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Hernando Today

Town boasts Piece of Space History

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By JOHN HERBERT

Special to Hernando Today

Published: July 27, 2008

later, in 1971, Asselin's Redstone was put on permanent display in Warren after much initial stewing by town fathers.

Other New Hampshire residents donated a heavy-dutytrailer to drag the Redstone to its final resting place in Warren, which is otherwise "distinguished" by an old Protestant church, a white clapboard town meeting hall that doubles as a bingo parlor, and a seedy convenience store across the grassy common from the missile.

The 1,300-mile trailer trip from Huntsville to Warren was not without incidents -- the Redstone team was ticketed and fined while crossing Ohio withouta necessary "big load" permit, and a false alarm of first scouting reports that the retired rocket was approaching Warren. Turned out the Redstone welcoming committee was hailing a septic tank pumper from the nearby town of Wentworth.

The Redstone in Warren is free to occasional sightseers. It is placed on a concrete foundation between the local historical society and the American flag -- a little piece of American space program history with a couple of tenuous New Hampshire connections.

John Herbert writes regularly for Hernando Today. He lives in Spring Hill.

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