Long a proud and sturdy fixture of Monmouth County, Fort Monmouth was officially closed in September 2011. The Fort Monmouth Economic Revitalization Authority has run things since 2014. Here are some quick facts about the once historic US Army base:

US Army

1) First opened in 1917 as Camp Little Silver and later as Camp Alfred Vail, the post was renamed Fort Monmouth in August 1925 to honor the soldiers of the American Revolution who died in the Battle of Monmouth (1778).

2) The total area of Fort Monmouth was 1,127 acres. The breakdown by local municipality was Tinton Falls (40%), Eatontown (37%), and Oceanport (23%).

3) There were 434 buildings and 663 housing units located on Fort Monmouth grounds. An additional 251 lodging units and 71 dormitory rooms (United States Military Academy Preparatory) were also on the property.

4) Fort Monmouth is separated into two distinct areas, the Main Post (637 acres) and Charles Wood (489 acres).

5) Until the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks the fort was open to the public to drive through; after that, it was closed to all but authorized personnel.

6) Julies Rosenberg, who was executed in 1951 for spying for the Soviet Union, worked as a radar inspector at Fort Monmouth in the early 1940s.

7) In 1937 a “mystery ray” was first demonstrated at Fort Monmouth. This was a prototype of Radio Direction and Ranging (RADAR), which could locate and track airplanes.

8) In 1948 the first Weather Radar was developed at Fort Monmouth and observed a rainstorm that was at a distance of 185 miles.

9) Sgt. George Baker, the artist behind the famous Army comic strip character “Sad Sack,” did his first drawings at Fort Monmouth in the early 1940s.

10) Actor Tony Randall, who played Felix Unger of TV’s The Odd Couple fame, was stationed at Fort Monmouth during World War II.

Fort Monmouth, 1960s.