The rocket will remain lit each evening until July 31st.
Source: U.S. Army White Sands Missile Range (via Facebook)
Photo: Courtesy
White Sands Missile Range is lighting the Redstone rocket at the WSMR Museum Missile Park to commemorate the Army’s 251st birthday leading into the Nation’s 250th anniversary.
The Independence 250th Rocket Lighting will mark our nation’s Semiquincentennial, marking 250 years since the signing of the U.S. Declaration of Independence on July 4, 1776. The rocket will remain lit each evening until July 31st.
“This celebration sits at the crossroads of a powerful story—of an Army and a Nation that evolved in tandem—in the late 18th century—a struggling young country yearning to be free and its first volunteer Army that eventually achieved just that,” said WSMR Commander Brig. Gen. Andrew Morgan. “This Army turned 250 years old a year ago—a full year ahead of our Nation’s 250th birthday this year. America had a standing Army a full year before declaring its independence—that was not by coincidence but by design. Our Nation’s Army has been here from the very beginning—protecting an emerging nation that was still defining its very existence.”
This will be a new annual tradition in conjunction with the Holiday Rocket lighting in December. In contrast, these red, white and blue lights highlight the period from the Army’s birthday through the July 4th, Independence Day weekend, and the vital relationship between America’s Army and the founding or our Nation.
With the lighting of the rocket WSMR celebrates two milestones and one legacy. It celebrates 251 years of defending freedom and 250 years of living it; honoring the courage, sacrifice, and spirit that built our Nation and kept it strong.
As our Nation turns 250 and the Army marks 251 years, we remember: freedom endures because service never stops.
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