Cadet Corp History

The New York City Cadet Corps was founded in 1946 by Mr. Wilbert E. Burgie and was called the Camp Minisink Cadet Corps.  The unit held its meetings at the Minisink Town House 348 Convent Avenue.   At this time there was only one unit.

In September 1947 a new unit was started and was called the St. James unit.  This unit first met at the St. James Presbyterian Church 141st and St. Nicholas Avenue, it later moved to Caldwell Church and became the Caldwell Cadet Unit.

The Minisink Unit (or Manhattan Unit) later moved to the St. James church on St. Nicholas Avenue 1949-1952 and it began to grow from there.  At this time there were only two hundred cadets in the entire organization.

Note:  The entire Cadet Corp was an outgrowth of the Regimental Band  which met at the Town House and was later to become a Cadet Corp.

The first Cadet Review was held in 1947 at the gymnasium at P.S. 133 located at 135th Street and St. Nicholas Avenue.  The only unit to perform was the Regimental Band.

In 1953 the Manhattan Unit moved to the basement of the Hood Memorial Church Located at 146th Street between 7th and Lenox Avenue.  At this time  another unit was being formed, Transfiguration unit and was headed by Major William Clark.  This made the Cadet Corp grow to approximately 250 Cadets.  In the winter of 1956 the Manhattan Unit (Minisink) again moved its headquarters to St. Phillips Church located at 133rd Street between 7th and 8th Avenue.  Remaining there from October to December then, Minisink moved to it present headquarters located at 155th Street between Broadway and Amsterdam Avenue.  January 1957 the Minisink Cadets opened at its new home and began to operate around the city.

In the fall of 1957 the Cadet Corps expanded the Dewitt and Good Neighbor Units. Dewitt is located at the lower east side of Riverton Street and Good Neighbor unit  located at 106th Street between Park and Lexington Avenues.  In the fall of 1964 the Good Neighbor unit was closed and all members transferred to another unit in the fall of 1957 call St. Andrews.  At this time the Cadet Corps enrollment was about 780.

In 1959 the Cadet Corps expanded to the Bronx and opened its second Bronx division to be called the North Church Unit located at 143rd Street between Willis and Brook Avenue.

In the fall of 1966 the corps expanded in the lower east side by opening the Sea and Sand Unit located on Henry Street and East Broadway.  The following year the Corps opened another unit in the Bronx to be called St. Ann's Unit located and opened in Mid-Manhattan the St. Matthew's unit located at 87th Street between Columbus and Central Park West.

The fall of 1963 another unit opened in the Bronx and was called Bronx Spanish Unit located at 155th Street and Westchester Avenue.  At the same time St. Ann's was closed.

The fall of 1964 saw the opening of the All Souls Unit located at 117th Street and St. Nicholas Avenue, St. Mary's Unit located at 127th Street and Amsterdam Avenue and St. Phillips Unit located at 133rd Street between 7th and  8th Avenue. These  units were made possible by the Anti-Poverty Program from the HARYOU (Harlem Youth) Act.

In 1965 the Minisink Unit changed its former name and become the North Church Cadets and the entire Cadet Corps was called the New York City Mission Cadet Corps.  The Corps also secured its own Headquarters at this time.  1966 saw the first girl cadet unit operating at the new headquarters.  The present enrollment of the Cadet Corps is now 2,300 young men and women.  In the fall of 1967 the Cadet Corps opened its newest unit called Crossroads located at 19th Street.