Strategic Scientific Reserve

"The Strategic Scientific Reserve is an Allied effort made up of the best minds in the free world. Our goal is to create the best army in history. But every army starts with one man."

- Chester Phillips The Strategic Scientific Reserve (S.S.R.) was the top secret Allied war agency during World War II. It later was absorbed by S.H.I.E.L.D. after its founding.

Project Rebirth
"We are going to win this war because we have the best men. And because they're gonna get better. Much...better."

- Chester Phillips

The Strategic Scientific Reserve was formed in 1940 on the orders of President Franklin D. Roosevelt. Though the United States wasn't directly involved in World War II at the time, Roosevelt knew that such situation was only temporary, because Adolf Hitler and his Third Reich were the greatest threat to the free world.

The commanding officer of the Strategic Scientific Reserve was Colonel Chester Phillips. The same year when the Strategic Scientific Reserve was formed, he persuaded the American industrialist Howard Stark to join the agency, after the group of assassins sent by HYDRA, Hitler's special weapons division, tried to kill them both.

Shortly after, they organized the rescue of Abraham Erskine from Castle Kaufmann where he was being held by Johann Schmidt, the commanding officer of HYDRA. Phillips sent one of his best agents, Peggy Carter, to secure Erskine's release.

The goal of the Strategic Scientific Reserve was to create an army of super soldiers that could defeat anything the Axis powers had on the battlefield. This led to the Project Rebirth based on the work of their newest acquisition, Erskine, and transformation of Steve Rogers into Captain America. After Abraham Erskine was killed by Heinz Kruger, the top priority mission of the Strategic Scientific Reserve was to take down HYDRA.

Battling HYDRA
"I spoke to the President this morning. As of today, the S.S.R. is being retasked." "Colonel?" "We are taking the fight to HYDRA."

- Chester Phillips and Peggy Carter

In November 1943, several members of the Strategic Scientific Reserve were in Italy. When Steve Rogers discovered that his friend Bucky Barnes was captured by HYDRA, he flew behind enemy lines and led a successful escape of prisoners from the HYDRA factory in Austria.

Back in the SSR's headquarters in London, Chester Phillips wanted to form a team of best soldiers to assist Rogers in taking down HYDRA bases, but he turned down the offer, instead forming the Howling Commandos from the rescued prisoners.

Over the next year, the Howling Commandos progressively managed to destroy most major HYDRA operations, every time postponing Schmidt's planned worldwide offensive. At the beginning of 1945, Schmidt's top scientist Arnim Zola was captured and brought to the SSR's headquarters in London, where he revealed Schmidt's plans.

Loss of Captain America
"HYDRA's last base is here. In the Alps. Five hundred feet below the surface." "So, what are we supposed to do? I mean, it's not like we can just knock on the front door." "Why not? That's exactly what we're gonna do."

- Chester Phillips, Jim Morita, and Steve Rogers

With the intelligence obtained from Zola, the SSR planned an attack on Schimdt's fortress in the Alps. A huge detachment of the US Army assisted the SSR in the attack and the fortress was captured after a relatively short fight. Though Schmidt escaped with the massive aircraft bomber, the Valkyrie, so he could use weapons of mass destruction on American cities, Rogers managed to board the plane and cause its fall into the icy waters of North Atlantic.

Last Battle
"These assets are now under the protection of the Strategic Scientific Reserve. They'll be relocated and hidden out of sight, indefinitely, as will you." "Cut off one head, two more shall grow in its place." "Then I guess we'll keep cutting them off."

- Peggy Carter and Werner Reinhardt

In 1945, the efforts of the Strategic Scientific Reserve were successful. Peggy Carter and a team then took down the last known HYDRA base in Austria, capturing General Werner Reinhardt and the first 0-8-4, the Obelisk. Reinhardt was placed in the SSR facility called the Rat, interrogated, and given a life sentence. HYDRA was destroyed, and the Axis powers defeated.

The SSR facility in London was dismantled and abandoned. However, the SSR's work wasn't finished yet.

Stolen Weapons
The end of the war didn't mean the end of the agency. The Strategic Scientific Reserve continued with its activities, because the new threats to the USA have risen after the war. Howard Stark was accused of selling arms to the enemy during the war, and he asked Agent Peggy Carter to investigate.

Zodiac
"Agent Flynn, sir, it's been three months now and I've yet to have be sent on my first assignment." "Peggy, relax, war is over. We'll handle the rough stuff."

- Peggy Carter and John Flynn In 1946, the SSR was working on the Zodiac case. The case was successfully solved by Agent Peggy Carter. Later that year, a new agency, the Strategic Homeland Intervention, Enforcement and Logistics Division, also known as S.H.I.E.L.D., was formed. The SSR was absorbed into S.H.I.E.L.D., becoming one of its subdivions.

Subdivision of S.H.I.E.L.D.
"This was the SSR facility before S.H.I.E.L.D. was even founded. "SSR" stands for Strategic Scientific Reserve."

- Jemma Simmons about the S.H.I.E.L.D. Academy

After the formation of S.H.I.E.L.D., the Strategic Scientific Reserve became its research division, making weapons and inventions for the organization. One of the SSR's facilities was re-purposed as the S.H.I.E.L.D. Academy of Science and Technology and was used to train gifted young adults to become S.H.I.E.L.D. scientists.

After the Battle of New York, S.H.I.E.L.D. Director Nick Fury took possession of several old SSR bases and furnished them with modern technology. He put only the most trusted agents in charge of those bases, the Koenig brothers among them. After the S.H.I.E.L.D. Civil War, those bases became the first facilities of the reorganized S.H.I.E.L.D. led by Phil Coulson. A base called the Playground became the agency's headquarters.

Facilities

 * Strategic Scientific Reserve Headquarters
 * Strategic Scientific Reserve New York Office
 * New York Bell Company Office‎
 * Playground
 * Camp Lehigh
 * Strategic Scientific Reserve Brooklyn Facility
 * The Rat