In the late 1950s, many in the U.S. believed there was a missile gap with the Soviet Union, though that proved untrue, and the Air Force created the Minuteman program in 1858 to strengthen the intercontinental ballistic missile deterrent force. The Minuteman I became a testing ground for new missile technologies and was the first solid-fueled, three-stage missile in the U.S. inventory. President John F. Kennedy called the Minuteman missiles the "Ace in the Hole" during the Cuban Missile Crisis. First deployed in 1962, Minuteman I provided deterrence from Ellsworth AFB in South Dakota, Minot AFB in North Dakota, F.W. Warren AFB in Wyoming, Whiteman AFB in Missouri, and Malmstrom AFB in Montana. In 1966, a modernization program upgraded the arsenal to Minuteman II or III. A Minuteman I-B was installed in Lewistown on November 5, 1968, to mark the placement of 50 Minuteman III missiles in the surrounding area, where underground silos with nuclear-warhead missiles spread across northern Montana; a dedication ceremony followed there on May 17, 1969. In 2015, the missile was refurbished with new paint and decals through work led by the Lewistown Historic Resources Commission, with help from the Sons of the American Legion and other veterans groups.