Posts: 851
From: Celina, Ohio
Registered: Feb 2000

Posts: 2176
From: West Jordan, Utah USA
Registered: Dec 1999

Posts: 1896
From: Cape Canaveral, FL
Registered: May 2000

Posts: 1376
From: ridgefield, ct
Registered: May 2002

posted 05-17-2007 05:30 PM               

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So you're the one who put that there. The last time I was out to Pad 34, the guide said that he thought that Bruce Willis put it there.

What some people stoop to for a souvenir.

Posts: 851
From: Celina, Ohio
Registered: Feb 2000

Posts: 1156
From: Sandpoint, ID, USA
Registered: Mar 2003

Posts: 151
From: Florida, US
Registered: May 2006

posted 05-17-2007 10:00 PM            

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This is triply disheartening – that it was stolen, that someone would steal it, that someone could steal it.

I was a young college kid in 1967, but 30 years later, in 1997, I worked in the Launch Support Operations Building of Complex 34 as a contractor helping to assemble the Scott Carpenter Space Analog Station. Often on dinner breaks around sunset, I would walk up to the pedestal, look at the plaques and spend a few moments alone with the sounds of surf and wind. I was very aware that I was walking in the footprints of giants, the same feelings I experienced as a youngster strolling the battlefields of Gettysburg.

Thanks to Rick, and thanks to all of us who remember the men who worked there, and the three who perished on "34."

Posts: 2896
From: Titusville, FL USA
Registered: Feb 2005

posted 05-18-2007 06:59 AM               

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Rick, as a volunteer with the Apollo 1 Memorial Foundation I'd like to thank you for your generosity - again.

It's a sad state of affairs when someone stoops so low as to steal a plaque off of a pedestal that we all hold so dear.

Sooner or later the thief is going to try to sell it on eBay or will tell someone that they have it. I hope that the word eventually reaches us so we can introduce them to the justice system.

I'll email Kate this weekend so she is aware of this and maybe something can be done to prevent it from happening again.

Posts: 4167
From: England
Registered: Feb 2001

posted 05-18-2007 10:50 AM               

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Tim, I remember security bars being fitted at a place I worked years ago. They used small expansion bolts that had an epoxy resin squirted into the holes before inserting the bolts.

I was told the resin would "set like concrete" and that "you will never get those out again".

You might want to use this method on the new plaque... Just an idea!

Posts: 3811
From: Midwest, USA
Registered: Jul 2005

posted 05-18-2007 11:46 AM               

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I can't imagine what joy this stolen plaque would give to any collector. The irony is that such a person dishonors the fallen astronauts by stealing a plaque that was meant to honor them. As this was the place they they died, I think of the theft as being no better than grave robbery.

If the thief is reading this, I hope you enjoy your loot knowing that you'll never have the honor and dignity that these astronauts had. Let the plaque be a daily reminder of that to you.

Posts: 4167
From: England
Registered: Feb 2001

Posts: 1308
From: GA, USA
Registered: Jan 2004

posted 05-18-2007 01:54 PM               

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This is just appalling. I agree with Mark in that this is akin to robbing a tombstone from a grave.

I took the Cape Canaveral tour back in January of '03. If it's the same today then there is only one tour per day. My tour had only about 20 people.

I'm wondering if the Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex might have a record of who went on the tour the day they think the plaque was stolen through credit card receipts, assuming it was a tourist and not an employee who stole it. Since most transactions are done with credit cards these days, especially at tourist attractions, they may be able to narrow down the field a bit as to who was there that particular day.

If nothing else, these people could maybe be contacted somehow and asked if they saw anything out of the ordinary going on while at the pad. Who knows? If the culprit actually got a phone call from the Visitor Complex or other authorities the plaque might mysteriously be sent back to Kennedy Space Center.

Posts: 2331
From: Sturgeon Bay, WI
Registered: Jan 2000

posted 05-18-2007 05:40 PM               

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I don't think I would put the thief in the same category and call him/her a "collector".

That's just sad.

Posts: 3811
From: Midwest, USA
Registered: Jul 2005

posted 05-13-2008 05:36 PM              

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This is my first post here, though I've been a reader for quite some time. A couple of weeks ago I got married, and my wife and I spent our honeymoon in Cocoa Beach (the La Quinta) with four consecutive days at Kennedy Space CEnter and the Astronaut Hall of Fame. The fact that she was totally on board with the idea makes me think I have pretty good taste in women. So thanks to everyone here whose posts made planning and logistics a piece of cake.

My question is: Does anyone know what happened to the "Ad Astra per Aspera" plaque at LC 34? I remember reading somewhere that it had been stolen, then replaced. Was this not the case?

At any rate, what an amazing experience, I'd recommend a several-day visit to anyone.

Editor's note: Threads merged.

Posts: 851
From: Celina, Ohio
Registered: Feb 2000

Posts: 35
From: Bronx, New York
Registered: Nov 2007

Posts: 769
From: West Midlands, UK
Registered: Jun 2005

posted 05-14-2008 07:39 AM            

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Who would do such a thing? What would you do with it?

I hope that whoever has it is reminded just what a terrible person they are every time they look at it.

Posts: 851
From: Celina, Ohio
Registered: Feb 2000

Posts: 74
From: Knoxville, Tennessee, USA
Registered: Jan 2007

posted 05-15-2008 05:14 PM               

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As someone who grew up regarding L/C-34 as hallowed ground, I am in utter disbelief at this development.

I hope either the USAF, FBI or Florida law enforcement get some leads and "put it to" the low-life thief.

Posts: 9
From: Atlanta, GA USA
Registered: Jun 2009

posted 11-20-2011 07:12 AM               

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I am resurrecting this topic because at the recent Astronaut Autograph and Memorabilia Show show, we did the Cape Then and Now tour. We went to Pad 34, and our guide told us that the plaque originally appeared a number of years ago, and no one knew where it came from.

However, because of the "Abandon In Place" policy, which he said meant that the pad was not supposed to be altered in any way, that Kennedy Space Center management actually removed it. He said that subsequently they were told that Bruce Willis put it there originally, so they allowed it to be replaced.

Obviously this doesn't agree with the prior posts here, but maybe it explains the original disappearance - that it was not stolen, but intentionally removed by Kennedy Space Center, and then when the replacement was made, it was allowed to remain. I think it's pretty interesting!

Posts: 1252
From: Ajax, Ontario, Canada
Registered: Apr 2008

Posts: 1642
From: Olympia, WA
Registered: Sep 2011

posted 11-20-2011 05:06 PM               

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"Bruce Willis put it there," makes for a far better story than a fan doing so, sadly. I too never knew who put that there, I'd always assumed it was someone at NASA who placed it there.

I couldn't get to the tour that goes to that pad when I was at KSC last time (or on any of the other times I was there), but I always thought it was great there was a plaque.

I too would hate to think that a NASA employee took it, though...

Posts: 977
From: Michigan
Registered: Jul 2006

posted 11-20-2011 05:14 PM               

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quote:

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Originally posted by p51:
"Bruce Willis put it there,"

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I heard the exact same from our guide when I took the tour on November 4th.

Posts: 1252
From: Ajax, Ontario, Canada
Registered: Apr 2008

posted 11-20-2011 06:33 PM               

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To my knowledge there are two plaques there. The plaque you guys are talking about – Ad Astra per Aspera – I have heard various stories about it being placed there by Bruce Willis, amongst others.

The plaque I was talking about in an earlier email was placed at Pad 34 has been there for some time. It is bronze and dedicated to the crew.

NASA employees have taken it upon themselves to go out to Pad 34 every week without fail and clean the bronze plaque. Above the plaque, three American Flags are placed with an Apollo 1 Beta cloth mission patch.

The job of cleaning the plaque is unofficial, and the NASA employees hand the job down from senior person to senior person, and as one would expect, is considered a great honor to be selected to go out there.

Posts: 42988
From: Houston, TX
Registered: Nov 1999

Posts: 1252
From: Ajax, Ontario, Canada
Registered: Apr 2008

Posts: 2915
From: Merritt Island, Florida, Brevard
Registered: Mar 2001

Posts: 1252
From: Ajax, Ontario, Canada
Registered: Apr 2008

posted 11-20-2011 08:18 PM               

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What else can I say? I have a recent photo sent to me by a friend who has worked for many years at the Kennedy Space Center. The photo shows the bronze plaque with three small American flags placed above it with a Beta cloth showing the Apollo 1 mission patch.

The person who took the photo worked at KSC for many years and advised me that about a year or so ago with the layoffs, he was asked by another person who had been cleaning the plaque but was leaving, if he could clean the Apollo 1 plaque every week.

It is not done in any official capacity. The person is not a senior official. He has worked at KSC for many years. It is a group NASA employees taking it upon themselves to look after the plaque.

This person in turn has also left Florida for another position within the program and has since handed the duty over to someone else.

This was related to me directly not secondhand and is not something I would make up.

Posts: 1252
From: Ajax, Ontario, Canada
Registered: Apr 2008

posted 11-21-2011 10:08 AM               

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I just wanted to clarify something I said in previous posts. The photo I have shows an Apollo 1 mission patch with three small flags above the plaque. The person that told me about cleaning the plaque did not say it was a beta cloth. I know nothing about beta cloth patches and assumed it was a beta cloth as it looked like such to me. Robert and I discussed this off line and as Robert knows much more than I on beta cloth patches I accept his word on that.

My point was that NASA employees have taken it upon themselves to look after the Apollo 1 plaque at Pad 34. If I made errors in conveying the story my apologies. NASA employees are a dedicated group and have taken it upon them selves to make sure this shrine is looked after. That was my point.

Posts: 2915
From: Merritt Island, Florida, Brevard
Registered: Mar 2001

posted 11-21-2011 01:01 PM               

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Point well taken, however, while many space workers pay their respects in different ways at Pad 34 to the original first Apollo crew, your wording was a bit misleading to me.

For instance, not all the workers are NASA, and a remark such as, "NASA employees hand the job down from senior person to senior person..." isn't authorized by the space agency at all.

Perhaps I was jumping the gun a bit, but honestly, no harm was meant and certainly not at you, personally. But I must say, though, I have heard some crazy stories throughout the decades about the memorial plaques, their origins, visitors there, and so on.

Posts: 1252
From: Ajax, Ontario, Canada
Registered: Apr 2008

Posts: 391
From: Holbrook MA, USA
Registered: Jul 2008

Posts: 73
From: Ormond Beach, FL USA
Registered: Sep 2011

posted 12-08-2011 06:26 PM               

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I just discovered this post. The flags were originally placed there by me. They were in a potted plant and I made a color copy of the Apollo 1 patch on my printer and affixed it to the side of the flower pot. I did this on Memorial Day weekend of this year 2011.

At some point later someone took the flags and patch and attached them to the plaque. I'm sure the plant died quickly in the hot sun.