Historian and Lincoln, Nebraska native Robert Branting has worked with Infusionmedia to publish A Mighty Force for Peace: A History of the Former Lincoln Air Force Base. The book details the history of the Lincoln Air Force Base, active from 1954 to 1966, located in what is now Lincoln’s Air Park neighborhood and near the Lincoln Airport. The base, known as one of the most important Strategic Air Command bases in the US, was an economic powerhouse for the city of Lincoln and a critical component in SAC’s Cold War strategy, though fewer and fewer people remember that now.
Readers who enjoy World War II and Cold War history will appreciate Rob’s efforts to go back to the early beginnings of the SAC bomber base in 1928, as will those who enjoy aviation and Nebraska history.
The book was printed on high-resolution offset and is 476 pages with historical photos throughout the text.
One of the challenges in working with a book like this is the photos, which are often not of the best quality. We worked with Rob to get as high a resolution as we could on the electronic files and then edited the photos for the best possible printing results.
Rob is a historian and maintains objectivity, but you can feel the love and admiration he has for his subject—and the many people who helped him in his research—throughout the book.
From the epilogue: “The buildings of Lincoln Air Force Base disappear, one by one. The voices of the veterans grow silent, and the once deep pride Lincoln felt for its Air Force installation is but a memory. It can be of an assurance, though, to its remaining veterans that they live, their children and grandchildren live today, because of their efforts in paradoxically preparing for war and avoiding war. In the end, Peace was truly their profession.”
Most of the print run has already been sold. If you would like to purchase a copy, visit the Lincoln Air Force Base Legacy Project.
About the Author
Originally from Lincoln, Nebraska, Cold War historian Robert M. Branting is the site supervisor of the Ronald Reagan Minuteman Missile State Historic Site near Cooperstown, North Dakota.
