Term paper on making of cape canveral

ntroduction
Though there is not ample resources recording the historical origin of Cape Canaveral but it dates back to roughly 400-500 years. However, it is believed that the geographical location of Cape Canaveral prior to the Spanish colonial exploration was underwater for untold thousands of years. The geological evidentiary facts about the ancient dune lines indicates Cape Canaveral was originally underwater for many thousands of years. Even now if historians try to dig out deep into the Florida mainlined, which is almost 10-15 miles inland from the contemporary Cape Canaveral, a large number of original seashells are found there. Another important fact recorded by the historians is that these dune lines basically run from the north to the south along the Florida mainland. Nonetheless, the retreat of the ocean weaves while combing to the local topography and the tidal actions extended a small land from the coastline into a great sea. It is also imagined by the historians that prior to the discovery of Cape Canaveral, it was vastly covered with fauna and flora that no earthly creature could fly, walk or crawl to its shores. However, Cape Canaveral was the indigenous name of this ancient stretch of sand and scrub, while Florida is its modern name.

ape Canaveral and Brevard County

It was the Native Americans who were the first to enter the region of Brevard. Basically they migrated to this region previously known as the region of Indian River . However, Brevard County was established when the Governor of Florida under its legislation signed an act relating to the initial boundaries of this new county that originally was related to the Lucie County . At the same time, the whole area of Brevard was extended towards the South besides the length of the state’s Atlantic Eastern Coast to the presently coast of Miami-Dade County located in the south of Florida . Therefore, the original location where Cape Canaveral was discovered and named by Theodore W. Brevard was Brevard. One the other hand the geographical boundaries were amended several times until it took its current shape in 1905. However, when the initial Spanish sailors sailed along the Brevard County coastline, they gave it the name Cape Canaveral . The evidence to this historical truth is found from the historical documents,

which are related to the European Shipwreck survivors traveling among the indigenous tribes of this region.

Cape Canaveral and John Kennedy
Originally Cape Canaveral was a low, sandy cape, which was extended to the Atlantic Ocean during the period of 1963. At the same time the Islands of Banana River separated Cape Canaveral however; it was also named as Cape Kennedy in memory of President John F. Kennedy . He was basically the National Aeronautical and Space Administrator of the Space Flight Center in USA . Now the Spaceport USA museum is also located there. On the other hand, it was reverted back to its native name in the period of 1973.

It enjoys a respectable geographical location as it was being used as the principle ballistic missile-launching site by the USA since 1946. Though the long-range missiles were launched in Cape Canaveral , at the same time America also established its land based satellites as well as manned space flights there. However in 1946, it was decided by the Joint Research and Development Board that there should be a separate area of land at a long distance from population for testing missiles. Therefore, the Joint Chief committee analyzed few sites to decide one Long Range Proving Ground for its missiles tests and other military experimentations. Among the three potential sites, Cape Canaveral was selected, which was located at the Banana River Naval Air Station ranging to the Atlantic Ocean . Later on this was legalized by various agreements and legal procedures by considering the opinion of international community under international law. However, during the period of President John Kennedy , it was decided to use this site for missile testing and experiments related to space and defense of USA . Therefore, the first space satellite known as Explorer I was launched in 1958 by and American named John Glenn . Where Neil Armstrong was the first American to go on the moon. Both these astronauts launched their satellites from Cape Canaveral under the administration of the National Aeronautical and Space Center of USA. While designating Station Number 1 of the Atlantic Missile Range and the NASA Launch Operations Center in Florida to be JFK Space Center , President Kennedy also gave Cape Canaveral a new name known as “ Cape Kennedy ”

Despite the fact of lack of information regarding the origin and history of Cape Canaveral but the historians have recorded that the Native Americans were the original human inhabitants of Florida. These Native Americans were migrated to Florida or the old Cape Canaveral around 10,000 years back.

Historical development of the name of “ Cape Canaveral”

While tracing the evolution and historical development of Cape Canaveral, the most confusing question that comes to our mind is the history of the name of Cape Canaveral. Basically it refers to two things. First of all the city of that name where it was discovered in the Brevard country located to the east central are of Florida. Where the other important thing that relates to its name is the geographical phenomenon on which the city is located. Though this place is recognized due to the development of NASA by the USA but there are many hidden truths discovered by the historians about the name of Cape Canaveral.

An interesting fact is that Canaveral is basically a Spanish word, which means a place of reeds or cane. Therefore, it is discovered that the name of Cape Canaveral is almost 400 years old when a Spanish explorer named Juan Ponce De Leon visited this geographical location during is search for a legendary Foundation of Youth in the period of 1513. Therefore, he named this place for the first time by calling it the wedge of beach, which means Canaveral due to the huge amount of reeds and canes covering the whole area. Yet the area of Cape Canaveral was not integrated into a city by early 1962, but it was a small town having a population estimated around nine thousand people. This was recorded during the census of 2000.