DAHLGREN HERITAGE FOUNDATION Spring 2014
Dahlgren Heritage Museum P. O. Box 816, Dahlgren, Virginia 22448 www.dahlgrenmuseum.org
Speaker Series Highlights Dahlgren Love Story By Andrew Revelos
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U.S. Navy photo by Andrew Revelos
tories of romance, idyllic childhoods and iconic leaders are all part of the Dahlgren story. They are the bits and pieces of the community forums that will continue to be a part of the Dahlgren Heritage Museum’s mission. One of those discussions, marking the 95th anniversary of Naval Support Facility Dahlgren last October, presented a child's eye view of the base as well as a remarkable story of reconnection and love that unfolded over the course of nearly four decades. Chris Agnew, son of a welltraveled Navy officer, befriended Elizabeth Lyddane Agnew, daughter of Dahlgren’s first technical director, while both were young teenagers at Dahlgren in the early 1960s. After going their separate ways when Chris’s father received a new assignment, the pair reconnected 37 years later, mar-
ried and returned to Dahlgren, where Elizabeth currently works as a scientist for the Naval Surface Warfare Center Dahlgren Division. The discussion was moderated by Ed Jones, who himself spent his young years onboard the installation. “One of the themes coming through in these discussions is the multigenerational connection to Dahlgren,” he said, opening the forum. Chris Agnew's parents met in 1931 along the Panama Canal; his father served on a U.S. battleship and his mother worked for the Ithsmanian Canal Commission. “They married and they raised their family the Navy way—in Hawaii, California, Mississippi, Virginia, Rhode Island, Newfoundland, Texas, Pennsylvania, Maryland, Washington state and Deleware,” he wrote. He would spend a little less than three years at Dahlgren. Elizabeth Lyddane Agnew spent all of her childhood at Dahlgren,
Chris and Elizabeth Lyddane Agnew share a laugh (left photo) as they reminisce about their early teen years at Dahlgren during a forum discussion Sept. 18. The pair went their separate ways when Chris’s family moved, but remained friends, pictured together (right photo) after Chris entered the Navy. They reconnected and married 37 years later.
where her father Russell Lyddane served for 23 years as a physicist, the head of the Armor and Projectile Laboratory and eventually as Dahlgren's first technical director. He helped usher in a new era at Dahlgren by leveraging the base’s ballistics computers for new and novel missions. The Agnews’ observations painted an endearing picture of Dahlgren in the late 1950s and early 1960s, the period when Dahlgren’s population was at its zenith. An on-base phone system meant that the operator, one Mrs. Dunning, played an intimate role in the lives of children at Dahlgren. “I'd come home from school, pick up the phone and say ‘Ms. Dunning, do you know where my mom is?’ She’d say ‘your mother has gone to Fredericksburg and she wants you to start dinner’,” said Elizabeth Agnew. “She knew everything. She knew eve-
Dahlgren Heritage Foundation Digest - Spring 2014
See LOVE STORY on page 4 1
DAHLGREN HERITAGE FOUNDATION Board of Directors President Edward W. Jones Vice President Robert V. Gates Treasurer Dennis Quick Secretary Jeron Hayes Board of Directors Charles Armstrong John B. Ashton Ruby Brabo Tim Carsola Gregory Chambers James Eaton Joseph McGettigan Debbie McInnis Stan Palivoda Lisa A. Rossbacher Ed Watson Our Mission The Dahlgren Heritage Foundation preserves and promotes the history, traditions, heritage and culture of the United States Navy at Dahlgren, Va., and the surrounding community. The Foundation will purposefully and aggressively seek financial support to establish the Dahlgren Heritage Museum and to provide the long-term preservation efforts and educational activities associated with sharing the stories and interpreting the U.S. Navy’s physical, technical, intellectual and social contributions to King George County, the Commonwealth of Virginia, and the nation.
Our Vision To generate a public understanding of the impact the community and U.S. Navy base at Dahlgren, Virginia, have had in using science and technology to strengthen national defense, particularly through support for warfighters.
The Dahlgren Heritage Foundation is a member of the American Association for State and Local History.
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PRESIDENT’S MEMO
Recounting the Past, Promoting the Future By Ed Jones
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ill tight defense budgets push the Navy base at Dahlgren onto the BRAC bubble one more time, thereby imperiling the $1.1 billion the base pours into the local economy each year? Will new developments in Virginia and Maryland impede the ability of the Navy to test ordnance at Dahlgren? What do such questions about the future have to do with a museum, you might ask? In the case of the Dahlgren Heritage Museum, the answer is “plenty”! That’s because our museum is not just about the past. It’s about the story of the Navy at Dahlgren and the community that grew up around the base – past, present and future! We are storytellers with a tale that’s as old as an almost century-old base but is still being told. The spirit, innovation and creativity of Naval Support Facility Dahlgren are forces that continue to impact the Navy and the world. They are part of the Dahlgren story. That’s why we host community forums with key leaders about the future of Navy research and development. It’s why we financially support trips to science fairs by local students, thereby helping to fill the pipeline with future Dahlgren scientists and engineers. Our storytelling role is key, not only because we have a fascinating saga to tell, but also because so many have not heard about or fully understand the story of Dahlgren. At a public forum in March, sponsored as part of a Joint Land Use Study being conducted by the Navy and area localities, a consultant suggested that many area residents “don’t realize the impact it (the base) has on the community.” It’s not just the financial firepower, which has made King George the Virginia county with the highest percentage of its economy generated by the federal government. It’s also the intellectual, cultural and historic impact the base has had on the region. In what were marshy farmlands a century ago, a community of scientists, engineers and innovators has turned the King George County base into an intellectual crown jewel of the Navy. It’s a fascinating – and continuing – story that we tell at the Dahlgren Heritage Museum. Keep checking our website, dahlgrenmuseum.org, for the hours the museum will be open and for upcoming community forums and other events. Join us on a century-old journey that’s just getting started!
Thanks to Our Sponsor Production costs for the Dahlgren Heritage Foundation Digest are sponsored by the NSWC Federal Credit Union. Federally chartered in 1961, NSWC Federal Credit Union is a memberowned financial institution dedicated to meeting members’ needs by providing quality products and convenient services in a professional manner, while ensuring financial integrity. Learn more at www.nswcfcu.org. Dahlgren Heritage Foundation Digest - Spring 2014
Naval Surface Warfare Center Dahlgren Division
One Purpose—95 Years Strong since there’s no war anymore.” As Dahlgren’s long-term role in aval Support Facility the Navy took shape, proofing ammuDahlgren hits the 96-year nition and barrels took a back seat to mark this October, and is studying the science of ordnance and distinctive among military bases in ballistics. that it continues the same mission Dr. Louis Thompson became focus that began with its namesake in Dahlgren’s first chief physicist in the Civil War. 1923. That mission, then and now, is “He was focused on trying to figprimarily testing and developing ure out why these bullets did what weapon systems for the curthey did and how we can rent and future Navy. aim them better using adToday, the role of the vancements in interior and Naval Surface Warfare Cenexterior ballistics,” said Harter Dahlgren Division man. (NSWCDD) consists of a “The ordnance testing diverse capabilities specand the testing of armor trum, including chemical, plates all led to a concentrabiological and radiological tion on material science isdefense; lasers and electrosues like metallurgy, hardmagnetic the rail gun. Howness and alloys,” said Robin ever, the focus on weapon Staton, a team member on system research and develthe Dahlgren History Project. opment that began with Rear “There was a deeper and Adm. John Dahlgren has deeper concentration on remained constant. technical issues associated “Admiral Dahlgren is with guns and armor.” known as the father of modThe advent of early ern Naval Ordnance,” said computers fueled the develthe Dahlgren History Proopment of Dahlgren’s weapject‘s Wayne Harman. “He ons system research capabilhad some ideas about how ity. to use scientific criteria to “One of the first things design a cannon that wouldthey did was a simulation n’t explode.” with six-degrees of freedom Early cannons used a on a projectile,” said HarTHEN AND NOW … straight tube design and freman. “They found an instaThe juxtaposition of two displays at the Dahlgren Heritage quently exploded when bility problem in the shell Museum represent central elements of Naval Support Facility Dahlgren’s 95-year history, from gun and ordnance proof testfired, killing their crew. Rear trajectory. That was a big ing (represented by the model of the Dahlgren gun in the foreAdm. Dahlgren designed the step when they learned they ground) to the development and integration of complex naval soda bottle-shaped Dahlgren could simulate something systems, such as the Aegis Combat System currently emGun that was structurally they didn’t understand to ployed on U.S. Navy cruisers and destroyers. A test firing of Aegis Standard Missiles from an Aegis destroyer is pictured in stronger where explosive solve a problem.” the display in the background. pressure was greatest. There were few people “Dahlgren’s guns never with computer science de“One month later World War I exploded, and that was a big deal,” grees during this period, and to opersaid Harman. “This base was put toended, so these guns remained here,” ate these new computers Dahlgren said Harman. “There was a lot of congether to shoot guns, so they named it hired mathematicians and trained Dahlgren.” gressional action looking at this base, wondering if we still need this base, See NSWCDD on page 6 At the beginning of World War I, By Elliott Fabrizio
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Navy guns were getting bigger, and with corresponding increases in range, they required a larger proving ground for test fires. President Woodrow Wilson signed a proclamation taking land to establish the Lower Station, Dahlgren Naval Proving Ground, and on Oct. 16, 1918 they fired the first big gun, a 7-inch, 45-caliber caterpillar tractormounted gun.
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LOVE STORY Continued from page 1
rybody and all the kids checked in with her.” Elizabeth lived in no fewer than five houses at Dahlgren, starting with a unit in the now-demolished Boomtown. “We started off in Boomtown,” she said. “Daddy was in a bachelor pad with a bunch of other physicists, which was hilarious. The stories about that are a riot.” Chris and Elizabeth first met as young teenagers, when Chris’s family moved in next to the Lyddanes. “I was sitting on the front steps reading because this handsome guy with a dog kept walking back and forth across my lawn,” said a smiling Elizabeth. The exact moment when each party became aware of the other was not entirely clear; Chris remembered noticing Elizabeth while she was sitting inside. “Can you tell they're married?” Jones asked the amused audience. “He was a prep school boy so he was hot stuff,” said Elizabeth, describing her budding friendship with a precocious young Chris, known affectionately as “the Professor” by his Dahlgren pals. “We had a small [group of friends] that was very close and we're still friends with them today.” Both eventually fell out of touch in the years that followed but maintained mutual friends. “We went to the movies together when I was home on spring break in 1960 and that was the last I saw Elizabeth for a long period of time,” said Chris. Chris and Elizabeth each went on to marry other beaus but both were single by the late 1990s. The pair next saw each other at a 1997 Christmas dinner hosted by the family of Capt. A. R. Faust, who commanded the Naval Weapons Laboratory from 1959 to 1960. They married the following April and eventually resettled in Dahlgren a decade later. Author Andrew Revelos is a member of the public affairs staff for Naval Support Activity South Potomac. 4
Dr. Russell Lyydane … ‘Renaissance Man’
Technical Director Responsible for Shaping Dahlgren’s Mission Beyond the ‘War Years’
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uring the Dahlgren anniversary speaker session with Chris Agnew and Elizabeth Lyddane Agnew, moderator Ed Jones discussed Elizabeth’s father, an “iconic” figure at Dahlgren who played a key role in modernizing the base’s mission. “I don’t think it’s overstating it to say that without Dr. Lyddane, we might not be sitting here,” said Jones. “Like so many people at Dahlgren, he was a renaissance man.”
Dr. Russell Lyddane served as Dahlgren’s technical director from 1956 to 1964.
Baltimore native Russell Lyddane was a professor of physics at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill when he was drafted after the U.S. entered World War II. Instead of putting on a uniform, Navy authorities realized Lyddane could better serve his country as a scientist at Dahlgren’s Computation Lab. By the time Lyddane left Dahlgren in 1964, he had helped the mission evolve away from prooftesting naval guns and toward the development of complex combat systems. Dahlgren Heritage Foundation Digest - Spring 2014
“He loved being a physicist,” said Elizabeth. “He didn’t like having to go up [to Washington D.C.] to sell Dahlgren over and over again to people who were changing every 18 months. But that’s what he did and he did it for quite a long time.” By all accounts, Lyddane was a commanding presence during his career at Dahlgren and set high standards for his employees. He also had a photographic memory and spent his college years in labs with the likes of Albert Einstein. “A lot of people were terrified of him,” said Elizabeth. “But if they knew him well, they knew he was not somebody you needed to be afraid of unless you weren’t doing what you should be doing. He was noisy, explosive. He was very explosive, but he was fair and he was very well-educated.” Chris Agnew became acquainted with his future father-in-law while he was a young teenager on the base. Both men shared a love of reading and Lyddane often loaned Agnew books that helped inspire him to become a historian. Chris returned the favor decades later before Lyddane passed away in 2001. “I remember loaning him my entire set of Samuel Eliot Morison’s [15-volume] ‘History of United States Naval Operations in World War II’ and he polished that off in less than a week with virtually every page memorized.” Lyddane was also a dedicated family man. “He was a lot of fun,” said Elizabeth. “He held us to high academic standards and he was very strict. He was probably stricter than my mother. It was the Cleavers: my dad went to work and my mom stayed home. It was an idyllic life.”
Dahlgren School Alumni Celebrate Reunion on Base’s 95th Anniversary By Andrew Revelos
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lumni of Dahlgren School traveled from around the country for a reunion and tour of Naval Support Facility Dahlgren last fall on Oct. 19. The day began with hugs and handshakes as former classmates gathered at Dahlgren School and caught up with each other. The group got a sneak peak at the Dahlgren Heritage Museum hours before its official opening, and later enjoyed lunch at Gray’s Landing on the Potomac. The reunion brought together several generations of former students, some whom went to Dahlgren School before its current facility was built during World War II. Carlton Griffin’s Dahlgren School was housed in what is today the Chapel Annex. The King George County resident “graduated” in 1940, when he and other high school students at Dahlgren School began attending the county high school. Ever since that year, Dahlgren School hosted students only through the eighth grade. The transition did not go smoothly at first. Griffin and the other transferees found out about the decision only days before the start of the new school year, as did, apparently, the administrators at King George County schools. “For two days, we couldn’t get into the school at King George,” said Griffin. “There wasn’t any space for us.” Once the logistical issues were ironed out, Griffin found his years at Dahlgren School prepared him well for his academic future. “We were ahead because we had taken a lot of subjects King George didn’t have,” he said. “We did alright.” Griffin had fond memories of
The wheels on the bus: Dahlgren School alumni smile for the camera after they embarked on a bus tour of the base Oct. 19. For many, the buses were not quite as large as they remembered. U.S. Navy photo by Andrew Revelos
Dahlgren School’s first principal, Haley Settle, who began his tenure in the 1920s and retired in the 1960s. “He was a gentleman and a good teacher,” Griffin recounted. During Griffin’s professional career, he worked for decades at the Dahlgren’s Public Works Department. He witnessed the construction of the current Dahlgren School and remembered touring the site. “I remember going up into the cupola on top and how nice the breeze was coming through the thing,” he said. “They didn’t have any [air conditioners] on base in those days.” His professional duties frequently took him to the current Dahlgren School, where among other responsibilities he looked after the nownonfunctional clock and school bell system. Griffin was surprised that the old system, which operated by means of punched paper code, still hangs on the wall. “Is that thing still in there?” he asked. “You could interchange the tape; the tape was made for this school system.” Griffin and his wife, Lois, who herself spent her career at Dahlgren, were looking over the clock when they were greeted by Sheila Wolfe, a Dahlgren Heritage Foundation Digest - Spring 2014
Dahlgren School alumnus whose father was Griffin’s fishing buddy. Wolfe’s mother, Virginia Dahlgren Reynolds, was the first baby born on the base. Known to her friends as “Dahl,” she was born in 1919 in one of the houses by the circle not far from the school. Wolfe attended Dahlgren School until her sixth grade year and smiled as she recalled memories of riding mules on the weekend, spending time at the pool and going to dances at the Officers Club. “It was a great place to grow up,” she said. That was a theme of many reunion attendees as they embarked on a bus tour of the Dahlgren naval base. “It reminded me of a back-in-time type of town,” said Corey DicksonJeffers, who moved on from Dahlgren School in 1983. “Everyone knew everybody and we could walk everywhere.” Jeffers and her family came all the way from Savannah, Ga., driving all night to attend the reunion. Like many alums, she had especially fond memories of the musical and theatrical productions she participated in while attending Dahlgren School. “My favorite thing about the See REUNION on page 6 5
U.S. Navy photo by Andrew Revelos
Alyssa, 12 and her brother Andrew, 14, check out a Norden bombsight at the Dahlgren Heritage Museum open house for Dahlgren School alumni on Oct. 19.
REUNION Continued from page 5
school was the programs we put on,” she said. “The whole school was involved. I learned so much here.” As the tour progressed, oohs and ahs rang out from the entourage as the buses passed familiar sights. “That’s my house!” said Amy Kasdorf-Gonzalez, who graduated Dahlgren School in 1967 and now resides in Richmond. Of course, Dahlgren has changed in the years since many alumni saw
NSWCDD Continued from page 3
them to program computers. “Having those capabilities led to later program acquisitions like the Aegis Weapon System program, the Tomahawk cruise missile program, the HERO [Hazards of Electromagnetic Radiation to Ordnance] program and a number of major programs that came as a result of having the scientific capabilities,” said Staton. This technical depth snowballed, making Dahlgren the premier Navy research laboratory it is today. 6
the base. Boomtown, the residential area built during World War II in the area now occupied by the Aegis Training and Readiness Center, no longer exists. When the last of the installation’s civilian residents moved off base in the early 1970s, many of Boomtown’s houses were moved just outside the fence line to Dahlgren Harbor, exclaimed Dr. Robert Gates, vice president of the Dahlgren Heritage Foundation and a tour guide for the reunion. “So that’s why they look so famil-
“For nearly a century, we have maintained a workforce that is well versed in these areas, and who have used their skills and ingenuity to find amazing, innovative solutions to the challenges facing our warfighters and our fleet,” said Capt. Michael Smith, NSWCDD commander prior to his change of command in November 2013. Dahlgren’s commitment to science and technology, research and development, test and evaluation promises to deliver the future of naval weaponry. “Since its inception in 1918, the Dahlgren Heritage Foundation Digest - Spring 2014
iar,” said Gonzales, who laughed about one feature shared by just about every house on or near Dahlgren. “We never had straight pictures in the house.” The underlying cause of that particular phenomenon is Dahlgren’s main range, the source of countless booms, bangs and blasts in its more than nine decades of operation. The tour took the group through the range and offered a new perspective to at least one alumnus who last saw the range on Armed Forces Day some decades ago. “This is the first time I’ve been in front of the gun line!” said Joe Hanzel, class of 1955. Hanzel and his wife Donna journeyed to Dahlgren all the way from Stanford, Calif., to see his old classmates. That so many traveled so far to see their school and their pals is testament to the close-knit community that still exists at Dahlgren. Though much has changed, much remains the same. “[My] house over there looks exactly like it did,” said Nancy Hopkins, class of 1952, pointing to 776 Hall Road. Drizzling rain was not enough to discourage Hopkins from walking the streets around Dahlgren School, smiling cheerfully from underneath her umbrella. “I feel as safe as a baby in its mother’s arms,” said Hopkins.
Dahlgren naval laboratory has been a leader in naval weapons technology” said Smith. “This technology has seen many changes and diversifications. From 16-inch guns to the electromagnetic rail gun – Dahlgren maintains a reputation as a leading naval research and development facility and a center of excellence for systems engineering integration.” Author Elliott Fabrizio wrote this story while assigned to the public affairs office for Naval Surface Warfare Center Dahlgren Division.
Dahlgren Heritage Foundation Expands Business Support Program The Dahlgren Heritage Foundation preserves and promotes the history, traditions, heritage and culture of the U.S. Navy at Dahlgren, Virginia, and the surrounding community. The Foundation is chartered to establish and operate the Dahlgren Heritage Museum and to provide the long-term preservation efforts and educational activities associated with sharing the stories and interpreting the U.S. Navy's physical, technical, intellectual and social contributions to King George County, the Commonwealth of Virginia, and the nation. Consider This Opportunity to Invest in Preserving Navy History
We invite you to join us in this exciting endeavor as a business supporter. Financial support from businesses serves as a key component in helping us expedite our plans for operating the Dahlgren Heritage Museum on a continuing basis, and to undergird our educational efforts and special programs for the benefit of our community. You can help by becoming a business supporter at the Corporate Member, Corporate Contributor, Corporate Sponsor or Corporate Partner levels. The Dahlgren Heritage Foundation is chartered as a non-profit organization, and all donations made to the Foundation are fully tax deductible. You may use the application provided below to sign up for the Foundation’s Business Support Program, or you can make your donation on line at www.dahlgrenmuseum.org. All donations are welcome. Consider This Opportunity to Promote Your Business
Those businesses that enroll as a supporter of the Dahlgren Heritage Foundation at the Corporate Member, Corporate Contributor, Corporate Sponsor or Corporate Partner levels will be listed in the quarterly Digest magazine. Supporters at these levels will also have an opportunity to place free display advertisements in the Digest, as outlined below. The Digest magazine is produced every quarter as an electronic publication, and distributed by email to Foundation members and a broad base of government, educational and business organizations, media, and special-interest groups. The magazine is also available to readers worldwide through its posting on www.issuu.com. We appreciate your consideration to partner with us as we endeavor to preserve and promote the history, traditions, heritage and culture of the U.S. Navy at Dahlgren. — Ed Jones, President, Dahlgren Heritage Foundation Dahlgren Heritage Foundation
BUSINESS SUPPORT PROGRAM APPLICATION
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articipants in the Business Support Program for the Dahlgren Heritage Foundation may select from one of the following membership categories (please check the appropriate box): Corporate Member - A minimum donation of $500. Free quarter-page advertisement in one quarterly edition of the Digest. Corporate Contributor - A minimum donation of $1,000. Free quarter-page advertisement in two quarterly editions of the Digest. Corporate Sponsor - A minimum donation of $2,000. Free half-page advertisement in two quarterly editions of the Digest. Corporate Partner - A minimum donation of $5,000. Free half-page advertisement in four quarterly editions of the Digest. As a Corporate Member, Corporate Contributor, Corporate Sponsor or Corporate Partner you will receive a certificate of appreciation. Supporting businesses in these categories will be listed in the Dahlgren Heritage Foundation Digest newsletter, in addition to having an opportunity to place free display advertisements in the Digest as outlined above. In order to assist the Dahlgren Heritage Foundation in its operation of the Dahlgren Heritage Museum, and in the Foundation’s outreach and related activities, I agree to contribute to the Business Support Program the sum of $ ________ .
NAME BUSINESS NAME ADDRESS CITY STATE
ZIP
PHONE EMAIL
Signature Date Make checks payable to Dahlgren Heritage Foundation Mail all contributions to: Dahlgren Heritage Foundation P. O. Box 816 Dahlgren, VA 22448
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Down Range
Dahlgren Heritage Foundation News & Upcoming Events
Dahlgren Museum Opens on Regular Schedule
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aturday, March 15, was the first day of “regular” public hours at the Dahlgren Heritage Museum. Volunteers staffed the museum from 12 noon to 4 p.m. to greet visitors. In addition, visitors had an opportunity to embark on a bus for a guided 90-minute tour of Naval Support Facility Dahlgren. The tour of the base highlighted historical points of interest as well as current technical facilities and military missions, and included photo opportunities at a display of a 16-inch battleship gun and on Dahlgren’s main range gun line. The museum’s current operating schedule is to be open to the public on the third Saturday of each month from 12 noon to 4 p.m. “We would like to expand our regular operating schedule but need volunteers to establish those hours,”
says Susan Prien, administrative officer for the Dahlgren Heritage Foundation. “Anyone interested in volunteering to work a few hours at the museum is invited to contact us at info@ Dahlgrenmuseum.org.” Prien also emphasizes that group visits to the museum can be arranged at times that are outside the regular monthly hours. To arrange for a group tour, send an email to info@ dahlgrenmuseum.org. The next scheduled public hours for the museum will be Saturday, April 19, from 12 noon to 4 p.m.
Dahlgren Heritage Museum
June 17 Annual Members Meeting University of Mary Washington Dahlgren Campus
September 6 Art Auction University of Mary Washington Dahlgren Campus
November 15 German Christmas Market Dahlgren Heritage Museum
Dahlgren Heritage Foundation P. O. Box 816 Dahlgren, VA 22448
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April 19 Science & Engineering *** LIVE *** (for Kids)
Dahlgren Heritage Foundation Digest - Spring 2014