Sunday, September 23, 2007

The Red Menace, Old Town Orange and CSUF

Here's a little slice of local Cold War history. The photo above shows the Nike missile installation on Knott Ave in Stanton around 1960. No, you can't see the missiles, but the radar tower is certainly impressive. I'm not sure if the Nikes here were the nuclear type, or the conventional ones designed to knock incoming ICBMs out of the sky. I would guess the latter.
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Between sites like this, the bases at Tustin and El Toro, and landing strips like Mile Square and Horse Farm, it's amazing how much O.C. land was controlled by the military during the Cold War. Today, most of that land is being turned into condos, "big box" shopping centers, and the so-called "Great Park." Just one more reason to miss having the military as our neighbors.
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The Old Towne Preservation Association (OTPA) in Orange will hold their historic home tour Oct. 27 & 28. They need docents. If you would like to volunteer, contact Kathleen.
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The Fall newsletter for CSUF's Center for Oral & Public History (COPH) is now online. Highlights include Sharon Owen Pellegrino's advice on purchasing recording equipment, and Art Hansen's introduction of new History Dept faculty members Dr. Raymond Rast and Dr. Benjamin Cawthra. I imagine we'll hear more from these promising newcomers in the coming months.

1 comment:

Unknown said...

Most of these missile sites were already owned by the government, having been outlying landing fields for the Los Alamitos Naval Air Station set up in 1942 and 1943.