For Sale: An Abandoned Cold War Missile Launch Site by the Side of the Road (2024)
Driving down Route 322, just minutes from where southern New Jersey meets Philadelphia, you might think you’ve spotted a factory tower or standpipe off the side of the road, one of many postindustrial artifacts that flank America’s roadways. But this looming 40-foot tower, a kind of metallic mushroom, is part of a different kind of infrastructure: an abandoned missile launcher dating back to the Cold War, strategically positioned to defend the Philadelphia metropolitan area, with a particularly historic pedigree. And this one can be all yours.
Known as Swedesboro PH-58, the base is one of 14 Nike missile stations once threaded throughout New Jersey, and one of five that were in the state’s “Philadelphia Defense Area” (“PH,” for short). The Philadelphia Inquirer reported that, this month, Woolwich Township has formally requested bids and proposals for the property, which could be developed into restaurants, offices, or a park, among other possibilities. Bids, due in June, can be no lower than $1.8 million.
The United States military introduced the anti-aircraft Nike series in 1953, with the Ajax missile. Launch bases were installed in more than 200 locations throughout the country, as well as within the territory of American allies in Asia and Europe. Following the Soviet Union’s successful 1957 launch of Sputnik 1, however, the military felt a new show of strength was needed, and introduced the Hercules to the series in 1958. According to Encyclopedia Britannica, the Hercules was, in every way, an improvement upon the Ajax: Where the earlier model could rise to 70,000 feet, with a range of 30 miles, at more than twice the speed of sound, the follow-up could reach 150,000 feet with a 75-mile range, at more than three times the speed of sound. Operational between 1957 and 1974, PH-58 was loaded with 30 Ajax and 24 Hercules missiles, according to a Fairleigh Dickinson University database. But since the site was shut down 46 years ago, it’s “become an eyesore,” writes Woolwich Township Mayor, Vernon R. Marino, in an email.
The tower is the most visible aspect, but there’s much more to the abandoned site. Its 33-acre campus is a ghost town of its own, with vaults stretching 30 feet underground, a mess hall, soldiers’ quarters, and a drained swimming pool. Though a small number of these bases have been preserved, like the museum at the Sandy Hook launch site farther north in New Jersey, it’s generally too expensive to restore an entire campus, says James Heinzen, a historian at neighboring Rowan University. The sites are also dangerous, he adds, because the underground missile vaults are covered by big steel doors and in need of some serious cleanup. PH-58 might not get the museum treatment, but it’s not too hard to imagine that the pool or mess hall living on—restored—in whatever the future of the site holds. In an email, Woolwich Township Clerk Jane DiBella writes that a commemorative radar tower may stay put as a reminder of the site’s history.
As it happens, PH-58’s location makes the base—and others in the PH zone—especially historically significant. The town of Swedesboro, formerly part of Woolwich Township (which owns the property), is a short drive from Rowan University in Glassboro, New Jersey. In June 1967, when Rowan was known as Glassboro State College, President Lyndon B. Johnson and Soviet Premier Alexei Kosygin met there for official talks. (Johnson wanted to meet in Washington, D.C., and Kosygin preferred New York City; Glassboro was the compromise.) Today, Rowan maintains a collection of artifacts from the summit, some of which has been digitized.
Heinzen, who is also the director of Rowan’s Hollybush Institute (named for the campus building where the leaders met), says that while the summit produced no direct agreements, it set “a pattern” for future face-to-face meetings. The town’s name has even seeped into diplomatic parlance, with the “Spirit of Glassboro” signaling a willingness to meet with an adversary in person. The Glassboro Summit was followed by the 1968 Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty, and the 1972 Strategic Arms Limitation Talks Agreement (SALT I).
The latter led to the shuttering of the Nike bases, if not their complete erasure. While many Nike bases nationwide were converted into housing, PH-58 malingered. Woolwich Township acquired the base from the federal government in 2009 for $828,000, but didn’t want to resell during a recession. Of course, due to the COVID-19 pandemic, economic conditions are not necessarily better right now, but Woolwich Township is already fielding proposals anyway.
The increase of decommissioned missile silos has led governments to sell some of them to private individuals. Some buyers convert them into unique homes, advanced safe rooms, or use them for other purposes. They are popular sites of urban exploration.
And yet, to an observant eye, remnants of the former missile field still remain on the landscape. In fact, in the area between Minuteman Missile National Historic Site and Badlands National Park, nearly half a dozen former silos can be identified.
Leftover traces of the approximately 265 Nike missile bases can still be seen around cities across the country. As the sites were decommissioned they were first offered to federal agencies. Many were already on Army National Guard bases who continued to use the property.
Everyone knows where they are — it's no secret. The vulnerability of these missiles is why the U.S. Air Force keeps them on constant alert, ready to be launched within a few minutes.” Four hundred fifty missile silos exist in five U.S. states: North Dakota, Montana, Colorado, Wyoming, and Nebraska.
The silos are 160 feet in depth, built in groups of three, and supported by propellant and equipment terminals, a powerhouse, control center, and antenna terminals. Reinforced concrete 3 to 4 feet thick protects the sites from impact.
How Many Missile Silos Are in the U.S.? Estimates put the total number of active missile silos in the U.S. at around 270. If you are on one of three military bases in the country, you can find one of these three fields filled with a silo missile or two, ready to help defend America.
There are six former Titan I missile complexes in Colorado. Four (1A, 1B, 1C and 2A) are located on the Former Lowry Bombing and Gunnery Range (FLBGR) east of Aurora. One (2B) is located north of Deer Trail. One (2C) is located south of Elizabeth.
One major component is Ground-Based Midcourse Defense (GMD), consisting of ground-based interceptor (GBI) missiles and radar in the United States in Alaska, which would intercept incoming warheads in space. Currently some GBI missiles are located at Vandenberg SFB[Space Force Base] in California.
The Hercules missile could travel 87 miles downrange and 150,000 feet in altitude. It had great maneuverability and a speed of mach 3.65 (2,707 miles per hour). It could be armed with either a high explosive or nuclear warhead. Nike was considered to be the most formidable of the Army's anti-aircraft weapons.
Nike Missile Site C-47 is a former missile site near Portage, Indiana. The Nike defense system was a Cold War-era missile system in the United States. Nike missiles were radar guided, supersonic antiaircraft missiles.
The current ICBM force consists of Minuteman III missiles located at the 90th Missile Wing at F.E.Warren Air Force Base, Wyoming; the 341st Missile Wing at Malmstrom Air Force Base, Montana; and the 91st Missile Wing at Minot Air Force Base, North Dakota. Contractor: Boeing Co.
Parts of California, Florida and Texas that are away from their big cities like San Francisco, Miami and Houston are ideal because they are near water and have good weather. 'If you're near water you will always be near food and water that can be ingested after it has been desalinated,' said Ragusa.
Besides, on the western coast, Colorado, Montana, North Dakota, and Wyoming have clusters of targets. Some of the targets include nuclear plants. About 90 nuclear plants are situated in the states of Alabama, Arizona, Maryland, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, and Tennessee.
Only once the missile has been ejected is the engine ignited. This allows the silo to be reused. The piston just needs to be packed with more propellant.
There are six former Titan I missile complexes in Colorado. Four (1A, 1B, 1C and 2A) are located on the Former Lowry Bombing and Gunnery Range (FLBGR) east of Aurora. One (2B) is located north of Deer Trail. One (2C) is located south of Elizabeth.
The South Florida Nike Hercules sites were integrated with Hawk missile sites to provide an all altitude defensive capability around South Florida. Approximately 140 soldiers staffed the 3 above-ground missile barns of HM69 to protect against an air attack from Cuba.
Introduction: My name is Arielle Torp, I am a comfortable, kind, zealous, lovely, jolly, colorful, adventurous person who loves writing and wants to share my knowledge and understanding with you.
We notice you're using an ad blocker
Without advertising income, we can't keep making this site awesome for you.
