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Arizona Oddities

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Dose of HistorySouthern Arizona
Home›Dose of History›The Titan That Never Clashed

The Titan That Never Clashed

By Sam Lowe
August 24, 2011
1079
2

SAHUARITA — The Titan Missile Museum here isn’t really scary like a haunted house, but when you stop to consider the damage that one of those things could have done, it goes way beyond frightening.

Fortunately, it never happened.

Titan Missile

Titan Missile Museum in Sahuarita. Photo Credit: Sam Lowe

During the Cold War, several Titan missiles armed with nuclear warheads were planted in deep holes and aimed at the Soviet Union as a matter of precautionary defense. None were ever fired, so nobody knows for certain what the consequences would have been. The site/museum here was originally known as Site 571-7, and was one of 54 sites in three states to be spared after nuclear disarmament treaties were signed. Now the complex is a museum that reflects on  something that never happened.

Visitors take 55 steps down to the launch site 30 feet below ground and watch a simulated countdown procedure. Then they’re free to wander around in an area originally designed to either start or prevent a nuclear war.

So it’s okay to poke around but don’t go pushing any buttons because, well, you just never know.

To reach the museum, take Exit 69 west off Interstate 19 and follow the signs. There’s an admission fee.

(Visited 91 times, 1 visits today)

Related Posts:

  1. Titan Missiles Once Housed at Catalina Church Site
  2. One of the World’s Largest Open Pit Mines in Sahuarita
  3. The Story of Arizona’s First Newspaper: The “Arizonian”
  4. Step Back in Time at Tuzigoot National Monument
  5. Tucson Museum Keeps Pharmacy History Alive
Tagshistorymilitarymuseumsahuarita

2 comments

  1. Ray Thomson 24 August, 2011 at 08:03 Reply

    Back in the day, my Air Force brother commanded one of those sites. They were the Titan II missle as I recall.
    Building yer own personal Bomb Shelter in the backyard was all the rage…

    Duckin’ and Coverin’,
    RT

  2. Titan Missles Once Housed at Catalina Church Site | 15 December, 2012 at 10:19 Reply

    […] long ago, Titan II intercontinental ballistic missiles formed a deadly arsenal of destruction in the area. There were 18 of them, each one capable of […]

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