Station Salem One was mentioned in passing by Jean-Luc Picard during Star Trek Next Generation’s third season seventh episode (STNG-0307) titled “The Enemy.” The Captain pointed out that Station Salem One was known as “the stage for a bloody preamble to war.” He compared it to Pearl Harbor, which was the location of a similar “bloody preamble,” an important historical event during Earth’s World War Two. Beyond the passing mention of this station, little if nothing has been canonized in Star Trek lore. According to Memory Alpha, there is apocryphal information suggesting an ancestor of Jack Crusher (Wesley Crusher’s father) fought and died during the battle of Station Salem One. Also, according to apocryphal notation, there are at least four Station Salems.. perhaps more.
Extrapolating from what little we know, it is possible to expand upon this to suggest a fixed installation that was sufficient enough to be a target for early enemies of the Federation, perhaps after the time of Star Trek Enterprise but before the events depicted during Star Trek Strange New Worlds. Where the four Station Salems are located in space is not specified in canon, but it’s safe to say these are fixed installations near Federation friendly planets well inside Federation territory. Station Salem One was probably a combination of shipyard and space station, placed to be a way station for Federation ships in need of routine repairs and maintenance. Perhaps it even became a choice for shore leave, though nowhere near as popular as Risa. It’s safe to assume they were not examples of such a fixed installation near the neutral zone or beyond the standard range of Federation control, but they were close enough to at least one enemy which led to the historical event that put Salem Station One in the proverbial history books. Otherwise, Picard would not have mentioned it, or compared it to Earth’s Pearl Harbor.
I’m not suggesting that Station Salem One would be as exciting or dangerous as the adventures of Star Trek Deep Space Nine, but Station Salem One could have been a predecessor to star bases like that. If visited in its inception, construction and engineering would have been paramount. Once its first incarnation were completed, it would have been known as a state of the art facility for its time. Perhaps it served the Federation and other friendly species for decades if not a century, before the fated “preamble to war” that devastated Station Salem One and made its historical mark. We could just assume it was destroyed completely and that was the end of it.. OR… we could contemplate another possibility.
Pearl Harbor was devastated on December 7, 1941, but after the battle, there was hope among the wreckage. Many died, but others survived. In present day 21st century, Pearl Harbor is now known as a tourist target. Some live and work there. Others visit for vacations or to study the rich history and frankly we are talking The Hawaiian Islands. So it’s not a bad place to be today. Again, similar to Deep Space Nine, Bajor is a popular place for some to take refuge, and seek solace in meditation. Then of course there are less pious but more bawdy establishments, like Quark’s.
It is not out of the question that Station Salem One could have been salvaged and rebuilt. In the days of Star Trek Next Generation and beyond, Station Salem One may now be an historical memorial to that fateful battle. It may even be a tourist attraction. Perhaps it is also still a fixed installation that serves as a shipyard, star base, and even a home for its residents. Tourists from all around the galaxy may come and go to see the place where The Federation and its allies survived and thrived. Starships may visit there regularly for supplies and repairs. Perhaps.. just around the corner, there may be an adventure or two waiting to be discovered. Station Salem One could be the backdrop for simple stories between carbon based life forms and also the launching pad for grandiose mysteries and perhaps even another preamble to war. However, if another preamble to war ever reared its ugly head again, hopefully those now serving and protecting Station Salem One have learned the lessons of the past. A great man once said: “The Strength of a civilization is not measured by its ability to fight wars, but rather by its ability to prevent them.” That great man was Gene Roddenberry.
If anyone ever suggests that Star Trek as a franchise has been exhausted, and there’s nothing more to do or say about it, and you have read these words I leave behind for you, I implore you to turn to those who are currently the shepherds of Gene Roddenberry’s vision, and suggest to them there is at least one place left where they have not yet looked. There is one more platform upon which they have yet to explore. Tell Jack Crusher’s ancestor we said hi, and we raise a toast to his memory. Don’t let this be their last battlefield. Let this be where it all begins again. Live long and prosper. Peace and long life.
ZachsMind 