Since the museum’s closure in June 2020 due to the coronavirus quarantine, we have continued to be closed as we installed a new permanent exhibit. However, we are excited to announce that the WSMR Museum will be reopening to the public on Thursday, 4 May 2023. The opening ceremony will begin at 9am at theContinue reading “White Sands Missile Range Museum to Reopen 4 May”
Author Archives: WSMR Jenn
The Corporal Family of Rockets and Missiles
On the surface, the Corporal family was a collection of early American-developed ballistic missiles that initially weren’t very militarily significant. However, it was the vehicle on which various management and subcontracting philosophies could be tried and training of personnel from procurement through field operations could be conducted.
WSMR Historical Foundation Publishes Quarterly Newsletter – February 2023
The White Sands Missile Range Historical Foundation has published its quarterly “Hands Across History” newsletter for February 2023.
The Path to Hembrillo
“The Apache did not recognize the new borders which came into being when the US acquired the southwest after the war with Mexico…
These new borders between the US and Mexico, as well as New Mexico and Arizona, caused some difficulty for the US Army.”
WSMR Historical Foundation Publishes Quarterly Newsletter – November 2022
The White Sands Missile Range Historical Foundation has published its quarterly “Hands Across History” newsletter for November 2022.
WSMR Historical Foundation Publishes Quarterly Newsletter – August 2022
By Jenn Jett, Museum Specialist The White Sands Missile Range Historical Foundation has published its quarterly “Hands Across History” newsletter for August 2022. The newsletter contains the following articles: Work on the Museum’s New Exhibit Hall is Marching OnJim Eckles, Editor Two Belt Buckles Available for a DonationWSMR Historical Foundation In Memoriam – A TributeContinue reading “WSMR Historical Foundation Publishes Quarterly Newsletter – August 2022”
Sleeping Beauty Awakens
LASL’s Sleeping Beauty was an experiment on the design of an alpha-n initiator – the first in a series of such tests. Equipment was located in an underground bunker at Trinity Site in the New Mexico desert, some 250 miles south of Los Alamos – and only 1,600 feet from ground zero of a spectacular success, the world’s first nuclear explosion. But Sleeping Beauty did not involve the use of fissionable material – and she was an embarrassing failure.
WSMR Historical Foundation Publishes Quarterly Newsletter – May 2022
By Jenn Jett, Museum Specialist The White Sands Missile Range Historical Foundation has published its quarterly “Hands Across History” newsletter for May 2022. The newsletter contains the following articles: Last ‘Distant Runner’ Test Obliterated AF Concrete HangerJim Eckles, Editor Letter to the EditorJames Lane, Captain (ret.), Minnesota State Patrol New Training Organization Takes Up ResidenceContinue reading “WSMR Historical Foundation Publishes Quarterly Newsletter – May 2022”
Operation Paperclip at Fort Bliss: 1945-1950
Germany’s use of its V-1 jet-powered flying bombs and V-2 rockets during the latter stages of World War II ushered in the era of guided missiles. After the war, as tensions between the United States and the Soviet Union increased, both countries sought to develop their own arsenal of guided missiles.
The 200th Coast Artillery Regiment and the Bataan Death March
“We’re the battling bastards of Bataan;
No mama, no papa, no Uncle Sam;
No aunts, no uncles, no cousins, no nieces;
No pills, no planes, no artillery pieces.
And nobody gives a damn.
Nobody gives a damn.”
“The Voice of Freedom (radio broadcast) kept telling us, ‘Hold out for two more days, help is on the way.’ We could have taken the truth. But they lied to us.”