by Donald E.Bender. All Rights Reserved. About the Author ... Donald E. Bender is the founder of the New Jersey Nike Missile Site Survey, a self-sponsored historical project designed to document the history and present condition of former Nike missile sites located in the New York, New Jersey and Philadelphia areas. He has assisted governmental, military, academic and historical organizations with research related to former Nike missile sites and other Cold War era military installations across the nation and internationally. He can be reached via e-mail at [email protected]
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