by Wesley Harris
How many American universities possesses a Cold War Era nuclear-capable intercontinental ballistic missile?
Only one. Louisiana Tech University.
In 1962, F. Jay Taylor, a former Tech student and World War II Navy fighter pilot, became the school’s president when it was named Louisiana Polytechnic Institute. Within two years, Taylor had talked the U. S. Air Force out of the missile and a jet plane.
Not only was Tech the only college or university with its own missile, it was the only location where a Minuteman missile could be seen displayed outside the confines of a military facility.
The Air Force hardware did more than show Tech’s support for the military. With growing tension with the Soviet Union and the first American servicemen headed to Vietnam, the missile and jet were visible recruiting tools for the school’s Reserve Officer Training Corps (ROTC) unit. Visitors could hardly get on campus without passing one of the two. Had a guard shack been present, those visitors might have thought they were approaching an Air Force base.
The ROTC program was established in the fall of 1949 when the Soviets were flexing their muscles in Eastern Europe. Like many other U. S. colleges, active Air Force officers staffed the program and taught relevant courses. Students could work toward commission as an officer in the Armed Forces. Hundreds of young male students joined up that year.
Lieutenant General David Wade, commander of the Second Air Force at Barksdale Air Force Base dedicated the missile to Tech in a ceremony in October 1964 as the Soviets were building the Berlin Wall and muscling their way into defenseless countries. Wade, a Louisiana Tech graduate, said the missile was evidence of a great step forward in defending the United States. He said 600 such Minutemen missiles were stationed around the nation, demonstrating the country’s preparedness against potential nuclear attacks, an ever-present concern during the Cold War. The Claiborne Parish native said he hoped there would never be an occasion where they would have to be fired.
Wade cited the words of George Washington nearly 200 years before “to be prepared for war is the best way of preserving the peace.”
President Taylor had requested the missile and obtained it for the Tech campus through the efforts of General Wade. The missile, obviously without its nuclear warhead, had previously been used as a model at the Minot Air Force Base in North Dakota.
During the dedication ceremony, Taylor said the missile was a symbol of the military strength that stands to defend the United States and a symbol of Tech’s admiration and appreciation of the U.S. Air Force and its motto of “Peace is our profession.”
Taylor also described it as a symbol of the bond of friendship between Louisiana Tech, the Air Force, and the ROTC program, and a symbol of the future of the aerospace age. Lieutenant Colonel Jack Murphy, professor of air science and head of the ROTC unit, oversaw the dedication ceremony and the 600 Tech ROTC cadets who composed the unit. After his retirement from the Air Force, Murphy served on Taylor’s staff until 1980.
After graduating from Gibsland High School in 1940, Taylor attended Louisiana Tech for two years before enlisting as an aviation cadet in the United States Navy. He completed flight training in 1943 during World War II. As a Navy fighter plane pilot, he logged 2,000 hours of flight time in the Pacific and rose to the rank of lieutenant commander before receiving an honorable discharge after the war in 1946. Upon returning to civilian life, Taylor obtained several degrees while working as a commercial pilot before pursuing a career in higher education.
The missile joined a Lockheed T-33 Shooting Star in “protecting” Tech’s campus. The Air Force jet was the type used for training pilots. It has remained outside Graham Hall for over 60 years.
Over the years, the 55-foot ICBM missile suffered internal rust that threatened to topple it. It was removed from its Tech Drive location in early 2000s.
Since several Tech ROTC grads have joined the U. S. Space Force, the newest branch of the armed services, is it time to get a spaceship or satellite to exhibit on the Quad?
