Viva Florida 500: #16 1950: Cape Canaveral Traditional Geocache
Viva Florida 500: #16 1950: Cape Canaveral
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This cache was placed to celebrate the 500th anniversary of exploration & history in Florida on June 8th & 9th.
Viva Florida 500 at Paynes Prairie Preserve: Event GC48857
You are looking for a cammo screw top container.
1950: Cape Canaveral Becomes a Space Port
If it wasn’t for a rocket from California veering off course over the White Sands Missile Base in New Mexico and landing by a cemetery in Mexico, Cape Canaveral wouldn’t have been today’s Space Port.
The decision to locate in Florida was part of the “Joint Long Range Proving Ground” legislated in 1949 by President Harry Truman. It ended up being the better choice because of the down range area being over water, being closer to the equator for East-West trajectories, and the Bahamas were a little more lenient of missiles flying over their area.
The first rockets ever launched were German V-2 rockets, which were confiscated by the U.S. after W.W. II., the very same type of rocket that fell on London at the beginning of the war. Along with rockets came many of the German rocket scientists / builders who wanted to come to the U.S., led by Werner Von Braun. These men were foundational in the development of the rocket technologies used in the American space program.
The Canaveral site grew from a small four-launch-pad area, to an expanded complex that eventually included a new Air Force Base (Patrick). Over time it moved away from military-based operation missions to a civilian/private contractor operation when NASA was created on October 1, 1958.
Cape Canaveral became a main national focal point in 1961 when President Kennedy energized the country with the vision of landing men on the moon by the end of the decade.
The area changed its name to Cape Kennedy after the President’s assassination in 1963, as an honor to the President. His widow suggested that the “Space Center” be named for him, but President Johnson had the whole geographical area renamed “Cape Kennedy”. This wasn’t accepted too well by many historians and geographers because it had been known as Cape Canaveral for centuries. It would change back to its historical name in 1973, “Cape Canaveral”, and the center would be called “Kennedy Space Center”.
Thank You to Prairie Cachers & stejenwell for hosting this event.
Special Thanks to amtg, Call me dainty, CWagoner, CYAO, doggymama, Joshtrecker81, mintmoonpi, Obilon, Tango of TCE, & wobegon crew
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