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As the Cold War intensified, the military recognized that Alaska could be a strategic point for launching aerial attacks. Consequently, a network of radar stations was established throughout the region to detect incoming threats. The Buckner Building became a linchpin in this defense strategy, primarily because it served as a route for military supplies necessary for sustaining these monitoring stations.
The Resilience of Human Engineering
Despite the monumental shifts in military technology that diminished the building's importance—the advent of intercontinental ballistic missiles reduced the need for ground-based facilities—the Buckner Building endured. By 1960, the U.S. military vacated the building, and it transitioned into a ghostly remnant of the past.