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Coordinates: 32°51′09″N 79°57′24″W / 32.85250°N 79.95667°W / 32.85250; -79.95667
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'''Naval Weapons Station Charleston''' is a base of the [[United States Navy]] located on the west bank of the [[Cooper River (South Carolina)|Cooper River]], in the cities of [[Goose Creek, South Carolina|Goose Creek]] and [[Hanahan, South Carolina|Hanahan]] [[South Carolina]].<ref>"[http://factfinder.census.gov/servlet/MapItDrawServlet?geo_id=16000US4529815&_bucket_id=50&tree_id=420&context=saff&_lang=en&_sse=on Goose Creek city, South Carolina]." [[U.S. Census Bureau]]. Retrieved on May 30, 2010.</ref><ref>"[http://factfinder.census.gov/servlet/MapItDrawServlet?geo_id=16000US4532065&_bucket_id=50&tree_id=420&context=saff&_lang=en&_sse=on Hanahan city, South Carolina]." [[U.S. Census Bureau]]. Retrieved on May 30, 2010.</ref><ref name="Southannexbasemap">"[http://www.npc.navy.mil/NR/rdonlyres/28D8ABBF-20BE-4E3C-AB22-B33752A5CB31/0/CharlestonBaseMap.pdf Charleston Base Map]." Naval Consolidated Brig, Charleston. Retrieved on May 30, 2010.</ref> The base encompasses more than 17,000 acres (69&nbsp;km²) of land with 10,000 acres (40&nbsp;km²) of forest and wetlands, 16-plus miles of waterfront, four deep-water piers, {{convert|38.2|mi|km}} of railroad and {{convert|292|mi|km}} of road. The current workforce (military/civil service/contractor) numbers more than 11,000 with an additional 3,600 people in on-base family housing.<ref>[https://www.cnic.navy.mil/Charleston/AboutCNIC/index.htm About Naval Weapons Station Charleston]</ref>
'''Naval Weapons Station Charleston''' is a base of the [[United States Navy]] located on the west bank of the [[Cooper River (South Carolina)|Cooper River]], in the cities of [[Goose Creek, South Carolina|Goose Creek]] and [[Hanahan, South Carolina|Hanahan]] [[South Carolina]].<ref>"[http://factfinder.census.gov/servlet/MapItDrawServlet?geo_id=16000US4529815&_bucket_id=50&tree_id=420&context=saff&_lang=en&_sse=on Goose Creek city, South Carolina]." [[U.S. Census Bureau]]. Retrieved on May 30, 2010.</ref><ref>"[http://factfinder.census.gov/servlet/MapItDrawServlet?geo_id=16000US4532065&_bucket_id=50&tree_id=420&context=saff&_lang=en&_sse=on Hanahan city, South Carolina]." [[U.S. Census Bureau]]. Retrieved on May 30, 2010.</ref><ref name="Southannexbasemap">"[http://www.npc.navy.mil/NR/rdonlyres/28D8ABBF-20BE-4E3C-AB22-B33752A5CB31/0/CharlestonBaseMap.pdf Charleston Base Map]." Naval Consolidated Brig, Charleston. Retrieved on May 30, 2010.</ref> The base encompasses more than 17,000 acres (69&nbsp;km²) of land with 10,000 acres (40&nbsp;km²) of forest and wetlands, 16-plus miles of waterfront, four deep-water piers, {{convert|38.2|mi|km}} of railroad and {{convert|292|mi|km}} of road. The current workforce (military/civil service/contractor) numbers more than 11,000 with an additional 3,600 people in on-base family housing.<ref>[https://www.cnic.navy.mil/Charleston/AboutCNIC/index.htm About Naval Weapons Station Charleston]</ref>


Under the [[Base Realignment and Closure, 2005|2005 Base Realignment and Closure plan]] the Air Force is to jointly manage Naval Weapons Station Charleston and [[Charleston Air Force Base]] as [[Joint Base Charleston]].<ref>[http://www.charleston.af.mil/news/story.asp?id=123024414 Joint Basing with Naval Weapons Station moves forward], July 28, 2006.</ref>
Under the [[Base Realignment and Closure, 2005|2005 Base Realignment and Closure plan]] the Air Force now jointly manages Naval Weapons Station Charleston and [[Charleston Air Force Base]] as [[Joint Base Charleston]].<ref>[http://www.charleston.af.mil/news/story.asp?id=123024414 Joint Basing with Naval Weapons Station moves forward], July 28, 2006.</ref>


==History==
==History==

Revision as of 09:56, 20 January 2014

32°51′09″N 79°57′24″W / 32.85250°N 79.95667°W / 32.85250; -79.95667

Map of the southern portion of NSA Charleston

Naval Weapons Station Charleston is a base of the United States Navy located on the west bank of the Cooper River, in the cities of Goose Creek and Hanahan South Carolina.[1][2][3] The base encompasses more than 17,000 acres (69 km²) of land with 10,000 acres (40 km²) of forest and wetlands, 16-plus miles of waterfront, four deep-water piers, 38.2 miles (61.5 km) of railroad and 292 miles (470 km) of road. The current workforce (military/civil service/contractor) numbers more than 11,000 with an additional 3,600 people in on-base family housing.[4]

Under the 2005 Base Realignment and Closure plan the Air Force now jointly manages Naval Weapons Station Charleston and Charleston Air Force Base as Joint Base Charleston.[5]

History

Commissioned on November 5, 1941 as the United States Naval Ammunition Depot, the facility was used as an ammunition collection and distribution point during World War II. Ammunition manufactured throughout the country was sent to the base and then loaded onto ships being built at the Charleston Naval Shipyard. After the war, the station oversaw the removal of ordnance from deactivated ships. There was minimal activity at the base for the next several years.[6]

In the mid-1950s, the station experienced renewed activity when its mission was expanded to include the handling of guided missiles. Base personnel were tasked with arming submarines with the UGM-27 Polaris missile, and in 1960 the Polaris Missile Facility Atlantic (POMFLANT) was constructed within the base. More land was acquired and facilities were built in 1965 to accommodate the handling of Terrier, Tartar, and Hawk missiles. Buildings were added again in 1969 for the Standard and Red Eye missiles. The base continued to grow through the 1970s and, on September 30, 1981, acquired the nearby Charleston Army Depot. The station's name was then changed to Naval Weapons Station South.[6]

Current status

The Weapons Station has expanded its mission and Department of Defense support role with over 40 tenant commands, and today is a training center, with the Naval Nuclear Power Training Command (NNPTC), Nuclear Power Training Unit, Propulsion Facility, and Border Patrol satellite academy; Naval Consolidated Brig, Charleston; Navy Munitions Command Unit Charleston; Explosive Ordnance Detachments; Marine Corps Reserve Center; an engineering complex, with the Space and Naval Warfare Systems Center (SPAWAR, this is the largest employer in the Charleston area) and is close to the Naval Facilities Engineering Command Southeast; 269 above-ground ammunition magazines, maintenance and storage of military ordnance including mines, and serves as an Army logistics hub, the busiest continental United States surface port in the defense transportation system. In addition, NWS Charleston contains more than 1,800 on-base houses for Navy enlisted and officer dependents as well as Coast Guard dependents, and has a child care facility, elementary and middle schools.

A large medical clinic near NNPTC in Goose Creek has just finished construction.[7]

References

  1. ^ "Goose Creek city, South Carolina." U.S. Census Bureau. Retrieved on May 30, 2010.
  2. ^ "Hanahan city, South Carolina." U.S. Census Bureau. Retrieved on May 30, 2010.
  3. ^ "Charleston Base Map." Naval Consolidated Brig, Charleston. Retrieved on May 30, 2010.
  4. ^ About Naval Weapons Station Charleston
  5. ^ Joint Basing with Naval Weapons Station moves forward, July 28, 2006.
  6. ^ a b "Charleston Naval Weapon Station". GlobalSecurity.org. August 21, 2005. Retrieved 2007-11-27.
  7. ^ Jill Coley, "Military striving to fix health care ills", The Post and Courier, January 4, 2008.
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