Image credit: NASA
In July 1950 the first rocket was launched from Cape Canaveral, Florida.
The General Electric Bumper 2 was a two-stage rocket made of a V-2 missile base topped with a WAC Corporal rocket, capable of reaching an altitude of ~400 kilometers.
The Bumper 2 was used primarily for testing rocket systems and measuring atmospheric attributes such as air temperature and the impact of cosmic rays.
Of course, the moon should be the next destination.