Medical Facilities and their Practioners of the Worlds' Greatest Heroes

Both the Justice League and Justice Society were prepared for all contingencies, and this included medical emergencies from cases that endangered their members. As such, each team had specially designed and equipped medical facilities within their headquarters.

While the Justice Society had the advantage of two physicians on staff, Doctor Mid-Nite aka Doctor Charles McNider and Doctor Fate aka Doctor Kent Nelson (the former of whom helped save the life of the latter, after a battle with Vulcan Son of Fire), the Justice League did not have a dedicated medical professional. However, both teams had a Wonder Woman, each equipped to perform life saving techniques (such as when the Earth-One Wonder Woman saved her teammate Aquaman). 

Besides standard Earth-based state-of-the-art medical devices, the teams' members also incorporate their own technology. The League used Thanagarian devices to revive the Flash. The Society relied on the stellar based technology of Ted Knight, aka Starman, to help sustain the life of Doctor Fate… who suffered severe injuries while battling a villain named Vulcan.

On an earlier occasion, the Earth-Two Wonder Woman revitalized six of her teammates in the Society with her purple healing ray, a scientific breakthrough she and her counterpart invented individually.

_____________________

Continuing thru April 2025 - #JSApril! Celebrating 85 years of #DCComics JUSTICE SOCIETY OF AMERICA, the world's first greatest superhero team! Join over 40 podcasters bloggers as we honor our favorite heroes! Info participants:

www.fireandwaterpodcast.com/JSApril

Hideous Headmen's Heinous Headquarters

Previously we had discussed the first headquarters of the Injustice Gang, as well as the later base of operations for the Injustice Society's Brainwave and his henchmen aboard a pair of orbiting satellites. However the more famous sinister citadels for these megalomical menaces were locales also frequented by their arch-enemies, the Justice League and Justice Society!

Throughout the formative initial years of the Justice League, they utilized a cave just outside the seaside town of Happy Harbor, which they refashioned into a stylized headquarters. Contained therein was a centralized meeting room, as well as a trophy room, gymnasium, library, kitchen, and hanger for the team's various aircraft. This fortress of solitude was used up until honorary League member Snapper Carr betrayed his teammates, revealing the cave's location to Batman's arch-enemy the Joker. The League abandoned the site, building their own satellite headquarters in its place, more inaccessible to their adversaries.

Following his first foray versus the Justice Society, Brain Wave transitioned his base of operations from a highend skyscraper condo into a lighthouse off the coast of Sharktooth Bay. This locale included a meeting room, laboratory and a dungeon. From this tower, Brain Wave launched to attacks against his arch-foes, first by capturing the Society members and later by shrinking the team.

Abra Kadabra, an adversary of the Flash from the 64th century, recruited the Injustice Gang into forming its third incarnation. He schemed that the League's now abandoned Happy Harbor cave would be the ideal location for the Gang. However, the Justice League along with Earth-Prime's sole superhero Ultraa tracked the supervillains to the old HQ and defeated them.

Similarly, while not an intentional headquarters for the Society, the Sharktooth Bay tower was more like their recurring prison. Their girlfriends, dressed up like the heroes themselves, helped free the Society members who then vanquished Brain Wave. Later, a return engagement with the Brain Wave led to his tower being permanently destroyed when Society ally Thunderbolt moved the criminal's bomb from where the heroes were to underneath the tower itself!

Thirtieth-Century Titanic Teams' Towers: Homes of the Legion & Defenders

Undoubtedly inspired by the memorable headquarters for the superheroes of old... the Fortress of Solitude and Secret Citadel of the Supermen, the Batcaves of the Batmen, the satellites and Gotham gathering-sites of the Justice League and Justice Society... the 30th century Legion of Super-Heroes & Defenders/Space Legion had heroic halls of their own.

On 30th century Earth-One, the Legion of Super-Heroes initially used a smaller rocketship style headquarters, which was damaged during a battle with their arch-foes the Fatal Five. This structure would later be repaired and claimed by the Legion of Substitute Heroes instead. The original Legion constructive a far larger structure for their second base of operations by utilizing the Miracle Machine developed by the extra-dimensional Controllers, although not long after a third more permanent headquarters was designed by Legionnaire Brainiac Five and the robotic foe-turned-ally Computo. As with its forebearers, the current Legion HQ located in Metropolis.

On 30th century Earth-Two, since there was no super-heroes of that time period aside from Brane Taylor and his son Ricky aka the future Batman and Robin (Craig “Superman” King has apparently retired at this point in time), the only base of operations for costumes champions in that era was Brane’s Bat-Belfry which mirrored the Legion rocketship. There were two headquarters for the Defenders and their successors the Space Legion, one in Metropolis and one under the sea. Both structures had Halls of Justice, honoring the heroes of the 20th century. While the Space Legion and its sister organization has no superpowered members, the counterparts of the Legion on this world still heroically defended their solar system from various threats, from their days as the Junior Federal Men until they graduated as an Adult Legion when the Justice Society later met them.

Whatever Happened to the Perisphere and Trylon

A central mystery in the history of the Justice Society was its short-lived satellite headquarters, secretly designed by the sinister Eliminations, Inc. which sought revenge for the heroic team's defeat of its predecessor, the Binary Brotherhood. Retrofitting equipment from their Flying Eye craft, which the Binary Brotherhood’s “Brain Trust” developed as a subterfuge for an alien attack, in order to unite adversarial nations of World War II in peace. When members of the Justice Society of America, accompanied by the All-Star Squadron, thwarted their misguided plan for world peace… the Brotherhood became Eliminations, Inc. This sinister scientists’ society formed a plan to strike back at their costumed foes. In order to accomplish this, they used a historic headquarters, where both teams met until 1945, as a potential death trap!

On Earth-One and Earth-Prime, like Earth-Two, the Perisphere and Trylon were the centerpieces of the 1939 World’s Fair in New York City. By 1940, both structures had falled into disrepair, and were soon after scrapped with the metal being used for the war effort... at least on other Earths. On Earth-Two, perhaps due to superior construction techniques (given that technology on this world was decades ahead of their parallel planets in a number of ways), both building remained until the spring of 1942 when the All-Star Squadron claimed both as their new base of operations. However, once this team dissolved in 1945 at the conclusion of the war, the question remained... whatever happened to these two landmarks?

Again, on other Earths in 1949, the next World’s Fair took place in Haiti. However, on Earth-Two, that year's World’s Fair took place in the midwestern metropolis known as Civic City. There, both buildings were transplanted to that city's designated fair grounds, and were still there the following year in 1950 when disasters struck this burgeoning burg. The sinister Diamond Men from below Earth-Two rose to the surface, both through a notable local geyser and a deep lake within the city's bounderies. On hand to deal with and defeat the Diamond Men were the Justice Society, although one of the subterranean race's incursion into Civic City seemingly toppled the Perisphere and Trylon.

However, the following year in 1951, the Justice Society were lured into orbit above Earth-Two by a mysterious benefactor, who claimed to have bequeathed them a satellite headquarters, specifically designed by his organization. This turned out to be a death trap, one which the seven Society members were able to escape, after which Green Lantern transported the satellite back to Earth. He and his teammates then brought its creators... Professor Ivo and his Eliminations, Inc. cohorts to justice. However, a subsequent congressional hearing into the activities and secret identities of the Justice Society caused the heroes to retire from their costumed crusader for the next twelve years.

Interestingly, the size, shape and dimensions of the JSA satellite mirrored that of the former Perisphere, originally of New York and then of Civil City. It seems that this was one and the same structure, modified by technology incorporated into the Brain Trust's Flying Eye from nearly a decade prior. While its counterpart Perisphere on Earth-One was melted down into scrap metal, it is quite likely that some of this material formed the basis of the Justice League's satellite which they designed in the late 1970s. Like the Perisphere/satellite of Earth-Two, the League's satellite would eventually be destroyed by an attack by an alien race, although their attacker came from another world… the Martians! As for the satellite/Perisphere, it was last seen brought back to the surface Earth-Two by Green Lantern, possibly also turned to scrap metal.

Halls of Justice: Headquarters of the Super Friends & Super Squad

While orbiting headquarters were used as the main base of operations for the Justice League encircling Earth-One, and the temporary meeting place for the Justice Society encircling Earth-Two, there were also more accessible earth-bound structures for these teams of heroes. Specifically, these were the Super Friend's Hall of Justice, also occasionally used by the Justice League... and the Super Squad's Brownstone, which they shared with the Justice Society. 

Each of these building were prominently placed in Gotham City. The Society's Brownstone base is well documented and was their primary locale for meetings. As for the Hall of Justice, it fell into disuse following the training of Junior Super Friends Marvin White, Wendy Harris, and the alien Wonder Twins Zan and Jayna. It had been speculated that this wasn't canon.

In fact, references to the Super Friends' existence and their cases was evident in multiple references, both in that team's adventures* and those of its originator, the Justice League**. Like their correlating team on Earth-One, the Earth-Two Super Squad ceased existence following the integration of Power Girl and Star-Spangled in the Justice Society (Robin, although included as a Squad member, was already inducted into the group years earlier). Just as the Junior Super Friends on occasion ventured to the League’s satellite, the Super Squad once rode along with their Society allies in that team’s sky-rocket… which had borrowed components from their scrapped 1951 satellite.

An unspecified time after the dissolution of the Super Friends, Superman encountered various international superheroes whom he first met during a Super Friends mission, when they and their global allies were recruited by Doctor Mist to safeguard the world from various incarcerated supervillians. These various champions from other nations around Earth-One became known as the Global Guardians, a team in action up until the Crisis on Infinite Earths. Those worldwide champions of justice met at Doctor Mist’s mountainous home located in Africa.

After the Wonder Twins completed there training and left Earth-One to venture out into the greater universe from whence they came, the Super Friends training program was discontinued in favor of more integrated training of younger superheroes within the Justice League on their satellite, such as Firestorm as a future member and the second Airwave as an associate. Still later, additional younger heroes such as Steel, Vibe and Gypsy would likewise be groomed by the Leaguers, although this took place at their Detroit factory headquarters.

As such, the Hall of Justice was retrofitted and became the Hall of Heroes, a museum with tributes to the various costumed crusaders. Meanwhile, the Super Squad's former home at the Justice Society Brownstone remained closed off from outside visitors, with various security devices in place to protect the protectors who still met there. Except for the heirs and children of the Society, the future Infinity, Inc. members who broke in during a meeting to petition membership into the team. Which was rejected until they proved themselves later.

* This reference occurred in Super Friends #7 when Marvin and Wendy referred to Superman and Batman working with the Justice League at that same time, while simultaneously Robin was on a case with the Teen Titans.

** This reference was found in Justice League of America #155. During this adventure, the Red Tornado recalled another case in Super Friends #8. An android, originally a member of the Justice Society on Earth-Two who later migrated to Earth-One to join the Justice League... used his vortex-spinning abilities to pierce the time barrier on both occasions.

A Rose is a Rose by Any Other Name: When Justice is Served!

While each Earth within the DC Multiverse has distinct features, many of them replicate the same core characters. Although certain worlds, such as Earth-S with their Squadron of Justice and Earth-Four with their Sentinels of Justice, have radically different templates for their superheroes, most worlds mirror those of Earths One and Two.

On those worlds, where the World's Greatest Heroes are the Justice League and Justice Society, they've often met others who had uncanny resemblance to their own membership. Each world has a Superman... or a Mister Might... or an evil version named Ultra-Man. The same is true for other members... each team has Amazonians, speedsters, caped crusaders, sidekicks, aliens of other worlds and crusaders from the depths below.

Earth-Three has the Crime Syndicate, Earth-Twelve has the Freedom Brigade, Earth-D has the Justice Alliance. And these are but a few examples, which illustrate that the original sole universe known as Earth-One... duplicates innumerable times following the incursion into time by the renegade Oan known as Krona... left its indelible mark in alternate realities.

And even in the aforementioned worlds of the Squadron and the Sentinels, they also have their own different yet slightly similar versions of these legendary superheroes. A prime example is their unique takes on Superman, in Captain Marvel and Captain Atom. And this same principal is true of other heroes and villians, besides those in their world's most powerful groups.

When we look at simple decisions each person and organization makes, we find fascinating forks in the proverbially road. We could illustrate this by the use of headquarters. The League throughout most of its history used a satellite headquarters orbiting Earth, the Society mostly used a brownstone building within a Gotham City, the Syndicate used a secluded citadel in the mountains outside Metropolis, the Alliance had a base of operations under the ocean.

While their histories each take different twists and turns, they all arrive at similar states of growth in their civilizations by the 20th century. And while not every person on each world having an exact, precise cosmic twin on other worlds... they each have an individual who is their closest equivalent on these other parallel planets. And therein lies the fascinating study we here explore.

Sinster Satellite's Secret - Strange Scheming Scientists?

As a new decade began to unfold, the start of their second decade of existence, the Justice Society of America were suddently confronted with a strange mystery. An unidentified man, his face appearing within a floating orb, directed the Society to a grand gift... a new headquarters in the form of a massive satellite!

Innocently entering the orbiting vessel, the Society soon learned that this was in fact a trap, devised by an unknown enemy to entomb them in space indefinitely. This wasn't a new idea, Adolph Hitler enlisted his chief engineer Gootsden to ensnare individual members of the Justice Society in missles, rocketing them to various planets in the solar system. Why he choose this means of disposing of his masked foes is unknown... and ultimately this proved ineffective as each member returned to their home world.

Nevertheless, a brilliant mastermind enlisted the financial aid of a consortium of gang leaders from across the country to back his plan, sealing the Society in specialized cages. Yet despite meticulous planning, this scheme proved unsuccessful, as the Society found a way together to free themselves, returning the satellite to Earth-Two.

However, they soon learned that there were multiple layers to this scheme, as the man behind their faux-headquarter in space was in fact a "foreign agent". When the heroes were subpoened into appearing before a congressional hearing, they learned that their tenuous association with their former jailer caused their government to be suspcious of their own true alliances. When confronted with a demand to reveal their secret identities, the Justice Society refused and instead retired from their costumed careers. They returned to active duty years later, after political pressure died down.

Yet still the mystery remained... who supplied their mustached foes with the advanced technology to create a satellite base of operations? In the early part of 1942, some of the Society members... including Hawkman and Atom... had encountered a group of international scientists with both the genius and financial means to construct a massive flying Eye vessel, which they intended to use as a psuedo-alien threat to the entire world, uniting them together and pulling them out of their internal conflict in World War II. However, one of their number, Anton Hastor, took control of this Eye craft, seeking to use it to conquer the world himself. Hawkman and the All-Star Squadron were able to stop Hastor's evil efforts, and when last seen the eye craft was in possession of the American government. What became of it, and of its inventors? 

Well, the chief architect behind both the vessel and the scheme behind it was millionaire inventor Elwood Napier - who later used his intellect to create another advanced vessel. Under the influence of aliens, he briefly become the Conqueror and battled the Justice Society. Most likely, one of his former confederates refabricated a large object that could be used as the JSA satellite, incorporating parts of the Eye to aid it on orbital flight. This was done in concert with politicians and gangsters alike... each opposed to the Justice Society's existence. As to where they procured the massive spherical object that became the Society’s temporary abode in space, this will be revealed another time!

As to what became of the Satellite headquarters after its brief appearance in the early 1950s, it was apparently scrapped. with some of its design repurposed into the JSA Sky-Rocket. This portable vessel/base was used briefly by the Justice Society in the 1970s, during their “mission in space” (concurrent with the Cary Bates/Injustice Society incident), and shortly after when they battled Brain Wave and Per Degaton along with the Super-Squad. The JLA satellite, destroyed by 1985, would be rebuilt centuries later into an orbiting prison for an ancient enemy of the team.

And, unlike other satellite bases such as the Earth-712 Squadron Supreme's "Rocket Central" and Earth-One's Justice League satellite, this brief base was barely a footnote in the otherwise illustrious history of the World's First Super-Team. Or was it? Did the Society previously use this structure  as a meeting location? Evidence suggests that indeed the JSA's orbiting locale had a much more storied existence with this super-team supreme, as well will see another time!

Mighty Mansions of Multiple Metahumans

Unlike the orbiting satellite bases of their counterparts, Earth-One's Justice League and Earth-712's Squadron Supreme, the mightiest heroes of Earths Two and 616 have their own residences on terra firma. On Earth-616, since the inception of their team, the Avengers have been located in the heart of New York City within the former mansion of Tony "Ironman" Stark.

On Earth-Two, the predominant meeting locale for the Justice Society was within that world's largest metropolis, Gotham City, inside their own brownstone base. Each was more than it seemed, containing several sublevels with various high-tech equipment and specialized vehicles. The brownstone was apparently a joint purchase from millionaire members Wesley "Sandman" Dodds and Carter "Hawkman" Hall, each as scientifically savy as Stark albeit not as financially successful. 

That these twin teams centered their historic legacies around urban locations shows that they were more grounded than their peers on parallel planets, and hence more enduring the either the League or the Squadron would, as each of those vessels would ultimately be damaged beyond repair and outlive their usefulness.

Earth-Three Tour De Force: Heinous Headquarters

Although alluded to in their first appearence, the Eyrie of Evil was first named and shown in somewhat detail during the Secret Society of Supervillains' invasion of Earth-Three. The  headquarters of that world's most powerful organization of metahumans, it had long been abaonded due the imprionment of its occupants the Crime Syndicate after the Syndicate's battles and defeat at the hands of the Justice League and Society of Earths One and Two. A mountain retreat secluded from the eyes of public, it was a haven for the heinous. When they were free, that is.

Fortress of Solitute, Secret Citadel, Etc Etc

A discussion on superhero headquarters would not be complete without a consideration of the Mythical Mansions of the Men of Steel.

The silver age Superman Kal-El had bases on an undersea cliff of Earth-One as well as an asteroid in space before finally settling on his Fortress of Solitude in the Arctic. There within the Fortress, he designed a section for his cousin Supergirl. Accessible by a gigantic golden key, it housed various chambers with memorabilia of Krypton and its owners’ exploits as well those of their family.

The golden age Superman Kal-L initially had his residence in mountains outside Metropolis of Earth-Two, known as the Secret Citadel. While he had other locales such as an Arctic palace in the late 1940's and another secluded mountain base for his cousin Power Girl with a large key to open it like Kal-El’s, which like Supergirl’s one-time desert fortress she quickly abandoned.

And, lest we forget, Krypto the Superdog had his own Doghouse of Steel... most likely converted from Kal-El's original asteroid headquarters.

Of interest is the fact that deep under the surface of Earth-Two was the Ultra-Humanite's subterranean headquarters, much like the under-the-sea Fortress of Earth-One, from which Ultra accessed his Superman's Secret Citadel. 

A connecting subterranean Sinister Citadel in Washington State, connected by a thousands of miles corridor from underneath the Secret Citadel on Earth-Two, correlated with Brainwave's hidden laboratory within a mountain outside of Earth-One's Metropolis! This lab was used as an access point to Earth-Two's Sinister Citadel, home of Brainwave's Secret Society of Supervillain, within the Himalaya mountain range in Asia. This Citadel was short lived, as the golden age Superman and his Justice Society allies, along with the visiting Justice League, evicted its supervillain inhabitants.

Majestic Mansions of Mighty Metahumans

While subterranean lairs in the mountains and satellite bases rotating high above the Earth have been in vogue for years, sometimes the simplest yet most elegant of backdrops for a headquarters is the most majestic. Take for instance Marvel's Avengers Mansion, in the heart of New York City, which stood for decades. Very classic and, aside from the occasional invasion from teams of villains, effectively guarded.

Earth-One's truly forgotten heroic team, the Doom Patrol, housed themselves in Niles Caulder's mansion in Midway City, home of the Hawkman and Hawkgirl. While that pair never seemed to meet up with the Patrol, inexplicably enough, the actual mansion could not have been all that far away from the museum where the alien couple was employed. And it was this fully equipped headquarters which kept Robotman, Negative Man, Elasti-Girl and Beast Boy safely secure. Well, until the team was lured to a small town by a disenfranchised former Nazi officer and led to their demise!

Earth-Two's most renowned heroic team, the Justice Society of America, moved to Gotham City during the 1960's wherein they purchased and remodeled their Brownstone. Equipped with state of the art technology, this location became the primary meeting place for the now seasoned team. although they did relocate temporarily to their old Civic City digs when charged with treason. This location, which they used during the 1940's and 1950's, was reused decades later when the Justice Society had been falsely accused of treason, while the Caulder Mansion was reused years later by Niles' widow Arani and her new Doom Patrol.

Another structure on Earth-One, the Hall of Justice used by the erstwhile Super Friends for  training teens,  A vast structure the size of a mansion, it mostly stored training equipment with a large meeting chamber and computer monitor, it existed in Gotham City as had the JSA Brownstone. 

Located in a seldom visited section of Gotham within a large forested park, much as the Society's HQ in Civic City had been.

Another location the Justice League used previously was a bunker compound within an industrial building owned by Hank Heywood, a site which the Justice Society visited on their own world when battling Ultra-Humanite's minions including members of Infinity Inc., who themselves traveled to the League's world to visit that bunker on one occasion.

Sinister Citadels of the Secret Society of Super-Villains

On at least two Earths in the Multiverse, the largest assemblage of criminals on their respective planets formed the Secret Society of Super-Villains. Originally created from behind the scenes by Darkseid of the world known as Apokolips, Earth-One's Society was then led by first the Manhunter, then Funky Flashman, then Gorilla Grodd and finally Earth-Two's Wizard.

Their primary base of operations was a skyscraper in downtown San Francisco, California, unknown to the public at large. Known to the criminal community as the Sinister Citadel, it became the focal point for a brief period of powerful crooks from around the world and even from outer space! A later offshoot of the Sinister Citadel was a laboratory in the mountains outside Metropolis. Interestingly, over on Earth-Two, those same mountains concealed Superman’s Secret Citadel… and passageways underneath carved out by future Secret Society leader, the Ultra-Humanite. Coincidence? Or irony? 

Eventually, a portion of the Society left for Earth-Two to operate for several months using the Injustice Society's old base of operations which is its equivallent presumably in Gotham City, close to their adversaries the Justice Society. Although the Wizard stated this was the Injustice Society's established headquarters, previous tales aside from their initial appearence in the late 1940's had the team meeting in a subway tunnel in its 2nd incarnation, under a junk heap in its 3rd incarnation and in the JSA's own brownstone in their 4th incarnation. This apparently was the original base of operations restored and updated for emergencies.

Titantic Towers of Terrific Troubleshooters

Titan's Tower was the brainchild of Doctor Silas Stone, father to Victor Stone aka Cyborg, created as recompense for what Silas' interdimensional research did to his son. Believing that Victor would only feel at ease with other teens that weren't normal, he equipped Titan's Tower with state-of-the-art equipment. This locale eventually became not only the Teen Titan's headquarters but also an emergency base for all of Earth-One's heroes... such as during the Crisis.

The Tower of Fate was constructed by another doctor, Doctor Fate as a home for his apprentice alter ego Kent Nelson and Nelson's wife Inza. This base was constructed of bricks rather than steel, but as with the former this facility was also impregnable to most attacks from opponents. Occasionally, other heroes of Earth-Two would visit the tower including Atom and Amazing-Man (although he wasn't an ally at that point), even Earth-One's Superman.

Hotel Headquarters of the World's Greatest Heroes

For the many headquarters of the Justice League and Society of America, none was more non-traditional than their penthouse hotel suites which they met at for brief periods.

The Justice League turned to such a base of operations after the Secret Sanctuary had been discovered by the Joker, and after their satellite had been virtually destroyed by a Martian invasion. After dissolving and reconstituting the League into a tighter, full-time band of heroes, Aquaman resorted to this locale until Steel offered the Bunker of his grandfather's Hank Heywood Senior (originally of Earth-Two) in Detroit to house the team.

This facility had several levels beneath the factory, which served as a front for this locale. Containing state-of-the-art defenses and workout facilities as well as living facilities for the Leaguers that resided there. Young mutant heroes such as Vibe and Gypsy from the surrounding neighborhoods were drawn into the team and joined as a result.

The Justice Society actually first conducted meetings for its first several months of existence in a penthouse suite reserved by Wesley Dodds aka the Sandman. This headquarters was also utilized by the initial grouping of the All-Star Squadron before they moved to the Perisphere. Unfortunately, several villains attacked this seemingly secret sanctum including Sandman's old foe Fairytales Fenton, Nazi agents and the Monster Society of Evil (who used it for their own base temporarily, similar to the Injustice Gang on Earth-One using the JLA's Sanctuary). 

Then the team moved to Civic City, first to rent a room which was discovered by a curious detective then their own building. It was here that the original Black Canary originally tracked the Society's whereabouts, trailing her friend Johnny Thunder, eventually joining the group in his place.

With their own staff, such as Dale Gunn who maintained the  JLA Bunker and Mrs Campion who cleaned up the JSA's Civic City center, the heroes could concentrate on the business of keeping law  and order maintained.. not just in Detroit and Civic City and New York City... but around the world as well!

Seaside Sanctuaries of the Super and the Sinister

HQs for the mightiest heroes of two worlds took many forms. From structures carved from stone outside modest seaside towns  to stunning satellites above parallel planet Earths.

The Secret Sanctuary was the initial headquarters of the Justice League of America, within a mountain just outside Happy Harbor, USA, Earth-One. It was later abandoned when the Joker discovered its location, thanks to the betrayal of the team's mascot Snapper Carr in a moment of weakness. The headquarters was state of the art, with several rooms and chambers to satisfy the various needs and functions of the up-and-coming team, as was its doppleganger on a parallel world.

The Justice Society of America initially operated out of a rented hotel room in the New York City of Earth-Two, which they allowed the All-Star Squadron to borrow from time-to-time, before moving to their Civic City digs. Then, during their early years as a team the Justice Society members were twice held captive in the seaside sanctuary of the Brain Wave, a stone tower near Sharktooth Bay which correlated to Happy Harbor. Not only were the male members of the Society drawn to this locale but also their girlfriends and teammate Wonder Woman. Then it was demolished by its owner's own malevolent machinations, forever a testimony to the folly of felony!

Further correlations to these two bases can be found in the use of the Secret Sanctuary years after it was abandoned... by the Justice League's arch-foes the Injustice Gang! Their base would be used by their foes... while a future member of the Injustice Society, Brain Wave, would use Sharktooth Tower as his own base of operations on two occasions when he ensnared the Justice Society!

Behemoth Buildings Benefiting from Batman's Benevolence

Earth-One's Batman later in his career used a secondary Batcave underneath the Wayne Foundation building in downtown Gotham City. Although smaller than the original subterranean base, it housed similar equipment. Eventually, after Batman quit the Justice League of America and founded the Outsiders, he housed that team in the Wayne Penthouse he had then vacated, with the Batcave becoming the team's new base until their move to the west coast. Wayne moved back to his manor and reopened his original Batcave as a result of distancing himself from his time consuming Foundation tasks.

The corresponding building on Earth-Two is the Wayne Foundation building in Metropolis, wherein that world's Batman built within its basement level a replica of his Batcave. His former partner Robin and daughter Huntress in their civilian and costumed identities used this facility when they were trapped within Superman's hometown during the Convergence event, although afterwards they relocated back to their native Gotham City.

Man Caves of the Many Men of Justice

Ever since the Batcave first appeared, it inspired several like sanctuaries for various superheroes throughout the ages. Just as there was a Batcave for each Dynamic Duo and an Arrowcave for the pairs of Battling Bowmen, Batman, Green Arrow and their sidekicks were not alone.

Aquaman of Earth-One and Sandman of Earth-Two had fixed bases, for the former under the seas and for the latter under his townhome. Based in New Venice and New York (or just York) City, these were not only refuges from the stress of crimefighting but a place of solace over the loss of life for Arthur Curry's son and the horrible transformation that occured for Wesley Dodd's adopted son Sandy. Similarly, the Sandman of Earth-One had his dream dimensional place and the Aquaman of Earth-Two had his own Aquacave to call home.

Additionally, there was the mountain lair of J'onn J'onzz and the mountain base of Vandal Savage occupying similar positions in Earths One and Two.

As for the Batcaves, each had similar features and were not only used by the Dark Knight's but also for other members of the Batman Family.

While the Batcaves were underneath Wayne Manor on the outskirts of Gotham City, both Bruces had a Wayne Foundation building built with replicas of the Batcaves underneath... the Earth-One version in Gotham City and the Earth-Two version in Metropolis.

Then there was the Arrowcaves, secret chambers within Oliver Queen's Star City (or Park City on Earth-Two) suite... not so much as cave except for how it mimics Batman's own method of keeping his crime investigation equipment, armory and trophies from his adventures in one locale.

The Lairs of Large Legions of Lads and Lasses

While the Legion of Super-Heroes of the 30th century primarily operated in an upside-down rocket-ship headquarters (larger within that it appears outside due to 4th dimensional science), it later abandoning it to the Legion of Substitute Heroes so they could reside in a more palatial base.

On Earth-Two during the 30th century existed the Bat Belfry, home of that era's Batman aka Brane Taylor. Both the Legion and Brane also utilized time bubbles to visit the present day and other centuries on occasion.

Challengers of the Unknown Week: Mountain Bases

High atop the Rocky Mountains in North America and the Himalayas Range of Nepal were the elaborate headquarters of two teams diametrically opposed to the other philosophically.

Challengers Mountain was the secret retreat  in the Rockies wherein Earth-One's Challengers of the Unknown were based through most of their careers.  At this facility they housed their arch-foes including the League of Challenger-Haters. Several levels and chambers were designed specifically to allow the Challengers to research the anomalies they had encountered throughout their historic careers as adventures in superhuman science and events. 

Likewise, other supervillains were located in the Sinister Citadel of Earth-Two's Secret Society of Supervillains, where their roles were reversed and the criminal captured the heroes... the Justice League and Society. This base of operations, however, would only be temporary as the Supervillains were swiftly defeated... with this mountain retreat seemingly abandoned as its "secret" location was now revealed.

The Challengers of the Unknown had another base of operations, also in the Rocky Mountains, after its predecessor had been destroyed. This location had several specially designed floors and chambers (see picture to the left). This would become the more enduring location of the Challengers throughout their years of on-again, off-again adventuring.

Ultra-Humanite's second mountain headquarters, close to Fall Springs, Colorado, served as the mastermind's base of operations during his campaign against  two of Earth-Two's  greatest heroic teams. When he caused the Justice Society of America to fall under the evil influence of the  Koehaha River, he sent the team off to defeat their offspring from Infinity, Inc. Stocking his underground locale with state of the art equipment, provided by the dimension traveling Monitor, Ultra nearly succeeded in entombing his arch-foes. Instead, his scheme was squashed and his base destroyed during the epid battle between the superpowered heroes who unraveled Ultra's sinster schemes once more.

Twice-Told Tales: Satellites of Injustice And Purloined Power!

Just as the Justice League and Justice Society had satellite headquarters, albeit very briefly for the latter, the same could be said for their arch-enemies as well.

The Injustice Gang's inaugural appearance was prompted by the mysterious Libra recruiting six other supervillains to battle Earth-One's League and thereby acquire their powers for himself. The Injustice Society, or rather two members of its first incarnation... Brain Wave and Per Degaton... joined forces aboard the former's satellite headquaters. His goal? To acquire energies from Earth-Two exerted by young members of the Justice Society of America to gain a superhuman body for himself!

However the story of Libra parallels another tale from the Justice Society's old case files. Doctor Egri had harnessed cosmic radiation and focused it into six objects, which he arranged six criminals to steal and field test against the Justice Society. The gang leader, Rocky Castle, gained a magnetized ring like Green Lantern's; Specs had a black light to face Doctor Mid-Nite; Ox wore stick pin that allowed him to fly like Hawkman; Peewee wore gloves giving him superstrength like the Atom; Gun-Shy had a wristwatch that protects him much like Wonder Woman's bracelets; and Slowpoke donned a jacket giving him superspeed like the Flash. These crooks were eventually beaten by the Society and then trapped by Egri, who regained the devices to battle the combined team.

This may remind us of the Lawless League, created by that world's Johnny Thunder on an alternate timeline that spawned the Earth-Two world of Earth-A. His gang of crooks gained powers comparable to the Justice League and also, like the Rocky Castle Gang, battled the Justice Society. These included Monk Loomis, possessing a power ring like Green Lantern's;  Bill Gore assuming the mantle of the Batman; Eddie Orson acquiring the powers of Martian Manhunter;  Barney Judson now appearing as the Atom; Ripper Jones becoming a new Superman; Race Morrison gained superspeed like the Flash. The original members of Thunder's gang were the counterparts of Castle's gang, although their Lawless clones were the counterparts to the Bizarro Justice League. 

In the main timeline, Professor Amos Fortine would form a different League (its members were: Acrobat, Crier, Cyclone, Racer, Shrinking Man, Strongman, Water King) which possessed the ability of transferring the Justice League’s powers to other people. This faux League was defeated pretty quickly, despite their seeming invincibility.

But returning to Libra, this rogue manipulated matters through his six criminal cronies to siphon the superhuman energies from Superman, Batman (?), Flash, Green Lantern, Aquaman and Elongated Man... in much the same manner as the aforementioned Professor Egri. However, the result proved disastrous for each as their human bodies could not contain the combined six-fold energies, and they exploded/evaporated into nothingness!

And thus, a twice-told-tale intermingled in several stories but with the same conclusion!