09/04/2026
Observation Tower 6. Topsail Island, North Carolina. In the 1940s, the 24-mile stretch of Topsail Island was mostly uninhabited. The remoteness of the area made it an ideal site for the Navy to test missiles. From 1946-1948, under the code name Operation Bumblebee, various technologies, to include the supersonic guided missile and the ramjet engine, were tested on the island. Seven of the eight observation towers still remain standing despite decades of bombardment by hurricanes.
