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Locations of Former NIKE MISSILE SITES (text)
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Florida
Homestead - Miami (after Cuban Missile Crisis) SIZE=-1>
  • HM-01 HM-03 Opa Locka/ Carol City
  • HM-01DC HM-01DC Richmond AFS
  • HM-40 Key Largo
  • HM-65 redesignated HM-66. Florida City
  • HM-69 HM-69 Florida City
  • HM-80 redesignated HM-84 7 NNW Homestead
  • HM-85 10 SW Miami
  • HM-95 Southwest Miami
  • HM-97 West Homestead
  • HM-99 West Homestead
    • Designation General Location Detailed Location (Current Status)
    Click for updated TerraServer links
    HM-01
    HM-03     		Opa Locka/ Carol City (HM-01 was re-designated HM03)
    C - 2 WNW Carol City (Opa Locka Airport)
    [{Strickland, C} (July 2001) My site was very near a dairy and a trailer park and the American School that was nearby. I was on or near 103rd Street in Hialeah.
    [{Gatto, T} On Red River Road, Carol City]
    [{Alvarez, L} GPS - 25N 56' 23", 80W 17' 56" - The facility was located on the northwest side of the intersection of NW 183 St and NW 57th Ave. The structures were intact until the late 70's.]

    L - (USN; Naval Facilities Engineering Command) [This was an above ground missile site.]
    [{Castelnau, Jorge} (August 2006) ... found only the concrete foundations of the prior listed buildings. There is nothing left of this facility as it appears either a hurricane or a bulldozer knocked all the structures down, including the guardhouse. It is a shame because I had some friends do some UrbEx on that site and they were able to capture pictures of everything from the motor pool area to the actual missile housing and escape hatches, etc. Fascinating stuff. ]
    [{Strickland, C} (July 2001) The actual missile area had 3 building to hold missiles, and rails to slide them outside. The trenches mentioned were for the [electrical] cables. I returned to the site in the 80's and the buildings were still there for the security, barracks and mess hall. The bad news was that a Publix supermarket was right next door.
    [{Simon, G} I don't recall the IFC area location. The Base was located at Red River Road, just off 183rd St. The tents were located off Red River Road, the Launcher area was located against a canal off a dirt road about 2 miles north of the HQ area. Remember this was in 1964-65 when I was there and there were no permanent buildings.Dennis Landry who was an electronics maintenance man was stationed there later around 1970 and he said they had permanent buildings then.
    [{Murdock, S} 25-57-43 80-18-12 TerraServer ]

    HM-01DCRichmond AFS Coral Reef Dr. (FAA JSS facility J-06 MIAMI)
    HM-40 Key Largo (Summary) Battery B, and its equipment, has been located in three different places
    - Johnson Island - nuclear tests, fired an atomic weapon (?-10/62)
    - Everglades National Park as site HM-65 then HM-66 - (10/62-6/65)
    - then Key Largo as site HM-40 - (6/65-6/79)
    North Key Largo Nike site from Jerry Wilkinson

    C - FL 905 & Old Card Sound Road (USN, NAVFACENGCOM)
    [{Piland, D} (Jan 2008) pictures ]
    [{Kraus, A} (Dec 2004) ...the forest has just about won the battle to reclaim it's former areas. The radar towers are almost invisible, you can barely get to any of the buildings. Another year and all remains will be gone. ]
    [{Norris, R} If your kids ever watch Flipper, look for the big white dome that was the Hipar at "B" battery, on the north end of Key Largo, on the Card Sound. ]
    [{Campbell, B} TerraServer]
    [{Vaughn, T} 25.16.637N 80.18.242W (Spring 2001) "The IFC is pretty much intact. Are all old missile sites issued "a hole in the fence" once they are closed?" The buildings are painted pink. Didn't do too much searching as I was wearing shorts and sandels and there were probably lots of critters crawling around. No magazines at the Florida sites. ]

    L - (USN, NAVFACENGCOM)
    [{Kraus, A} (Dec 2004) All buildings at the launch site have been torn down. The missile buildings have been completely removed, even the 3 foot thick concrete foundations. The missile maint/assy. building is the only one still standing, in almost perfect shape I must add. ]
    [{Campbell, B} "reasonably certain" TerraServer]

    HM-65
    redesignated HM-66
    HM-66     		Florida City Site located 8 miles SW of Florida City (used from 10/62-6/65)
    note - site and unit moved to HM-40, this site abandoned in 6/65
    site HM-69 (4 miles away) occupied in 6/65 by a different unit
    [{Gatto, T} in the Everglades (Phased out early on) ]
    [{Morgan, M} B/2/52nd initially manned site HM-66 Florida City before relocating to their permanent site at HM-40 Key Largo in June 1965. ]
    [{Whitaker, J} Constructed during the Cuban Missile Crisis [October 1962]. In a two week period, 24 hours a day, the Army Corps of Engineers literally built an island for us in the swamp by bringing in thousands of truck loads of earthfill to build an elevated land surface for our missiles and radars which would keep the equipment elevated above the Everglades water level.
    Due to the close proximity of our battery to Havana and the Russian missile sites, Battery B was the only Hercules unit that was capable of both surface to air engagements as well as being able to conduct surface to surface strikes on Havana and/or the Russian sites.
    During my entire duty assignment in Florida until my discharge in September 1964, we lived in tents in the Everglades. The site was totally isolated in the swamp, but completely self-sufficient. We had no commercial power or any other amenities. All missile systems and site support activities were conducted only with generator power.
    Our security all around the perimeter of the site, consisted of six rows of stacked concertina razor wire, eight 50-caliber machine gun emplacements and armed walking sentries. We had no guard dogs. ...]
    - For more, see story Cuban Missile Crisis, how I grew up in a hurry in October 1962.

    [{Coogan, J} Battery B, 2nd/52nd started out as Jim Whittaker has said, at the entrance to Everglades National Park...south and west of Homestead. We moved to permanent buildings on Key Largo, just south of Ocean Reef, in mid '65. Hurricane Betsy wiped out Key Largo and Homestead that fall...I have some interesting recollections of that. ]

    HM-69Florida City
    [{Piland, D} (Jan 2008) pictures ]
    [{Strang, R} (August 2007) I planned on visitng the site and called the Everglades Park visitor center. They said the place is not open to the public and locked up, no restoration has been done, you may only drive up to the gate. ]
    [{Michalsky, J} (March 2005) listed on the National Register of Historic Places on July 27, 2004. (www.cr.nps.gov/nr/listings/20040806.htm) ]
    [{Carter, C} (March 2003) Everglades National Park recently has surveyed the [Nike] facilities and will prepare them for the public to view, along with other cold war exhibits if there is public interest shown for the project. This location has been nominated for Historical Register status.
    The National Park Service is in the process of developing a General Management Plan for the overall management and use of Everglades National Park. The Plan will address resources management and preservation, visitor use and development needs for the next 20 years.
    If you would like to see another aspect of our heritage preserved, please send an email to EVER_GMP@nps.gov or send a letter to
    National Park Service, Everglades NP,
    General Management Plan – Terri Urbanowski,
    12795 W. Alameda Parkway,
    PO Box 25287, Denver, CO 80225.

    C - 12 WSW Florida City - National Park Srvice; Everglades National Park
    [{Norris, R} I saw an article in my local paper, I live in Ft. Pierce, Fla., recently about what was once "A" battery. It is being considered for some kind of list of historic places.]

    L - [{Fornash, J} suggests this 80W 41' 09", 25N 22' 13" TerraServer image]

    HM-80
    redesignated
    HM-84     		7 NNW Homestead C- ?

    L -
    [{Alvarez, L} GPS - 25N 34' 01", 80W 31' 41" TerraServer image]

    HM-85 10 SW Miami Headquarter, no missile equipment or radars
    HM-95 Southwest Miami C - 12 W Miami (DOD communications facility)
    [{Murdock, S} 25-44-15 80-28-55 TerraServer ]

    L - Tamiami Trail
    [{Castelnau, Jorge} (August 2006) ...still intact, however it is in bad shape. It seems paintballers have taken to this site on the weekends making it impossible to not get shot at when entering the facility. This is the best site so far down in South Florida. ]
    [{Gatto, T} (Now Krome Ave detention Facility.]
    [{McAulay, G} The entrance to the IFC and the Launcher areas were both on the west side of State Rd. 997 (?old US 27?) no more than 2 miles south of US 41 (Tamiami Trail)]
    [{Murdock, S} 24-45-19 80-29-27 TerraServer ]

    HM-97West Homestead Homestead AFB, AFRES 482nd Fighter Wing., 301 st Rescue Squadron, FLANG, Det 1, 125th Fighter Group alert detachment
    HM-99West Homestead Homestead AFB,
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    [{Murdock, S} wishes to add the following HAWK sites 
    Key West Hawk Site KW-24 FL
http://terraserver-usa.com/image.aspx?S=10&T=1&X=2166&Y=13590&Z=17&W=2
24-34-32   81-39-35

Key West Hawk Site KW-10 FL
http://terraserver-usa.com/image.aspx?S=10&T=1&X=2144&Y=13603&Z=17&W=2
24-35-54   81-42-10

Key West Hawk Site KW-65 FL
http://terraserver-usa.com/image.aspx?S=10&T=1&X=2114&Y=13581&Z=17&W=2
24-33-35   81-45-39    ]

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    Updated Feb, 2008