Throughout its history, the Bay Area has been a hotbed of military activity, from the original Army prison on Alcatraz Island, to the building of nuclear submarines in Vallejo.
It’s a mere shadow of what it was during World War II or even up until the mid-1990s, when you could still catch sight of subs slinking to and from the Mare Island shipyard or aircraft carriers putting in at Alameda Naval Air Station.
But did you know we also had missiles?
In the 1950s and 60s, there were Nike Ajax and Hercules missiles based all over the Bay Area, not just in the Marin Headlands. There were batteries in Pacifica, Fremont, San Rafael and on Angel Island. They were built to be a last line of defense against air attack during the Cold War.
Learn more and see photos and video of the Missiles by reading our web story.