Apollo Astronauts Were Trained In Bucks County: Phun Philly Phacts

Editor's Note —This is a weekly series

WARMINSTER, PA —He was the Man on the Moon.

On Saturday, 55 years ago, Neil Armstrong took those first steps and made his famous statement following the first lunar landing on July 20, 1969, with fellow Apollo 11 Astronauts Buzz Aldrin and Michael Collins.

But before that voyage, the three astronauts were trained in Bucks County.

It's now known as The Fuge, a premier events center located on the site of the former Naval Air Development Center, which operated for 50 years as a Research and Development Center of Excellence for the Navy and other branches of the military.

From the late 1950s through the mid-1960s, NASA used the Johnsville Centrifuge for the acceleration (G force) training for X-15 pilots as well as Project Mercury, Project Gemini (New Nine) and 14 Project Apollo astronauts in preparation for manned spaceflight.

August also marks the 65th anniversary (August 1959) of Project Mercury Astronaut training starting on the Johnsville Centrifuge. Project Mercury was the first U.S. manned spaceflight program and consisted of 7 astronauts: Alan Shepard, Gus Grissom, Scott Carpenter, John Glenn, Wally Schirra, Deke Slayton, and Gordon Cooper.

As a premier training facility for NASA during the early days of manned spaceflight, the Johnsville Centrifuge played a critical role in preparing U.S. Astronauts to help win the "Space Race."

On Saturday, The Southeastern Pennsylvania Cold War Historical Society will sponsor “The Space Race in Southeastern Pennsylvania —A Celebration of Aerospace Heritage in the Greater Philadelphia Region” from 1 p.m. to 5 p.m. at The Fuge at 780 Falcon Circle.