Camp Pedricktown - Oldmans Twp., NJ
Posted by: 
NJBiblio
N 39° 45.145 W 075° 26.816
18S E 461712 N 4400374
Named Camp Pedricktown, this one time Ordnance Depot has a long history as a Nike Missile Command Site, as well as a hospital and training base until its partial closure in 1995.
Waymark Code: WM9G2M
Location: New Jersey, United States
Date Posted: 08/16/2010
Views: 5
Today this site sits virtually abandoned. Two of the buildings are
being used as part of what one might consider an "industrial park", and in the
rear of the facility, there is still an area being used for military service, as
the site remains a training facility.
Camp Pedricktown served as the
Delaware Ordnance Depot from 1918 until 1958. Shortly thereafter, from 1960-1966 it
served as and HQ of the 42nd and 43rd Artillery. In this capacity it
controlled all the Nike missile sites in the Philadelphia area. A history
of that time is available
here.
During this time portions of the camp and some buildings were loaned to the
Salem County Technical School for their use. The 21st Corps, 79th Army
Reserve Command took over the base in the late 1960s, and was replaced in 1974
by the 78th Division of the Army Reserve. This unit still trains in a
portion of the base.
Camp Pedricktown was slated for closure in 1995, only one year after the
348th
General Hospital made it home. Most of the buildings remaining on the
site of the base appear as though they were simply locked up in 1995 and left to
stand until now. It's very reminiscent of a scene from the History
Channel's "Life After People". You can see where the plant life has taken
over some of the buildings and where weather has also played a role in
destroying portions. I have to assume vandalism is limited as this is
still a semi-active base.