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Interesting Facts About Kings Bay

An aerial view of the base near what is now the Stimson Gate and Spur 40. Spur 40, two lanes wide in this photo, is now a four lane, divided highway.


Kings Bay was selected as the Navy's Commander-in-Chief's Installation Excellence Award winner for 2007. The following represent a few of Kings Bay's interesting facts:

  • In 1954, the Army acquired Kings Bay to build an ocean terminal for use during national emergencies. Completed in 1958, the terminal was never used for its intended use and lay dormant until it transitioned to the Navy in 1978.
  • The Blue Star Shipping Company won the right to lease the terminal wharf from the Army in 1958. The company operated at Kings Bay for twenty years before shutting down in 1978.
  • Because of the inactive status of the Army terminal, former First District Representative Bo Ginn sought to have the land released for commercial economic development. Secretary of the Army Howard Callaway denied the request in October 1974 citing Kings Bay as an “essential installation.”
  • Construction of Naval Submarine Base Kings Bay was the largest peacetime construction program ever undertaken by the U.S. Navy. The program took nine years to complete at a cost of $1.3 billion.
  • The barracks, galley, gym, and other support services on the upper base were built with walking in mind. No building is more than a 15-minute walk from any other.
  • According to the U.S. Census Bureau, Camden County’s population grew from 13,371 in 1980 to 43,664 in 2000. Current population is estimated to be about 60,000. The Navy provided 80% of the construction costs for Crooked River Elementary School. Built on the perimeter of the base, the Navy in turn provided a 25-year lease to the county for $1.
  • Naval Submarine Base Kings Bay encompasses about 16,000 acres, of which 4,000 acres are protected wetlands.
  • By 1980, 27 archeological sites on the base were identified for possible placement on the National Register of Historic Places.
  • Naval Submarine Base Kings Bay is home to a variety of animals species, including: 229 birds, 68 mammals, 67 reptiles (5 poisonous snakes), and 37 amphibians. Twenty of these species are threatened or endangered.
  • Some of the endangered or threatened animals that call Kings Bay home include the Manatee, Gray Fox, Southern Bald Eagle, Osprey, Least Tern, and the Wood Stork.
  • The base established a foraging and rookery project to encourage growth among the 125 Wood Storks found on base.
  • Every three months the base's recycling center recycles more than four tons of aluminum cans, about 20 tons of mixed paper, five tons of computer paper, 13 tons of white office paper, 80 tons of cardboard, two tons of steel, and 15 tons of newspaper.
  • Kings Bay's wastewater treatment plant and the Land Application System wastewater treatment plant treat approximately 829,000 gallons of water daily.
  • There are approximately nine of the original 47 miles of railroad track laid down by the Army still in regular use on the base. St. Marys Railroad still delivers various supplies and missile components by rail.
  • Trident Training Facility is the largest building in Camden County, with more than 500,000 square feet of classrooms and office space.
  • Trident Refit Facility's dry dock is the largest covered dry dock in the Western hemisphere.
  • Lt. David Robinson, who went on to become a 1996 National Basketball Association All-Star, served on active duty at Kings Bay. An engineer graduate from the U.S. Naval Academy, Robinson worked for the Officer in Charge of Construction, the office responsible for carrying out the base construction project.
 

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