Ronald Reagan Minuteman Missile State Historic Site

This is a walk into a sobering reminder of how the United States has helped to maintain peace for over 50 years. This is an intact and chilling reminder that there is always someone ready to launch one of the most destructive weapons ever known to man. The staff here is super friendly and knowledgeable, and the tour given is thorough. If you've ever wondered about a huge part of the United States nuclear triad, this is definitely worth the time to visit. Thank you to the Historical Society of North Dakota for the preservation and opening of this sobering place.

This isn’t something I find too fun, but it was a good tour and good to know about and be aware of historically. The tour guide was very impressive and clearly did his homework. He had a lot of information and answered all our questions. He was confident, friendly, and organized. This missile site was like a time capsule and gives tourists a little taste of the Cold War between the United States and Russia. You walk away with somewhat of an understanding of what it was like to work in a bunker situation where you can be responsible for turning a key and ending lives in a different country. The tour guide said a lot of people tried to avoid this job. You see the daily functioning and intricacies of living underground and how the machines worked as well as how personnel ate and slept. The toilet we used there was the same one they used while working there.

If you can make the trip you will learn a lot about an important part of American History that is unknown to most people! This is not only a great historic site, but it also has extremely knowledgeable guides.

As a grandfather I wanted help my grandson with dome history of the cold war era so seemed like a good choice thanks to North Dakota Historical Society for having the foresight to preserve it.

This was the most incredible experience. Our guide was a 17 yr old school girl, who was just exploding with enthusiasm and knowledge of a time period from before she was born. She told the story with such great passion, one could not help living the moment, feeling exactly what the missileers went through while on their 24 hr shifts. This is truly a "must see" for everybody. Going down 50 ft below ground and touring the bunker is an unforgettable moment. Well done to everybody involved at preserving this historic site for everyone to see. You are heroes in your own right. We will make this an annual trip.

I thoroughly enjoyed my tour of the site. My guide Miki was knowledgeable and answered every question that I had! Through the tour, you are able to see how the soldiers lived and worked when they were here. I had no idea that sites like this existed. It was a great look into the American side of the Cold War.

What a great historical place. It is not near anything, but it's worth planning to see. We had a great tour guide and learned so much about our nuclear defense history. We are so glad we made the trip out there.

What a great tour of some of our nations most significant piece of history. Our guide was phenomenol, she has a ton of knowledge and was appreciative and patient with my additional commentary as I served here as the de activation was taking place and was part of the final Launch Facility implosion. Everything sounds and smells the same...which caused some flashbacks! Overall amazing tour.

Awesome tour! We drove about a hour and a half from Fargo to check out this site. You pass lots of farm land. The location is just outside of Cooperstown. Pulling up to the location it was hard to tell if we were at the right place but there was a sign on the fence. The entrance is in the front of the building. We were greeted by Mickey and she gave us a great overview of the facility. The tour costs $10. It starts with a 20 minute video about the Cold War area, why the missile silos were created, and information about the building of this location. After the video there are some descriptive posters about the Cold War and where the missile sites were located. Then you go through the facility as it was left original in all its 80s glory. After the above ground tour you get to take the elevator below ground to the launch control area. The tour was highly informative and really opened up your mind to the historical importance of this location. Although there is no missile silo to see, it was still very much worth the trip. The tour guide also gave a great overview of how the facility operated and was great at answering questions.

The Ronald Reagan Minuteman Missile State Historic Site is just a few miles North and West of Cooperstown, North Dakota, along one side of a big wheat field. On the outside it's a nondescript, uninviting flat roofed structure of 1960's industrial architecture, all surrounded by a tall cyclone fence. From the road the place looks like some old time, forgettable office with a fence around it. In fact, the place looks so uninteresting that you'll be tempted to just drive on by. Don't. This place is worth your time. Several of these missile sites were decommissioned in the 1980s. Our government put the sites on the market and sold them to the public. The State of North Dakota recognized the Cold War significance of these installations. It acquired the Reagan Minuteman site for preservation and interpretation. In the ground level building you'll see a 20 minute video detailing the story of the missile silos. You can find the same video - "America's Ace in the Hole" - on YouTube. The building provided barracks, offices, dining hall and recreational area for the Air Force crews assigned to duty at the facility. You get to see every part of the above ground station. The visit really takes a turn for the bizarre when you step into an enormous freight elevator and slowly descend 50 feet into the underground launch facility. You'll feel the temperature drop as the elevator creeps downward. Down below you'll tour a cold, impersonal living space that once served as war room and living quarters for the Air Force crews. It's CREEPY down there! It's FASCINATING down there, too! Most chilling are the actual missile launch panels, complete with all the switches, buttons, dials, telephones and radios and so forth. The launch crews were strapped and buckled into their seats, just like on an airplane! The whole place looks a scene from the movie "Dr. Strangelove." DON'T MISS IT!

I thoroughly enjoyed going to the Ronald Reagan Minuteman missile site. As we were driving a RV . We drove to Cooperstown the night before and found a wonderful campsite at the town park with full service. We got there about 1030 as they open at 10. I was the only one there other than the staff . I was greeted by a young lady who was my tour guide for a $10 fee she gave me a nice one hour tour that ended up being an hour and 30 minutes which included watching a very interesting video about the Cold War and why this site was built how it was build and then decommission for nuclear arms treaty. Which decommission 600 missile sites out of 1000 .It was a eerie feeling riding the elevator down the 50 feet to the control Bunker to think that men and women are still doing the job with the still remaining 400 missile sites. On our way to Minot from Cooperstown on Hwy 83 . We drove by an Active missile control centre which almost the same except the armed guards, the armoured vehicle and the do not trespass signs. I highly recommend people to take their time to go to this facility. It's far easier to get into than the one in South Dakota. To me well worth the drive .

What a gem, thank goodness it was decided to preserve and maintain such an interesting piece of history. So often the big cities claim the importance in our country but this remote area really held a lot of power and importance. You drive up to Oscar Zero and winder if you're in the right place. But don't worry, head on in and one of the guides will get you al set. The price isn't much and is definitely worth it. You start with a 22min video which gives great background and sets the tenor of the times. You tour the above ground barracks and compound which is pretty basic, the real cool factor happens when you travel 50ft down the elevator into the blast capsules. You really feel like you're back in the 50s or on the tv show LOST. Such an interesting experience. Our guide was very knowledgable. If its been a long day you can honestly skip the November site, its all above ground and honestly not much to see. The main site was absolutely a must do and worth a trip if you're in the area!!

This place is a tremendous historical site for anyone, but especially for someone who grew up during the Cold War. My visit included a short and very informative film, a tour of the surface facility, and a tour of the underground facility at the missile control complex. My tour guide was Katie, who was pleasant and very informative. Combine this with a visit to the November - 33 missile silo site nearby, and you get a real sense of the links the United States had to go to to protect itself during the Cold War.

Nice to visit the launch control center Oscar zero "below ground" but the missile silo named November 33 is ONLY above ground self guided " already imploded" and not worth the trip! Traveled 660 miles in a day round trip thinking we were getting a tour of the silo below ground! Our tour guide had very little knowledge of the inner workings of the site, only what she had been told! If you want to see REAL LIFE working minuteman 3 missile silos drive from Billings to Great Falls Montana and look for them next to the road from Harlowton to Greatfalls! DON'T ATTEMPT TO GO BEYOND THE FENCE OR YOU WILL BE MET WITH VERY HEAVILY ARMED PERSONS!!!!!

It was great our tour gide let us interact with some of the components and even opened up the panel leading to the escape hatch.

Excellent tour guide, willing to answer any question we or our kids came up with. Good general knowledge for anyone interested in the cold war era!