| The FBI Files of Wernher von Braun--Part 4 | |
By Tom Carney
Reprinted with permission of Old Huntsville Magazine
To clear up the problem of conducting personal interviews with people who might say something derogatory about the scientists, the FBI simply interviewed the Germans about one another. Many of the interviews read as if they were written by the same person.
The new security application was quickly cleared by the State Department and in the winter of 1948 von Braun walked across the border at Juarez, Mexico where he applied for a visa to enter the United States. A few hours later, after receiving the proper documentation, he crossed the border back into the States as a legal immigrant. His new papers were duly stamped with Mexico being his entry point into the United States.
Even though the FBI considered the case closed, it continued to collect information about von Braun.
El Paso Division, FBI
Classified
... under no circumstances does XXX recommend von Braun for citizenship, inasmuch as he felt von Braun would never lose his Nazi sympathies. He stated, however, that he felt von Braun would be of a greater danger to this country if he became a national of some other nation rather than the United States. He felt von Braun's knowledge and capabilities were needed and that it would be dangerous to let him return to Germany or Russia.
In 1950, the government transferred the rocket program from Fort Bliss to Huntsville. For von Braun and his team members, it was a new beginning. Most of the scientists had lived and worked, under tight military control, on military bases since the 1930s. Citizenship, which was once thought of as merely a means to live in this country, took on a new meaning as the Germans began experiencing a new found freedom. Within a short while many had become members of civic organizations and were becoming fiercely loyal to their adopted country.
Part 5--More Files
Related Articles
Huntsville--Picture Perfect
Tom Carney, editor of Old Huntsville magazine, has published a CD that contains hundreds of old photographs. Meet the people from Huntsville's past, see the homes, churches, and office buildings that once stood proudly in our city.
The Man Behind Old Huntsville Magazine
Tom Carney and his wife started Old Huntsville magazine as a joke on their neighbors. It has turned into a local icon and affected a lot of people in Huntsville.
Maple Hill Cemetery
The oldest and largest cemetery in the state is also one of the most frequently visited spots for tourists and residents alike.
