Opheim Radar Base Site, Montana

A former General Surveillance Radar Station operated here, just a few miles south of the Canadian Border, one of 28 of this type of facility set up along the nation’s perimeter, around 1951, during the Korean War. It became part of the SAGE (Semi Automatic Ground Environment System) in 1961, and was connected to Malmstrom Air Force Base. SAGE was the continental, centralized early warning system that revolutionized computing technology, as well as defended the nation against attack. Known as Opheim Air Force Station, it also operated two small “Gap Filler” radar sites, at Whitewater and Whitail, Montana, and had operational radar activity until 1979, when it was closed, and is now mostly erased.