A scanned snapshot at Key West This undated Key West Citizen newspaper clipping is on file at the Key West Library at 700 Fleming Street. large HIPAR was easily HAWK is in reference to the type of missile that would carry the nuclear warheadto its target in this case, at that time was Cuba. In the 1950s, the area where the range was located had been developed as part of the active Boca Chica airfield and the majority of the former site is covered by several feet of concrete. A Site Rehabilitation Completion Order was submitted to FDEP in 2009. Key West officials have been told it will cost about $6 million to address soil contamination issues at the diesel plant before any additional improvements can be made. The City of Key West received this land through the Federal Lands to Parks Program restricting the use to "Public Park and Public Recreation area purposes". A Btry..(HM-69) located in the Florida Everglades. fire control section radars for engagement evaluation. This anti-aircraft facility was built by the Army as a permanent installation with the intent to guard against attack from Cuba, 90 miles away. To protect the military bases there from low flying aircraft. As I recall, In 2012, Tetra Tech performed a Site Inspection (SI) and surface soil and sediment samples were collected from areas not under concrete to represent Boca Chica Field sites in general. First, I would like to see a discussion about cleaning up the Hawk Missile site; its not completely safe, said Commissioner Sam Kaufman. the U.S.-1. Key Largo site could be purchased and prepared. plans to return the areas to their native vegetative state. was Even then it had to wait for its missiles which The county could potentially trade Higgs Beach to the city in return for a portion of the citys HAWK missile property near Government Road, which the county-owned airport needs for mitigation, County Commissioner Craig Cates told the Keys Weekly on April 12. Five illuminator/radar towers, a few guard shacks and at least two buildings. A BRA and ecological risk assessment were performed in 1997. Identification of these areas relies on anecdotal recall from various sources about past dumping of munitions from ships as they neared port. above photo was taken by a former Battery B console operator veteran, OCULUS ID: DOD_9_3292:The former AHMS Geiger Key Site is approximately 12 acres located along State Road S-941 (Old Boca Chica Road) on the southwest end of Geiger Key. document.getElementById( "ak_js_1" ).setAttribute( "value", ( new Date() ).getTime() ); Interesting, but HAWK missiles in Key West did not have nuclear warheads. of the Crocodile Lake National Wildlife A closed hazardous waste storage area is located south of Building 223. I was discharged in July 1964 after being stationed on Saddle Bunch Key. In 2010, Malcolm Pirnie Inc. and Osage of Virginia performed a Preliminary Assessment (PA) and during preparation of the PA, this site was found to be Munitions Response Program (MRP) eligible. You'll find that info at the top of this page. Building A-133 is part of the former motor pool refueling point. The property has been used as residential housing since 1942. from Spain where we had three B-47 bomber bases. The larger Army missile the Nike-Hercules had the capability of carrying nuclear but not HAWK missiles. Building A-126 was formerly used as a transportation facility and is currently used as an electrical maintenance and repair facility for arresting gear. Artillery, a unit of the joint STRIKE Command which had been stationed Key West International Airport (EYW/KEYW) 0.5 km; Salt Ponds 0.9 km; Garrison Bight 2.3 km; Key West Golf Club 2.5 km; Stock Island 2.6 km; Key Haven (Raccoon Key) 3.6 km; Cayo Agua 8.3 km; former site of Northwest Passage light 15 km; Key West National Wildlife Refuge 23 km; Monroe County, Florida 69 km HAWK Missile base with vague records of it's existence!!! There is a sixth radar usually omitted in discussions, but road was the OCULUS ID: DOD_9_1045:SWMU 5, the former AIMD Sand Blasting area, is adjacent to Building A-990 near the western end of the airfield on Boca Chica Key. The first black and A senior center funded by the county wouldnt solve the expense of restoration of the diesel plant, but it would be a tremendous first step. He added that the space could also include a display of the history of the native Key West people who emigrated from the Bahamas. The OCULUS ID: DOD_9_3289:The Navy acquired the property in 1947. An unidentified scrapbook control section locks onto the target with a tracking radar. The four ASTs used at the facility were located approximately 50 feet south of the former motor pool refueling area. OCULUS ID: DOD_0_1085: The Hamaca Hawk Missile Site is located toward the eastern end of Key West just to the north of the Key West Airport and south of the Flagler Canal. The Department manages the rehabilitation, revitalization, conservation, and redevelopment of lands and the structures and improvements associated with the NAS /Key West Base Reuse Plan. The county has $5 million in the bank to replace the senior center that used to be next to the Harvey Government Center on Truman Avenue, Cates said. entrance to the Everglades National Park west of Homestead. From 1952 to 1971, historical maps depict a pistol range located east of the magazine area and north of Skeet Range #820 at North Boca Chica. They former HAWK sites are not that difficult to spot on google maps as they still have that distinctive fan shape to their cleared areas. It powered acquisition radar (HIPAR) in the IFC area. dated of preserving our natural history. Copyright 2023 Corporately sponsored by Historic Tours of America, Inc. - the Lone Sentinel. During a limited visual survey, no identifiable features associated with the range were observed. arrived by October 29, 1962. The Ominous History of Key West's Secret "Central Park" . It is now used as a hazardous waste storage facility. and smaller ground-to-air Hawk missiles units at Key West. The possibilities are many. tower for the HIPAR radar equipment with its protective radome missing This location has been labeled by its creator as Public, and therefore can be viewed by anyone. About a year before Based on the Site Assessment result, further investigation and quarterly monitoring has occurred at the site to assess the movement of contaminants from the site. Description One of four Hawk Missile sites on and near Key West. How do I know its an abandoned nuclear war base? In 2012, Tetra Tech performed an SI and found no MEC or MPPEH. The 32nd has 68 battery fire (missile) sites (primarily nike herc and hawk) belonging to 16 battalions located at remote sites in a checkerboard pattern across central and southern germany. The first right. FDEP has requested additional wells for vertical and horizontal extent of groundwater contamination above the GCTLs and additional groundwater sampling for one year. OCULUS ID: DOD_9_1049:SWMU 9, the Jet Engine Test Cell associated with Building A-969, was used for the testing of recently repaired jet engines beginning in 1969. clipping from the Key West Citizen newspaper of 1962. Sgt. The northernmost half of the range has been developed. A homeless shelter for a senior center? There are also contained two unlined circular pits approximately 20 feet in diameter and two to three feet deep where combustible liquids were ignited. A HAWK CWAR antenna on a before President Kennedy's quarantine challenge to Khrushchev; but Groundwater sampling and monitoring wells were installed to confirm the northern boundary of the site during 2010. Nuclear capable only. NIKE-AJAX was the first ground based operational supersonic After a series of delays the four hawk batteries of the 6th of the 65th arrived at key west on october 26 while the crisis was still white hot. Bliss, arriving in early double The building was constructed in the late 1960s and provides electronics maintenance support to aircraft. An RFI was initiated in 2011 to delineate the vertical and horizontal extent of groundwater contamination and assess soil conditions. Truman Annex Building 223 Hazardous Waste Storage Area. While the majority of the commissioners appeared dispassionate about the subject, City Manager Jim Scholl said the project is still in the research phase. From the 1940s to the early 1970s, the location was used as a DDT mixing area. In 2012, Tetra Tech performed a Site Inspection (SI) and surface soil samples were collected. This additional road a more direct Cuban Missile Crisis (October 1962) In October 1962 the Cuban Missile crisis began with the installation of Russian missiles on Cuban soil. A fence has been placed around the southern portion of the site to inhibit any residential use of the land while it remains under investigation. The . . were We are not done with the evaluation. unknown, but the name comes from its use for transporting explosives of City Commissioner Clayton Lopez, whose district includes the diesel plant, called Cates proposed property swaps and partnerships a win-win across the board for the citizens of Key West and Monroe County, Lopez told the Keys Weekly on April 13. I do not believe most of the nation knew In 2011, Tetra Tech performed a Site Assessment and recommended that additional groundwater sampling be conducted until the site meets the criteria for a Site Rehabilitation Completion Order with No Further Action. Very interesting. Key West Naval Air Station in Key West, FL (Google Maps) Key West Naval Air Station Key West, Florida (FL), US Like Tweet Share Pin the Navy's premier pilot training facility for Transient tactical aviation squadrons. these early highways preceded HM-40 by some time. SWMU 7 Boca Chica Temporary Hazardous Waste Storage Area. Any comments or additional photographs will be appreciated. The Corps of In 2009, the site was placed under the Navy Munitions Response Program (MRP). My website is at http://www.missilesofkeywest.com, correction: HAWK missiles in Cuba were there for low altitude air defenseshould read: HAWK missiles in Key West were there for low altitude air defense.. were, or were associated with Key West HAWK deployment. Higgs Beach for part of the HAWK missile site? In 2010, Malcolm Pirnie Inc. and Osage of Virginia performed a Preliminary Assessment (PA) and during preparation of the PA, this site was found to be Munitions Response Program (MRP) eligible. OCULUS ID: DOD_9_1080:Boca Chica Tank Farm has been used to store jet fuel, aviation gasoline, waste oil, diesel fuel, and unleaded gasoline for various activities since 1942. The The waste disposal activities of the City of Key West were combined with those of the Navy from 1968 to 1982. (USN; Naval Facilities Engineering Command) [This was an above ground missile site.] OCULUS ID: DOD_9_1083:Trumbo Point is a 140-acre landfill area on the northern portion of the island of Key West that was created in 1908 to provide land for the tracks and warehouses needed for a major shipping port. I had just returned In the 1960s Part of the site is an FAA radio facility, while one group of launchers is now a paintball park. In 2003, the magazines were verified empty and closed. on trains. You can find this virtually unknown part of Key Wests Cold War history at the Little HamacaCity Park located off of Flagler Avenue. extremely valuable in operations. Alpha Battery, located on Fleming Key, is the Eckwood Solomon missile site, after the soldier killed near Pleiku in . The site encompasses much of a paved loading dock area and is bounded to the north by the west wing of the TPBOQ, on the east by the south wing of the TPBOQ, on the south by Chevalier Avenue, and on the west by Ely Street extension. Since 2018 the brigade headquarter is based at Sagami General Depot in Japan . We believe in the Florida Keys community. Ocean Reef was on the east side (ocean side) of the site. During a limited visual survey, no identifiable features associated with the range were observed. From 1942 to 1947, historical maps depict a rifle range in the southern portion of Truman Annex. My initial orders following 9 months of electronics school at Fort Bliss Texas were to 6th Bn / 65th Artillery (in 1969). four firing batteries located around the Key West area. Keys I know I was there. Other than being assigned to a NORAD radar bombers or missiles from Cuba, or anywhere else. The site was recommended to proceed to a Remedial Investigation (RI) for MEC and MC. Based on historical maps and aerial photographs, the land on which AHMS Geiger Key was built was previously salt ponds filled by the U.S. Army in order to adapt the area for use as a missile site. it became obvious on October 14, 1962 when the photos from a U-2 Hercules missile units for Miami and Homestead. 1928 highway. OCULUS ID: DOD_9_1084:The Boca Chica Key site, originally known has Battery D or Delta Battery, was completed by the Army and became operational in April 1965. U.S. Capitol unveiling new Harry S. Truman Statue. 1962. dispatched to the "Bravo Battery" was one of four HAWK missile batteries on and near Key West. Although Commissioner Billy Wardlow called the potential $4.9 million project too far out of reach at the last city commission meeting, parents and advocates for more recreational fields are not taking no for an answer. 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