by Amy Cherrix
For these reasons, the hidden history of the space race is a cautionary tale for the next generation of rocketeers and explorers. Scientific advancement comes at a price, and civilizations must weigh every choice against a full knowledge of the past—its accomplishments and its atrocities.
Author’s Note
After two years of reading formerly classified documents and interviewing experts, historians, and archivists from around the world, I had one question that remained unanswered: Was Wernher von Braun a genius worthy of praise for his role in the space race, or was he a privileged man who never suffered any consequences for the lives lost in pursuit of his dream? In search of answers, I traveled to some of the places where the deep history of the space race was buried.
I began in Huntsville, home of the Marshall Space Flight Center and the US Space & Rocket Center (USSRC), where von Braun’s influence is everywhere. The Saturn V Hall within the USSRC museum houses the massive rocket, which is suspended overhead. I walked beneath von Braun’s masterpiece, astounded by its size and humbled by what America had achieved in the space race. I was so overwhelmed by the scale of the Saturn V, I hardly noticed its great-grandfather, the black-and-white V-2 missile, standing in a nearby corner. It was a surreal experience to see both rockets—one a humanitarian tool of science, the other a weapon of war—within the same exhibit, knowing that one would never have existed without the other.
At the Deutsches Museum in Munich, I spent two days in its vast archives, poring over photographs and leafing through the personal diaries of men who worked with von Braun, like Walter Dornberger. Some of the photographs I found in their extensive collection are included in this book.
My next stop was Nordhausen, where I toured the Mittelwerk tunnels and visited the Camp Dora memorial and museum. I was one of only a handful of tourists exploring the sprawling property and often found myself alone in a silent and disturbingly beautiful place. Spring had come to central Germany, and there were flowers everywhere.
Inside the museum, Nazi cruelty at the Mittelwerk V-2 factory and Camp Dora was on display in artifacts and multimedia exhibits. In filmed testimonials, former camp prisoners told stories of the trauma they endured and somehow managed to survive. A glass display case contained a small piece of wood, about the size of a Magic Marker, with a wire attached. The device was placed between the teeth of prisoners who were about to be hanged and secured behind their head with the wire so they could not cry out.
I left the museum and made my way to the Mittelwerk tunnel entrance, opposite the museum.
Inside it was pitch-black until our guide threw a switch, and dim floodlights lit the huge chamber, which still smelled of dust and metal. Our small group walked carefully along a narrow steel footbridge with a railing, suspended over piles of debris. As we wound through the old underground factory, skeletons of exploded rocket parts littered either side of the footbridge, and our guide repeatedly warned us to watch our step. Decades later, the tunnels are still dangerous—and cold. It was early April and I was freezing in spite of the wool sweater, jacket, and hat I was wearing. The prisoners forced to work inside there were never fortunate enough to have warm clothes like mine. I was relieved when the tour ended and we finally exited the tunnel.
My last stop that day was the hillside crematorium, a small brick building with a large chimney. The smoke from its furnaces would have been visible from much of the camp. Beside it, a landscaped memorial marks a mass grave where the ashes of thousands of people were shoveled into piles and forgotten. I could not bring myself to enter the building.
After my time in Nordhausen, I traveled north to the Baltic Coast to visit the Peenemünde Historical Technical Museum, housed in what remains of the rocket facility built for von Braun by the German army. The museum invites visitors to consider the connections between morality and technological advancement. At the end of my tour, I saw a small bust of von Braun near another exhibit dedicated to the legendary engineer. A pair of clear cylinders, approximately three feet tall, stood side by side. One was labeled Ruthless, the other, Ingenious. The display card read:
Wernher von Braun was portrayed as enthusiast, dreamer, careerist, militarist, and nationalist. How do you estimate his personality—ruthless technician [stopping] at nothing15, or as an ingenious realizer of spaceflight?
It was an invitation for visitors to grapple with the complexity of von Braun’s undeniable contributions to spaceflight. The “ballots” were round cardboard disks that looked like drink coasters. I took one and considered my answer. What makes someone a villain? Can good works and world-changing achievements that advance science absolve a person from complicity in horrific crimes? What are the consequences of ignoring history, of burying it, of not retelling it for the next generation? Perhaps there is more than one answer. Standing there, I realized that after two years of searching for some understanding of Wernher von Braun, I had found mine.
I wonder: Which cylinder would you choose?
Acknowledgments
Books, like rockets, are built in stages by teams. I found support at every stage of this book’s development from these fine people:
To my intrepid agent, Ammi-Joan Paquette at Erin Murphy Literary Agency, and my patient editor at Balzer & Bray, Kristin Daly Rens—thank you for helping me tell this story. Thanks also to editorial assistant Caitlin Johnson, for help with photo permissions and so much more. I was also fortunate to benefit from the expertise of skilled copyeditors Renee Cafiero and Valerie Shea.
Heartfelt thanks to Michael Neufeld, historian emeritus at the Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum, and Asif Siddiqi, history professor at Fordham University, for their vast body of academic work that reveals the lives and times of Wernher von Braun and Sergei Korolev. Both these world-class scholars generously shared their insight with me across numerous detailed telephone interviews. Garret McDonald fact-checked the manuscript and offered valuable insight as well. Thank you, Garret.
I am indebted to the following people for their time and perspectives during personal interviews, as they shed light on a complicated and fascinating era in world history: Bill Adams, Homer Hickam, Jim Jenkins, Monique Laney, Joyce Neighbors, and Bob Schmiedeskamp.
I would also like to thank the communications and archival staff of the US Space & Rocket Center in Huntsville, Alabama, for hosting me at their wonderful museum, arranging interviews with primary sources, and for providing access to their collection of von Braun’s papers: Patricia Ammons, Diane M. Brown, Audrey Glasgow, Carolyn Lawson, Allison Overfield, Holly Ralston, and Edward C. Stewart III.
At the Huntsville-Madison County Public Library, Heather Adkins and Shalis Worthy provided archival photo assistance. David Hitt of the Huntsville/Madison County Historical Society answered questions about Huntsville’s agrarian history. Thank you.
During my research trip across Germany, Dr. Matthias Röschner, Research Associate and Deputy Head of Archives, was my host at the Deutsches Museum/Archives in Munich. He gathered primary resource material that included photographs and letters of Walter Dornberger and others who worked closely with von Braun. At the Mittelbau-Dora Museum in Nordhausen, Stefanie Taeger, Jörg Kulbe, and Marvin Keitel answered many questions during my tour of the camp and its museum. Danke schoen.
Special thanks go to Jane Adkisson at Pack Memorial Library in Asheville, North Carolina. Her cheerful assistance with countless interlibrary loan requests cleared the path for my early research. Thank you, Jane!
I am also deeply indebted to the Highlights Foundation. Their generous scholarship program made it possible for me to attend a nonfiction writing workshop at their Boyds Mills, Pennsylvania, campus in 2018. With guidance from workshop leaders Deborah Heiligman, Elizabeth Partridge, and Barbara Kerley, I framed the first draft of this book.
My spirits were buoyed daily by the outpouring of practical advice and encouragement from close friends and fellow writers. Thanks also to: Lauren, Cheyenne, and Zoey Azadan, Elaine Barnes, Kim and John
Counter, Joseph D’Agnese, Janet Daniels, Alan Gratz, Kristin Jackson, Denise Kiernan, Don Stutts, Ashleigh Tucker, and Paula Yoo.
To my quirky and fiercely independent bookselling colleagues at Malaprop’s Bookstore & Café in Asheville, North Carolina, who patiently endured hours of enthusiastic ramblings about the space race (while they tried to work), thanks, y’all.
My aunt, Mary Keener Tatham, lent her expertise and insight as a former educator to the manuscript. Thank you, auntie.
Casey McCormick’s boundless optimism, enduring support, and love make anything seem possible. Thanks, Case.
Finally, to my fearless and talented mom, Marty Keener Cherrix, who read every word of every draft and whose unwavering reassurances (“Bird by bird, Aim”) kept me going through the toughest of days; how can “thank you” ever be enough? I love you to the moon and back.
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