Galeta Island

Operations Building

U.S. Military at Galeta Island

In 1925 the U.S. Navy and the Panama Canal Company collaborated in developing a radio compass station at Toro Point (just to the west of the Atlantic/Caribbean side canal entrance). The mission was to provide bearings to commercial and naval ships approaching the entrance to the canal.

NAVRADSTA / NAVCOMMUNIT 33, Galeta Island

In 1952 this Toro Point Radio Compass Station was redesignated as Naval Communications Unit (NAVCOMMUNIT) Number 33 and moved to Galeta Point (just to the east of the canal entrance) where a new operations building was built along with the installation of a AN/GRD-6 direction finding antenna system.

Beginning in 1952 Galeta Island utilized many of the facilities at nearby Coco Solo on the Atlantic side of the canal near the city of Colon.  The former U. S. Navy Submarine Base and Naval Air Station at Coco Solo had been established in 1918.  Over subsequent decades the military operations were phased out until they were eliminated by the early 1960s.  The remaining facilities provided housing and support for Galeta Island personnel and dependents.  Some areas of Coco Solo also provided housing and support services for civilian employees of the Panama Canal Company. 

NSGA Galeta Island

In 1958 the Galeta Point Station was designated as U.S. Naval Security Group Activity under the control of the Commandant, Fifteenth Naval District.

In 1962 work began on a new operations facility – one mile west of the Galeta Point site. In 1965, the building was ready for service with a new AN/FRD-10 Circular Disposed Antenna Array (CDAA), also known as a Wullenweber antenna. In March, 1966, the Naval Security Group Activity, Galeta Island, became its own command with its own Commanding Officer. By 1973 station personnel included 15 officers, 238 enlisted, and 51 civilians.

In 1974 NSGA Galeta Island was forced to cut back operations severely due to budget constraints limiting total military and civilian personnel to 35.  In that year control over the Coco Solo support base was transferred to the U.S. Army and inter-agency arrangements were made to ensure continued support for the Navy contingent at Galeta Island.

Army and Marine Corps

Subsequently much of the former activity level at NSGA Galeta Island was restored, but with major participation of U.S. Army and Marine Corps, including the 747th Military Intelligence Battalion, Company D Marine Support Battalion and the Marine Corps Security Force Company Panama, Atlantic Platoon.  Most Galeta Island personnel were eventually billeted at the U. S. Army post at Fort Davis.

Service at Galeta Island

Although personnel levels assigned to NSGA Galeta varied during the period between completion of the new operations building and antenna system in 1965 and the termination of operations in 1995 — notably due to the sharp reduction in the mid-to-latter 1970s. During much of this period the personnel complement probably fluctuated around 250 military and 50 civilians.  Thus, during the 30-year period defined by the AN/FRD-10 antenna array, approximately 3,000 U.S. military personnel are believed to have served at Galeta, along with several hundred civilians — mostly Panamanians — who worked to provide crucial support services to the military personnel.

Decommissioning

In September 1990, the facilities at Coco Solo were turned over to the government of Panama. Under terms of the 1977 Panama Canal Treaty, the Galeta Island activity was permitted to continue through 1999.  On June 30, 1995, NSGA Galeta Island was officially decommissioned.

Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute (STRI)

Overlooking the Caribbean Sea, Punta Galeta became STRI’s first marine research lab in the mid-1960s. In 1968, 14,000 barrels of diesel oil were spilled near Galeta after an oil tanker broke up off the Atlantic coast of Panama. Eighteen years later, another devastating oil spill dumped 50,000 barrels of crude oil near the station. These events were devastating to local biodiversity, but enabled STRI scientists to lead major studies on how ecosystems recover from oil spills. 

Today, STRI scientists continue to study ecosystem resilience at Punta Galeta. For over 30 years, researchers monitored the impact of the oil contamination on nearby corals. Others have investigated Punta Galeta’s recovery from urban and industrial encroachment. Access to mangrove forests, seagrass meadows, and coral reefs have given researchers at Punta Galeta an opportunity to see how a diverse array of ecosystems respond to damage from human activities.

Timeline of Panama History

Pre-Colonial and Colonial Period

  • ~Pre-1500s: Indigenous peoples, such as the Coclé, Ngäbe, and Guna, inhabit the isthmus and develop advanced societies.1
  • 1501: Spanish explorer Rodrigo de Bastidas explores the Caribbean coast of Panama.2
  • 1510: First permanent European settlement in mainland Americas, Santa María la Antigua del Darién, is founded.3
  • 1513: Vasco Núñez de Balboa crosses the isthmus and reaches the Pacific Ocean.2
  • 1538: Panama becomes part of the Spanish Viceroyalty of Peru.3
  • 1671: Pirate Henry Morgan sacks Old Panama; Panama City is relocated in 1673.2

19th Century – Independence & Federation

  • 1821 (Nov. 28): Panama declares independence from Spain and voluntarily joins Gran Colombia.4
  • 1831: Panama remains part of New Granada (later Colombia) after Gran Colombia dissolves.4
  • 1846: Mallarino-Bidlack Treaty gives the U.S. transit rights across Panama, increasing U.S. influence.5
  • 1855: Panama Railroad is completed, becoming the first transcontinental railroad.6
  • 1880s: French attempt to construct a canal under Ferdinand de Lesseps fails due to disease and engineering challenges.7

Canal and U.S. Involvement

  • 1903 (Nov 3): Panama declares independence from Colombia with U.S. naval support.7
  • 1903 (Nov 18): The Hay–Bunau-Varilla Treaty gives the U.S. rights to build and control the Panama Canal Zone.7
  • 1904-1914: The U.S. completes construction of the Panama Canal, which officially opens on August 15, 1914.7
  • 1936: The Hull-Alfaro Treaty modestly expands Panamanian control in the Canal Zone.7
  • 1964 (Jan 9): Martyrs’ Day: Panamanians protest for sovereignty; at least 22 die in clashes with U.S. forces.8
  • 1977 (Sept 7): Torrijos–Carter Treaties are signed, agreeing to transfer canal control to Panama by 1999.9

Late 20th Century – Toward Full Sovereignty

  • 1983: General Manuel Noriega becomes Panama’s military ruler.10
  • 1989 (Dec 20): The U.S. launches Operation Just Cause to depose Noriega.10
  • 1990: Guillermo Endara is installed as president; democratic governance is restored.10

Modern Panama

  • 1999 (Dec 31): Panama assumes full control of the Panama Canal.9
  • 2006: Panamanians vote to approve canal expansion; construction begins in 2007.9
  • 2016 (June 26): Expanded Panama Canal opens, increasing global maritime trade capacity.9
  • 2020s: Panama emerges as a financial hub but faces inequality, environmental challenges, and corruption concerns.11

Notes:

  1. Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute. “History and Archaeology in Panama.”
    https://stri.si.edu/history-archaeology (Accessed May 9, 2025)
  2. Britannica. “Panama History.” Encyclopedia Britannica.
    https://www.britannica.com/place/Panama/History (Accessed May 9, 2025)
  3. Library of Congress. Panama: A Country Study. Edited by Sandra W. Meditz and Dennis M. Hanratty. Washington, DC: Federal Research Division, 1989.
    https://tile.loc.gov/storage-services/master/frd/frdcstdy/pa/panamacountrystud00medi/panamacountrystud00medi.pdf
  4. Bushnell, David. The Making of Modern Colombia: A Nation in Spite of Itself. Berkeley: University of California Press, 1993.
  5. McGuinness, Aims. Path of Empire: Panama and the California Gold Rush. Durham, NC: Duke University Press, 2008.
  6. World Bank. “Panama Overview.” Updated April 2024.
    https://www.worldbank.org/en/country/panama/overview
  7. LaFeber, Walter. The Panama Canal: The Crisis in Historical Perspective. Updated Ed. New York: Oxford University Press, 1989.
  8. U.S. Department of State. “Torrijos-Carter Treaties.” Bureau of Public Affairs, Office of the Historian.
    https://2001-2009.state.gov/r/pa/ho/time/pcw/99827.htm
  9. Panama Canal Authority. “History of the Panama Canal.”
    https://pancanal.com/en/history-of-the-panama-canal/ (Accessed May 9, 2025)
  10. Donnelly, Thomas. Roth, Margaret. Baker, Caleb. Operation Just Cause: The Storming of Panama. Lexington Books, 1991.
  11. Lynk Markets. “Panama’s Financial Sector: A Comprehensive Overview.”
    https://lynkcm.com/panamas-financial-sector-a-comprehensive-overview (Accessed May 9 2025).