Buffalo and Erie County Naval & Military Park to open for 46th season, commemorate the 80th anniversary of USS Little Rock

USS Little Rock veteran Paul Enser to be honored as first visitor of 2025

Press Release 

The Buffalo and Erie County Naval & Military Park will open for its 46th season on Saturday, March 22, with a ribbon cutting ceremony at 9:30 a.m. Joining the Naval Park for the ribbon-cutting will be Little Rock veteran Paul Enser, who will be honored as the first official visitor of the season.

Enser is a Buffalo native and U.S. Navy veteran who served as a radioman first class (RM1). After completing radio and crypto school, he was assigned temporary duty aboard USS Little Rock in 1961 and 1962, working for the fleet admiral as a radioman and crypto operator for 2nd and 6th Fleet communications. After President John F. Kennedy’s assassination in November 1963, he was asked to reenlist for another three years because of a special assignment. He left USS Little Rock and transferred to Vietnam with the United States Marine Corps communications company, where he served as a peacekeeper and improved communications on Marine helicopters. He ended his service in the U.S. Navy aboard USS Enterprise for a cruise around the world with an all-nuclear task force.

Enser returned to Buffalo and was pleasantly surprised to learn that his former ship had been brought to his hometown for display as a museum in 1977. He has been volunteering as a docent at the Buffalo Naval Park for over a decade, welcoming visitors aboard, sharing his personal stories, and providing tours.

During the ribbon-cutting ceremony, staff of the Buffalo Naval Park will highlight many initiatives and projects that are coming up in 2025. Several major projects have been completed at the Naval Park over the winter to maintain and improve each of the ships and to open new spaces on the tour route. Work has been ongoing to prepare both USS The Sullivans and USS Croaker for long-term hull repairs at a dry dock facility. The City of Buffalo released a request for proposals in December to select a marine management company to oversee the project. The results of the RFP process are expected to be announced in the next few weeks.

The Naval Park plans to celebrate the 80th anniversary of USS Little Rock throughout the year with a series of events and specialty tours to highlight the history of the last surviving vessel from the Cleveland-class of light cruisers, and to raise awareness about the ongoing long-term preservation efforts. Originally classified as CL-92, USS Little Rock was one of three ships to be converted to a Galveston-class guided missile cruiser and was recommissioned in 1960 as CLG-4. The ship patrolled the Atlantic from the Arctic Circle to South America and was a fixture in the Mediterranean Sea as a Cold War flagship of the U.S. 2nd and 6th Fleet.

For the 2025 season, the Buffalo Naval Park will be open from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Wednesday through Sunday, with the last ticket sold at 4 p.m. Starting May 1, the Naval Park will be open daily.

More about the Buffalo and Erie County Military & Naval Park

The Buffalo and Erie County Naval & Military Park, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization, is the nation’s largest inland naval park and the home of four U.S. Naval vessels: USS The Sullivans, USS Little Rock, USS Croaker and PTF-17. Located on Buffalo’s waterfront, this unique family destination is committed to its mission, which is to honor, educate, inspire and preserve. The Buffalo Naval & Military Park also features a museum, U.S. military exhibits, and a beautifully manicured Veterans Park with 15 monuments and memorials dedicated to those who served our country. More information is available at www.BuffaloNavalPark.org.