Where it All Began
From Tom Kirk – On Saturday, November 16th Cyndie and I joined a limited number of other Space Coast PCA members for a private tour of the Cape Canaveral Space Force Station Lighthouse and surrounding historic launch complexes and museums. It was a fabulous journey back in time to the beginnings of what makes the Space Coast the Space Coast.
Our tour was guided by fellow Space Coast PCA member and CCSFM (Cape Canaveral Space Force Museum) docent Rick Rousseau. Rick did a fabulous job sharing his knowledge about the first launch pads, early technology and experimental rockets that kick-started our exploration of space from this very location over sixty years ago.
The lighthouse itself was pretty cool. Built over 150 years ago out of cast iron, it was hard to imagine what living there must have been like. Only accessible by boat until the 20’s, the Lighthouse Keepers and their families had to be very rugged and self-sufficient.
What I thought was way-cooler included the hanger full of fully restored rockets and the walk through the actual firing room used to send our first satellite into space in 1958. Looking through the six-inch-thick glass windows at the launch pad and seeing the control panels of these very old, yet very reliable, computers, you could imagine the anxiety and elation surrounding that event. That we went from this satellite launch in 1958 to landing on the moon in 1969 is an engineering miracle and a demonstration of National will.
To learn more about this historic site visit the Foundation website at https://canaverallight.org/. To book your own tour email ContactUs@Canaveral.Tours.
