For a decade and a half at the height of the cold war, a battery of supersonic ballistic missiles sat underneath 82 acres straddling the Ansonia-Woodbridge line.
The site was one of 240 such installations nationwide that formed the Nike air defense system, meant as a last-ditch defense against Soviet bombers.
On Saturday (Nov. 28) city officials will gather nearby to dedicate two plaques marking the role Ansonia and its veterans played in defending American airspace.
The site was decommissioned in 1971. Part of the property is now a research facility run by the U.S. Forest Service.
The event will begin at 11 a.m. next to 117 Ford St. The public is invited to attend.
Ansonia Alderman Patrick Henri, who chairs the Aldermen’s Veterans Comittee, explained in an email:
“The Mayor of the City of Ansonia will be dedicating two bronze plaques at the base of a monument on the access road to the former Fire Control Area of the Ansonia Nike Hercules Missile Site. One plaque is a re-dedication to all Ansonia Veterans who served in defense of freedom. The second is a recognition of nearly 45 years since the closing of the Site and it is dedicated to “Army and Army National Guard Soldiers” who served there from 1957 – 1971 defending the community with nuclear weapons during the Cuban Missile Crisis.
It is expected that veterans in their old uniforms, wearing medals, and/or veterans organizational caps attend to receive honor due them. A “civilian salute”, by simple attendance, will mean a lot to the men who served in the Nike program.”
Parking for Saturday’s event is curbside along Ford Street and adjacent roads. For more information, call or text Henri at 203 – 954-7661.
Click here to read a previous column by Valley historian Robert Novak on Nike sites in Ansonia and Shelton.
Click here for some pictures of the site from coldwar-ct.com.
A detailed history of the Ansonia site is also available at nikemissile.org.
