The B-52 Strato-Fortress was on a routine mission carrying two 24-megaton nuclear bombs. This was the height of the Cold War and 12 atomic-bomb laden aircraft such as this were airborne at all times.
By Cumberland Times, 1964
Newspaper clipping of the marker at the dedication ceremony
Near this site, at 1:42 am on January 13th 1964, a B-52 bomber, call sign "Buzz One Four", crashed during a blizzard. The plane, with a crew of five, was armed with two 9-megaton nuclear weapons. Four of the five crew members ejected from the plane. . . . — — Map (db m96446) HM
This monument is dedicated to the citizens of this area who gave their time and their energy and their skill, for more than five days in sub zero weather and deep snow, to assist the air and ground rescue teams in recovering the victims of a crash . . . — — Map (db m71195) HM
In memory of Robert Lee Payne, Major U.S.A.F., who died here from the crash of a B-52 Jan. 13, 1964. A kind and loving husband and father. — — Map (db m67300) HM