Nukes at the Jersey Shore: Sandy Hook’s Cold War Secrets

The fenced-off section of Sandy Hook visible from the beach doesn't look like much -- an old parking lot or some other vestige of the U.S. Army installation on the peninsula that was decommissioned in 1974.

In reality, this quiet spot on the Jersey Shore once housed the equivalent of 30 times the nuclear explosive power of the atomic bomb dropped on Hiroshima during World War II.

And from the 1950s through the 1970s, the existence of those nuclear weapons was top secret.

READ MORE: Mass Grave of Frozen British Soldiers at Sandy Hook, NJ

The former Nike nuclear launch site is about a mile from the Nike radar site, where volunteer Sgt. William A. Jackson gave me a tour this past weekend. Jackson, who once served at the station, is an inspired guide and weaves jaw-dropping personal anecdotes with the history of the Cold War-era missile program at Fort Hancock. (Find the 2025 tour schedule at the bottom of the article.)

The radar site includes a restored Ajax missile -- a precursor to the more powerful Hercules missile -- and a diorama commissioned by Jackson of one of the nuclear launch stations during the Hercules era.

Sandy Hook Nike Nuclear Launch Site Housed Powerful Hercules Missiles

The Nike nuclear launch site included four launch stations. Each station was equipped with six Hercules missiles with varying degrees of explosive power, Jackson explained: one four-kiloton nuclear warhead, four 20-kiloton, and one 40-kiloton. (A kiloton is the equivalent of 1,000 tons of TNT.) By comparison, the bomb dropped on Hiroshima was a 14- to 16-kiloton weapon.

The radar site would track the position of Russian Bear bomber planes, which would routinely fly over the Atlantic Ocean. If the planes were to get too close to Manhattan and counter measures to get them to turn back were not effective, the Hercules missiles would be a point weapon of last resort. (Because, you know, World War III...)

READ MORE: Was a Skeleton Found in the Sandy Hook Lighthouse?

Plan a Visit to the Nike Radar Site

While the Nike nuclear launch site is off-limits, the Fort Hancock Nike Association offers tours of the Nike radar site. The schedule for the 2025 season is the following:

• Sunday, June 22
• Saturday, July 12
• Sunday, July 20
• Saturday, Aug. 9
• Sunday, Aug. 17
• Saturday, Sep. 6
• Sunday, Sep. 21
• Saturday, Oct. 4
• Sunday, Oct. 26
• Saturday, Nov. 1
• Sunday, Nov. 9

The tours are available from noon to 4PM and visitors are advised to park in the Horseshoe Cove Parking Lot marked as Lot L.

WATCH: Sgt. Jackson Details History of Sandy Hook Nike Nuclear Launch Site

The Fort Hancock Nike Association was responsible for restoring the Ajax missile visible at the Nike radar site and is currently raising funds to restore a Nike Hercules missile. If you would like to learn more, plan a visit to the site during one of the tour dates or contact the association at NY56NIKE@gmail.com.

WARNING: Under no circumstances should you enter the nuclear launch site property or the Nike radar site outside of scheduled tours. By doing so you risk bodily harm and/or prosecution for trespassing on private property.