New Jersey's Forbidden Peninsula | SANDY HOOK
HTML-код
- Опубликовано: 1 июн 2024
- Remove your personal information from the web at joindeleteme.com/SOCASH and use code SOCASH for 20% off US consumer plans. DeleteMe International plans: international.joindeleteme.com/
Fort Hancock, situated on Sandy Hook in New Jersey, rose to prominence in the late 19th century as a vital coastal defense installation tasked with safeguarding the entrance to New York Harbor. Established in 1895, the fortification played a crucial role in the defense strategy of the United States, particularly during times of conflict like World War I and World War II. Its strategic location and advanced coastal artillery systems made it a formidable stronghold. However, with advancements in military technology and changes in defense priorities, Fort Hancock's significance diminished over time. By the mid-20th century, its role as a frontline defense post waned, leading to its eventual decommissioning in 1974. Despite its fall from military prominence, Fort Hancock remains a testament to the nation's coastal defense history, now preserved as part of the Sandy Hook Unit of Gateway National Recreation Area, offering visitors a glimpse into its storied past.
Support the Channel by becoming a member 👉 / @itshistory
IT’S HISTORY - Weekly Tales of American Urban Decay as presented by your host Ryan Socash.
» CONTACT
For brands, agencies, and sponsorships: itshistory@thoughtleaders.io
Socash on Insta 👉 / ryansocash
To Submit your episode idea, send a short description and a small image here 📧 its.history.official@gmail.com
» CREDIT
Scriptwriter - Brent Sapp
Editor - Karolina Szwata,
Host - Ryan Socash
Music/Sound Design: Dave Daddario
» NOTICE
Some images may be used for illustrative purposes only - always reflecting the accurate time frame and content. Events of factual error / mispronounced word/spelling mistakes - retractions will be published in this section.
Remove your personal information from the web at joindeleteme.com/SOCASH and use code SOCASH for 20% off US consumer plans. DeleteMe International plans: international.joindeleteme.com/
I’m a civil engineer working on the plans to upgrade the sewer and water system at ft Hancock. There is a lot of cool abandoned stuff and some of the area is quite run down but they are putting a lot of money into it, it’s going to be really cool once it’s done. Part of the planned work includes restoring the houses on officers row, the houses will be rented out as summer homes. It’s a beautiful park, tons of birds, deer, and foxes, and a beautiful natural beach.
That is amazing! I really wish I could have interviewed you on the topic.
Last I saw, it's supposed to be permanent housing. Condos and some affordable units. Either way, it's an interesting project. I have mixed feelings about housing in the middle of a National Recreation Area.
Of course they’re gonna ruin the area with condos.
Luxury Houses for the Venezuelans?
@@ITSHISTORYlet me know if you want any more info, maybe for a follow up video!
I was stationed on the hill in 1970. It was located above Atlantic highlands. The 52nd air defense artillery. It was a radar guidance for the Hercules missiles on Sandy Hook. There were concrete bunkers everywhere. There were missile bases all over the east coast. Pedrick town, down by Philly, had tons of old bunkers and we would get word about other radar and missile bases. For the most part it was kept quiet. There are a lot of cold war relics on the coasts. Just crumbing away.
There is a munitions Depot located nearby.
Battery Lewis is reopened as a public display that's really quite nice, and adjacent Hartshorne woods have some beautiful trails. maps.app.goo.gl/fr46zK5VDMaNSgbN8
I go mountain biking up there a few times a year. Lots of old bunkers and structures scattered about in the woods.
I remember running cross-country against Henry Hudson High School back in the mid-1970's and passing missile installations tucked in the woods. I don't know if they were still considered active at the time.
I grew up fishing and skateboard there. It has amazing fishing and near the tip has some of the best and prettiest sandbars and beaches. It feel like a tropical island in the summer. You just need to make a mile hike in the sand to get there
Hi Ryan, I really enjoy your work. Thank you. However you missed a really important detail concerning the role SH plays in local maritime security. The Military presence in SH did not disappear with the Army. The US Coast Guard has a long standing presence at the tip of SH. Group command is located there. That Coast Guard unit shares responsibility for the security of NY harbor. Also to the west of Sandy Hook is Earl Naval Weapons station. Coast Guard group SH is responsible for maintaining maritime security in that area when ships are being loaded/unloaded.
Thank you for the elaboration!
Yeah, my grandfather docked his boat at Atlantic highlands marina for like twenty years. We would always fish just outside the buoys off of Earl NWS. My grandfather and his friend almost got shot there back in the ‘70s. They were fluking and sea-bassing there in an old whaler with a junky old outboard and it broke down & they couldn’t get it restarted, so they drifted all the way in to the pier on base. Luckily my grandpa put his hands up and started yelling “we’re broke down, we’re broke down.” The guards there told them they almost shot them. I guess they had orders to shoot on sight if anyone came that close. My grandpas other fishing buddy was in the navy, and used to be stationed in those old yellow officers quarters by the coast guard station. He said there were a lot of rumors that they were haunted, and some of his friends had claimed to see ghosts in revolutionary war uniforms. Definitely a weird place.
The seals are back! And the animals r abundant! So is the poison Ivy! One my my fave places to be year round even on rainy days. Also please don’t litter and pick up ur trash!!
I love Ft. Hancock. There is just so many buildings and sites to visit. And it has so much history during the Revolutionary War. I thought it was funny to think that in order to build the lighthouse, the Crown had a lottery. And if my memory doesn't fail me, the Crown had to have another lottery to raise the funds to build the lighthouse.
If you walk the path before you get to Ft. Hancock, you come across a small maker. The maker pays homage to the last remaining British sailors who went in search of deserters who figured, "why not become one of the rebels?"
The deserters jumped ship, the HMS Assistance in late December 1783. It would be well over a year after hostilities ended the War of Independence. So these sailors were not the enemy any more. I guess the USA has always been the land to run to when you're running away from home.
Many people from the area don't even know there is such a marker. I discovered it just going on a long walk along the path one summer day. I walked from Lot D to the Lighthouse.
And there it was. Flags and all, and my bewildered look on my face as I saw the Union Jack and the USA Flag on the same marker.
The story is;
Lieutenant Hamilton Douglas Halyburton, with 12 crew members made their way to the Hook to begin their search on December 31 for the deserters.
The search team got trapped in a snowstorm and all died of exposure. You just can't picture such a nice stretch of land being a hostile environment if you look at it from today.
"According to the Park Service wayside marker near the memorial, the remains of the unfortunate party lay at the site of the memorial untouched until 1909 when workmen at Fort Hancock discovered them." - from the site, Hidden New Jersey www.hiddennj.com/2012/05/union-jack-and-deserting-seamen-sandy.html
Thank you for this amazing video! Fort Hancock is such a unique place. Battery Potter was actually built from 1890-92 because right above the main entrance is the date of erection. It was the first of many experimental endicott era gun batteries built at the hook. It also was the only one of two batteries built in the US with land defenses. The granite facade was built with leftover granite from the 1850s fort. Battery Granger and Arrowsmith replaced the battery in 1907. The first disappearing battery was Battery Halleck built in 1892 and activated in 1896. The mortar battery predated the disappearing carriage and was built in 1890. The mortar battery was reused as the HDCP in WWII. Battery Kingman not Kingston. Boston had a missle master at Fort Heath but it was demolished in 1969. Most of the WWII temporary buildings were removed by 2012 and the last two were removed in 2018. The post hospital burned in the 1990s. Tours of some of the bunkers are offered and NPS who controls most of the site is working on restoring and adaptively reusing most of the post buildings. The Coast Guard still controls some of the tip and this includes the remains of the 1850s fort and a few endicott gun batteries.
This might be the most rich and interesting info in the chat of any channel .. love watching and then seeing then reading about what people have personally experienced.. thank you
Did you go to fort sill?
Definitely not the northern most tip of NJ, it’s actually about as central as you can get
Yes I’m sorry for the confusion, I was referring to the Peninsula island that runs down to AC.
We're with you.@@ITSHISTORY
@@MRosati5000What does this mean? You're with him when he fucks up basic geography? It's the northernmost tip of the Jersey Shore but that's not what he said
Yhea that threw me off too 🙂
@@ITSHISTORYStop calling it a "peninsula island." It's one or the other, in this case it's a peninsula.
On the left side if the diagram Highlands Missile Master diagram, I smiled when I saw an output to "SAGE".
SAGE (Semi Automatic Ground Environment) was the network linking defense radar, interceptor, and defense missile sites nationwide. My first Air Force duty assignment in 1977 was to the 792nd Radar Squadron, Ground to Air Transmitter/Receiver (GATR) site in North Charleston AFS, SC. Along with the ground to air radio equipment, I maintained the SAGE equipment used to transmit tracking data to F-106 Delta Darts of Det. 1, 48th Fighter Interceptor Squadron at Charleston AFB.
The radar squadron was deactivated in 1980 due the the activation of the Joint Surveillance System radar at Jedburg, SC. The GATR site closed a year later.
I’ve been to the beaches there many times. My father used to take us there when I was little. You could get a pass to enter the base to go to the beaches.
Now that beach is part of the National Park system. There remains a USCG station there, the rest are public beaches, one being clothing optional.
Remember to "Sun you buns on Beach G!" 😂
More like baked beached whales lol
@dirtlevel if youve ever left hot dogs on the grill too long, you dont need to go see beach g
@@Desert_Ov_Thee_Real lol
Weekdays at Gunnison beach are fabulous. We get a really nice group of regulars, but weekends are too darn crowded. If go on the weekend, we go early and leave early.
Saw a 90yo naked leathery man chase his beach umbrella the entire length of the beach....the laughter of 100s...hilarious
I've walked some of those army ruins as a kid going to Sandy Hook Beach,NJ,now just old buildings,lived there 40 years
35 years ago my town in Central Jersey had weekend trips there. We stayed in what i remember to be old barracks..i met some amazing friends there! If i recall correctly they were green and brown buildings. Excellent memories. The buildings had eerie sounds .
I grew up in NJ and when I was in Boy Scouts we camped at Sandy Hook every spring. We camped right next to the bunkers and we spent a lot of time running through them, turning off our flashlights and seeing who could find their way out in the dark. It's a shame that the bunkers are now closed because of disrepair. Sandy Hook campouts were some of the best carports I remember
I grew up 10 minutes from Sandy Hook! Many great memories in that area, and I took my fiancé on a tour of the fort the last time I was home 😄 thanks for the nostalgia!
Thanks for sharing!
My favourite place! Used to go here a lot. Memories.
A great post, thank you
Another great video. Thx.
Glad you enjoyed it
I grew up in Jersey and went to sandy hook every summer in the 80s and 90s. Just last year I visited Fort Hancock for the first time and learned a lil bit about the history. All those years and never really knew. Good video.
The northernmost part of NJ is actually Sussex County. Sandy hook is the northernmost ocean beach in NJ.
I miss all the Radomes all over America.
I remember going to the 60 FOOT dome on top of the mountain and it was amazing
Thank you for covering this!!!
Something very few know about.
Will you be covering Fort Mott at any point?
Thanks so much for watching! I think we are going to slow down with the military topics for a while to cover some urban architecture, but if you email me this concept I’ll it on the list.
That's too funny, I was going to post the same thing about Fort Mott.
It's also home to New Jersey's only nude beach. lol
Been to Gunnison Beach many times great Beach
Bet. Sold.
When I still lived in NJ, I spent plenty of time each Summer at Gunnison Beach.
I came here to say that the guns were the namesake of Gunnison Beach 😂
Damn. I'm right in Essex County. I never knew.🤦🏾♂️🤯😂
I found your video very informative, and put a link to it in the description of some of my past Sandy Hook exploration videos. 👍
Great video as usual.
I appreciate that
Been to Sandy Hook many times and often wondered if it was possible to privatize those houses for summer use, say with a 10+ year contract so no cost to the public. Would have to be private investors building to some preset code for preservation. It could be a win / win to have the buildings refurbished and enjoyed. I would bet there'd be no shortage of customers at several thousand bucks a week per home.
The NPS which controlls the site is doing exactly that! If you go on their website you can fill out a form for renting or leasing one of the many already restored buildings. Most of the unrestored buildings are on officers row which was hit the hardest during hurricane sandy in 2012.
@@julianmalcolm Back in the day I worked with a guy who rented one out for the Summer. It was a great place to chill after work when they closed the park. The public couldn't get out there after it closed so you had that whole part of the peninsula, practically to yourself
There are a few for rent, the nicest part in my mind is that there are only a few available, the solitude is awesome.
@@alexvetlov2486 Yes, there is a certain isolation factor, but the reality is you are that "fly on the wall" watching the passing boats, planes, and a city of millions from across the bay. I have also been on the beaches in the off-time and watched various wildlife wandering around. (other than birds)
A few more details/places on the peninsula:
An active Coast Guard station is at the northern tip.
The only clothing-optional beach in the New Jersey, Gunnison Beach.
Near the north end (North Beach) was a proving ground used to test artillery pieces.
A marine biology focused high school (Marine Academy of Science and Technology).
Tours of the various historic sites (lighthouse, batteries, Nike sites) are regularly offered.
There is a small museum at/about the former lifeboat station.
There is a public primitive campground (fee charged).
The bay side of the south end is very popular with wind surfers.
wow u actually made a video of Sandy Hook. That was fast!
I helped on a archeology dig near the Officers houses. I was just visiting Sandy Hook when I saw a group of people digging in shallow pits. I stopped the car and asked if they needed help and I was told yes they did. My wife and I were there till it was getting dark. The biggest find in our group was a brooch that was Probably worn by a officer's wife.
Born and raised on the Jersey Shore and when I hear Sandy Hook I mainly think about the beach as that was the main place for us to go in the 80s and 90s. I sadly didn't even know this history about it until now!
I live in New Jersey, and this place is not abandoned. I see people coming to visit the artifacts.
As I have realized that you reaide (choose) the Atlantic (east coast), I would lve for you to do an episode regarding Washington States WWII Coastal Defences.
Oregon has Fort Stevens
Probably would be a better option
In the late 90s, we drove through Sandy Hook on the way back from another location on a class field trip. The old brick buildings looked really cool and from another era. I had no idea there is camping there and I would love to do that sometime!
Camping, parking is VERY limited for the camping area, get there extra early on Friday if weekend camping. As the sun sets secure all food, the raccoons come out in droves, they are fearless and bold and will steal any food. Be reminded that they are wild animals, do not feed or approach them. A lot of really cool things to explore in the area. The NJ Marine Sciences Consortium offers some great youth programs.
We enjoyed visiting Sandy Hook . I did some shore fishing and I was somewhat shocked to see a NOAA agent searching my tackle bag . She explained that she had the right to do so without cause or a warrant . I really didn't care but if you have something you should not have legally , use my comment as a consideration if you visit Sandy Hook . It is well worth the visit !
0:00 that's not the northern most tip of NJ. Two hours north of there in Sussex County is the northern most tip, bordering PA and NY. Sandy Hook is actually more in the center of NJ, and technically part of the Mid-Atlantic, not the Northeast.
Hello. I was going to mention that 'till I saw your post. Thanks for mentioning it.
Central Jersey does exist
Not if they call it Taylor Ham.@@JoeyCarb
The hook was also the Army Proving Ground before it moved to Aberdeen MD many years ago. As the site was transitioned to a park they were cleaning up unexploded ordinance have been found over the years.
So cool to see so many videos from New Jersey I live 5 minutes from Sandy hook
I recall going to the recreational area/beach as a kid during the 70's. Had no idea that there was a fort there.
great video......
Thank you
IMO one of the best times to visit historic Fort Hancock was before Hurricane Sandy in 2012. I took my best photos of the area then. Sandy took its toll on a lot of the historic houses leading e. g. to ugly looking wood strips stabilizing porch roofs of officer row houses. A couple years ago renovations and commercialization (it is NJ still...) took place to rent some of the buildings - now areas are off limits for visitors, and it just doesn't fit the more original scenes from before. One good thing though is a nice little cafe across the lighthouse to grab a coffee and a snack. I have been often to Sandy Hook for almost 12 years when I lived only about 10 miles away in NJ. Have nice memories and photos from there, but I have relocated in 2022 and won't be seeing Sandy Hook as often anymore.
I can see where George Melies got inspiration for his gun in A Trip to the Moon
There was a giant gun in the Jules Verne novel.
They had a very similar Fort in South Jersey to protect Wilmington and Philadelphia ports in the late 1800's and early 1900's. Fort Mott still has the barrels of those disappearing guns in the yard.
In 2012, i went to the lighthouse there before closing time. It was lovely.
I remember several Nike Bases in South Jersey.
Some of the 1 Story Office buildings are still in use as a Pre School.
12:51 Search radar (LOPAR, Low Power Acquisition Radar IIRC, on the far right)
13:09 Tracking radars/Command transmitter (one of 3 similar units, on the far left)
[Under dome/Not visible] Search radar (HIPAR, High Power Acquisition Radar IIRC); in the case of Sandy Hook this was located atop the nearby Highlands, IIRC (today's Hartshorne Woods Park)
The fortifications on both sides of Upper New York Harbor are interesting places to visit.
I was at a fort on Whidbey island washington that had a very similar design, including the guns and mortar system.
I've been watching your videos for years and I live in the little town of Highlands that you mentioned here in the video so it was a real treat watching this one. It's pretty accurate what you said at the end about Sandy Hook being a place to "get away from it all". Most of my time not working is spent walking my dogs along Sandy Hook!
I was living in New Jersey right after its was fucked up by hurricane sandy. We drove up and down Jersey Shore just looking at million dollar homes that were all boarded up and covered in sand.
I remember that. I also saw lots and lots of 100-250k boats, sitting along the highway, miles from the nearest marina. It was wild. I wonder how many people never found their boats/cars after that storm.
Those houses are now twice the price.
Oh goodness. Sandy Hook was the camping trip destination for teenagers in NJ looking for peace and serenity when I was a wayward teen in the 70s. The batteries were so fun to explore, concealing camp fires. The Park Rangers were thorough and always popping up at what we thought was the worst times. In retrospect, they probably saved us from......Anyway, my kids grew up in coastal NC, with similar Park Rangers always prevalent and putting a damper on their hijinks. Thankfully.
It is a great place to anchor.
I was very surprised to see Cactus growing on the Hook . Lots of Cactus ......
I used to party in those mansions in the late 70,s beautiful marble throughout
At 6:54 you are showing the Battlecruiser HMS Hood, which was famously sunk by the Nazi Battlship Bismarck in 1941 losing all hands on deck.
A good place to go fishing.
Not even a mention of the most important history....
There's something about major nude beaches, that always seems to cause them to have conflicts over piping plovers and least terns. Somehow adjacent military areas, or textile fetishist beaches, rarely seem to have those same birds needing protection from larger and more invasive beach user groups.
We have been to Sandy hook a couple of times, it's a neat place.
We live near a Niki base it was abandoned but some of the buildings were still there until about twenty years ago.
nice
I came here to learn about history and left with an algorithm suggesting techno remixes of Alex Jones rants.
Growing up in the 70’s most of Sandy Hook was off limits. You couldn’t drive out to the Light House or just wander around. Just the first two beaches were open. I used to sail with guys who grew up down there & we’d anchor at Horseshoe Cove sometimes. I remember thinking those Officers homes were condos. 😂
As a teenager in the 1980s it would be covered deep in trash from Dumpsite 101, where NYC dumped it's garbage in the ocean. Full bags of trash, medical waste, crack vials, you name it- would wash up.
I remember that well
@@dirtlevel it destroyed The Jersey Shore...
Eagleswood in NJ is where the real history is at. It would make a killer video if you were able to find enough research on it. Very interesting stuff I grew up in Perth Amboy New Jersey. Eagleswood Arthur's kill look it up it's rich in history.
Good piece. A couple of nits: Sandy Hook is nowhere near the northernmost part of New Jersey; it's about 100 miles south of that. And it is NOT an island.
"Forbidden"? Been there many times. Nothing 'forbidden' about it.
You can rent and live in the abandoned homes
What a coincidence, I was just there for the first time two days ago :-)
Did you see the seals?
This is one of my favorite places to train for cycling.
A map showing where this is would be helpful.
Hiked around Sandy Hook for years as kid and adult..love it there.
The Coast Guard is still stationed there
🇺🇲🫡🫡🫡🫡🫡
Isn't that where Gunnison Beach is, the clothes optional beach?
I've been there
Whats most amazing is you could be on the beach and watch these gigantic container ships go floating by on their way to and from Port of newark
There is a small fee (5.00 per car) to get onto Gateway National SeaShore
I went camping at Fort Hancock on a number of occasions in the mid to late 1970’s. I shocked to see how run down the officers houses have become. They were all habitable 40 years ago. Horrible neglect.
It was mostly Sandy that caused that.
Wow 🤟🤟
I thought no one was allowed to live there any more because of the ammo loading pier danger area.
I have been to Sandy Hook many times, thanks for sharing.
Thanks for watching!
I just went to the beach there two days ago with my grandma and saw all the abandoned houses wondering what happened
Being from the west, i thought sandy hook was just an elementary school. So much more informed now!
There are many instances of town names being duplicated in different states. Sandy Hook, NJ is a completely different place from Sandy Hook, CT.
Imagine being a creator, spending hours to make a very good history video and only got 1,2K likes... Guys like this video, it helps to youtube share with more people!
It's got 62k, this channel has grown a lot, but a lot of US history so not very popular abroad
You forgot to mention the nude beach part!
gunnison beach
I’m not trying to get canceled 😎
There is a high school located on the hook, M.A.S.T MARINE ACADEMY of SCIENCE And TECHNOLOGY.
took my dog to the dog beach for a day on the bayside once. was pretty nice. parkings a rip off.
0:01I love how the nude beaches are blurred, like you're going to see boobs from space!
We have no anti-aircraft protection today.
Why nothing on sandy hooks railroads ?
forbidden? the line to get on it is a mile long in the summer
Thank you for mentioning Nixons diplomatic efforts to de-escalate the cold war through agreements with the Soviet Union.
Peninsula island?
ive Been there.
It isn't for forbidden, I've been there.
Dude, it is either a peninsula or and island, it can not be a peninsula island and is not the most Northern tip of New Jersey.
You can remove or fill sand/dirt or or rock...
But yeah, you're exactly right.
It's sad to me how America lets these old forts fall apart like this. They don't last nearly as long as the European strongholds do..
there even demolishing the historic bunkers with no plans to rebuild.
I’ve stayed in an officers house during summer, there are 4 available for rent
There is no such thing as a peninsula island, it's either one or the other. Obviously, this is just a peninsula. An island is surrounded by water on all sides, a peninsula is mostly surrounded by water except for one side that's attached to the main land
I wonder what they look like in today's day & age in 2024 ????
It's been awhile Since I've been to Jersey.
Last time I was there at Sandy Hook Beach 2017
The concrete defense structures are in very poor shape, crumbling and unstable after years of salt water and weather.
There is a school too, surprised you didn't mention it.
Respectfully, the entire rest of RUclips has covered that unfortunate topic.
@@ITSHISTORY
I always enjoy your posts, but respectfully you have not done your research. There is a functioning school here too, a friend of mine whom I respect and admire is teacher here. The school is just south of the Sandy Hook light house.
I cant post links here but look up M.A.S.T. Sandy Hook.
You can imagine the confusion I had when the unfortunate was happening.
@@ITSHISTORY
Did you at least look up M.A.S.T. Academy Sandy Hook?
Hmm, not cool I thought I left you a respectful and educated reply.
@@ITSHISTORY the Sandy Hook school that was involved in the unfortunate shooting was in CT. There is a highly competitive marine biology vocational school (MAST) on Sandy Hook
@@colettec5721
Exactly, a friend of mine works at MAST. I tried to enlighten him but he deleted my post.
Hey another NIKE Missile site from 2 videos ago
Gonna bet the ZU-23-2 was not used there since thats Soviet. lol