Radar Station B-71 is located approximately two miles south of the mouth of the Klamath River along the Coastal Drive in Redwoods National Park. The coordinates for this waymark are at the small parking area and history sign along the road.
The station was built in late 1942 and early 1943 as the northernmost California station in a network of 72 proposed stations (65 were actually built) stretching from the Canadian border into Mexico. The station consisted of two major buildings, one of which housed the power equipment and was disguised to look like a farmhouse, and the operations building, disguised to look like a barn. The buildings were erected by a private construction firm under Army contract. The buildings were of concrete block construction with two foot thick walls. Covering the concrete structures were built-in wooden camouflage features false wooden siding, false windows, false dormer windows, and gable roofs. The operations building (41°31.341' N, 124°04.712’ W) was about 22 feet wide and 70 feet long. The power supply building (41°31.304' N, 124°04.721’ W) was about 22 feet wide and 38 feet long. The station also included two-hole privy, three anti-aircraft gun sites and portable and fixed radar sites. The station was 1 of 22 west coast radar stations that remained in operation until the end of the war.
Radar Station B-71 was added to the National Register of Historic Places on April 19, 1978. For more information on details of the buildings view the National Register Nomination Form (
visit link) .
Text of sign “Disguised to Protect”
After the bombing of Pearl Harbor during World War II, the possibility of enemy attack on the U.S. mainland became very real. At one point, Japanese submarines operated in offshore waters and actually shelled some shipping operations and oil installations off the coast of California and Oregon.
To guard against potential invasion, the U.S. Army built the “farm” buildings you see below. The cinderblock structures, complete with shingled roofs, and fake windows and dormers, housed an early warning radar station.
From the air, the sea, and even the road, these buildings appeared to be part of a working farm. In fact, they housed a diesel generator, electronic equipment, and two 50-caliber anti-aircraft machine guns.
As part of a network of observation stations, the soldiers and civilians stationed here reported any suspicious boats and planes to a communications center in San Francisco, ready to dispatch fighter planes if the crafts were identified as hostile.
News clipping on sign.
West Coast on Alert!
Submarines of the Japanese 6th fleet operated in American coastal waters for eight months during the War. Four of these boats attacked coastal shipping lines, sinking two tankers and damaging some communications installations.
The I-25 sub launched an aircraft from off the Oregon coast on April 9, 1942. The airplane dropped two live bombs on a forest only 30 miles from here. The submarine then sank two tankers before leaving for Japan.
Historic Landmark
As the last relatively intact WWII post, Radar Station B71 was placed on the National Register of Historic Places on April 19, 1978.
The trail to you left leads to the “farm” buildings.