Then & Now
by Highlands Historian Stella Bailey
Fifty-one years ago a man landed on the moon. Unbelievable but true. I still look up at the moonlit night and ponder that thought of a man from Earth, walking up there.
On July 20, 1969, astronaut Neil Armstrong made the famous first step with the equally famous words “That’s one small step for man, one giant leap for mankind”. With Armstrong on this mission were astronauts Edwin Aldrin and Michael Collins. The first thing that happened to them when they returned safely to Earth was to be placed in quarantine! This was due to their returning with lunar microorganisms. They had brought back over 40 pounds of lunar samples which were also placed in quarantine. The astronauts spent 21 days in a glass enclosed room, their health status was carefully monitored and Neil Armstrong even spent his 39th birthday in this room. They showed no signs of illness and were eventually released.
They may have thought about staying in this quarantine a little longer had they known what was in store for them. The internet states that after landing at Los Angeles Airport, they attended President Nixon’s state dinner with 1440 guests. The president and VP Agnew and families, 14 members of the President’s cabinet, 44 governors, including Ronald Reagan, the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court, 50 members of Congress, 48 astronauts, ambassadors from 83 different countries and numerous celebrities. Mission Guidance Controller Steve Bales attended representing 400,000 Americans who worked on the Apollo program.
Back here in the Town of Highlands, the local News did not shout out that a man had landed on the moon. Fred Brennan, local editor at the time, was somewhat critical of the many reasons behind the moon project. Political, attempts to beat the Russians, citing that exploring the Earth in terms of human values was equally important along with the billions of dollars spent on various space projects. However, he did recognize that out of the space program there were gained new methods of saving life and preserving health along with so many other advances that would ultimately benefit all of us. It was later learned that prior to the moon landing there was a ‘Project Horizon’ by another foreign power which was looking into installation of a permanent military base on the moon! Brennan was not incorrect in his statements.
Prior to the moon landing, astronaut Col. Frank Borman and former Village Police Chief Daniel Bonebrake attended a meeting of the Association of the U.S. Army. Chief Bonebrake was there to receive a citation for “service to the U.S. Army and his Community”. Bonebrake was one of Borman’s instructors at the U.S. Military Academy. Borman related that Bonebrake kept him awake by throwing firecrackers under his chair! Bonebrake responded, “Yes, but I never thought those charges would send you to the moon!”
Happier notes are witnessed by Michael Jackson’s famous “Moon Walk” and the Fort Montgomery Ladies Aux-iliary holding a “Moon Dance” in the Fort Fire House with music by “Love Power”.
