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Off of the walkway to the "old" entrance, near the fountain is Miss Baker's grave.

Miss Baker was a squirrel monkey who, along with Able, flew a suborbital flight in the reentry vehicle of Jupiter AM-18 on May 28, 1959 and returned safely, becoming the American animals to survive a round trip into space; many people will recognize her from a famous publicity photo.

Miss Baker subsequently lived at the USSRC (or, more properly, at the Alabama Space & Rocket Center, as it was known back then) until her death on November 29, 1984, after which she was buried here.

The grave reads:

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Miss Baker
Squirrel Monkey
Born 1957
Died Nov. 29, 1984
First U.S. Animal
To Fly in Space
And Return Alive
May 29, 1959

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It is not uncommon for people to leave bananas on top of her stone.