VIETNAM VETERANS MEMORIAL COLLECTION
Frequently Asked Questions
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WHY IS THE PARK SERVICE COLLECTING AND PRESERVING THE ITEMS LEFT AT THE MEMORIAL? |
The objects left represent tangible evidence of the effect of a specific historic epoch on American and international society. They also provide testimonies that will help explain the social history of the Vietnam War generation. Therefore, it is essential that the objects be properly documented and preserved.
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WHY IS THE MEMORIAL NOT NAMED THE "VIETNAM WAR MEMORIAL?" |
Owing to the volatile social and political postures of the Vietnam-era, and the ultimate goal of the Memorial's founders to nourish national reconciliation, the term "war memorial" was dismissed. Known as the Vietnam Veterans Memorial, the Memorial makes no statement on the politics or the conduct of the war.
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WHEN DID THE VIETNAM WAR BEGIN, AND HOW LONG DID IT LAST? HOW MANY PEOPLE SERVED IN IT? |
The Vietnam War is the longest, and arguably the most controversial, in U.S. history. Congress never officially declared war against North Vietnam, but the 88th Congress passed the "Gulf of Tonkin Resolution" which authorized President Lyndon B. Johnson "to take all necessary measures to repel any armed attack against the forces of the United States and to prevent further aggression." The resolution passed on August 7, 1964.
- The first American ground combat troops landed in South Vietnam (specifically, the U.S. Third Marine Regiment, Third Marine Division, deployed to Vietnam from Okinawa to defend the Da Nang airfield) during March 1965. During the height of U.S. military involvement, December 31, 1968, the breakdown of allied forces were as follows: 536,100 U.S. military personnel, with 30,610 U.S. military having been killed to date; 65,000 Free World Forces personnel; 820,000 South Vietnam Armed Forces (SVNAF) with 88,343 having been killed to date. At the war's end there were approximately 2,200 U.S. missing in action (MIA) or prisoner of war (POW).
- (SOURCE: Harry G. Summers, Jr. Vietnam War Almanac, Facts on File Publishing, 1985.
On May 7, 1975, President Gerald R. Ford officially ended US involvement in Vietnam.
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HOW DID THE MEMORIAL BEGIN? |
In 1979 a group of Vietnam veterans operating from Washington, D.C. founded the Vietnam Veterans Memorial Fund, Inc. (VVMF). Their objective was to have a tangible tribute to those Americans who served in the Vietnam War. They stipulated that the Memorial be contemplative in character, harmonize with its surroundings, be an inviting site, contain the names of all those who died or remain missing, and make no political statement. By separating those who were lost in the war from divisive political issues, the VVMF hoped to foster national reconciliation and begin the healing process.
On July 1, 1980, Congress authorized a site in Constitution Gardens near the Lincoln Memorial for the Vietnam Veterans Memorial, thereby providing the prominent, large park-like setting that the organizers had hoped to find. That October, the VVMF launched a juried national design competition that attracted 1,421 design entries for the Memorial. The jury's unanimous selection was designed by a 21-year-old student at Yale University, Maya Ying Lin. The Memorial's design and plans received final approval on March 11, 1982, and ground was formally broken on March 26, 1982.
In October 1982, the walls were completed, and the Memorial was dedicated on November 13, 1982. Frederick Hart's life-size sculpture and a U.S. flag were installed approximately two years later, in November 1984. (According to Mr. Hart, the statue was not titled).
Also in November of 1984, President Ronald Reagan accepted the completed Memorial on behalf of the Nation. Custodial care was turned over to the National Park Service's National Capital Region (National Capital Parks Central). The conveyance of agreement specified that the VVMF will participate with the National Park Service (NPS) in the following: ceremonies at the Memorial on Memorial Day and Veterans' Day, the adding of names of those determined to have died as a result of injuries sustained in the Vietnam War, and the maintenance of residual funds for the maintenance and repair of the Memorial.
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WHAT HAPPENS TO THE ITEMS LEFT AT THE MEMORIAL? |
Items are left at the Vietnam Veterans Memorial constantly by many, although not all, of the visitors. They are usually collected by NPS rangers at the site two times per day, once during the day shift and once during the night shift. In bad weather, artifacts are collected more frequently. The artifacts are tagged, given a unique identification number, and placed in museum storage bags. Note that Memorial Day (the last Monday in May) and Veterans' Day (November 11th) tend to be the heaviest days of the year in terms of both visitorship and artifacts left. Independence Day (July 4th), Father's Day (third Sunday in June), and days on which there is a significant event on the Mall are also fairly heavy. Then, the artifacts are stored on the Mall until a staff member brings them to the Museum and Resource Center (MRCE). Almost everything is saved for the collection. The only things that are not saved are active organic items (such as live plant matter) and U.S. National flags, unless the flags have been altered in some way. The unaltered flags are given by the rangers to Veteran's Hospitals, Memorial visitors, or civic groups such as the Boy Scouts and Girl Scouts. Once at the MRC, the artifacts are identified, researched, and eventually cataloged. When items are cataloged, a detailed description is written of them, and a report is prepared on their condition. Cataloging is done for the security of the collections, and in order to have an easy reference on the collection for exhibits, conservation, and the like.
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WHEN WAS THE VIETNAM WOMEN'S MEMORIAL ADDED? |
On July 29, 1993, a ground breaking ceremony for the Vietnam Women's Memorial was held on the National Mall. The 6 1/2 feet-high bronze sculpture, depicting three women attending a fallen soldier, was dedicated on November 11 of the same year, thus completing the so-called "triangle" of Vietnam Veterans' Memorials situated on the Mall. Some of the dignitaries in attendance on that day were: Diane Carlson Evans, founder of the Women's Memorial Project, Inc.; Glenna Goodacre, sculptor of the Memorial; Jan Scruggs, president of the Vietnam Veterans Memorial Fund; and Gen. Colin L. Powell, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff.
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HAVE ANY BOOKS, OR OTHER PUBLICATIONS IN ANY MEDIA, BEEN PUBLISHED ABOUT THE COLLECTION? |
Offerings from the Wall: Artifacts from the Vietnam Veterans Memorial Collection was released in May 1995. The book has pictures of representative objects from the VVMC and a foreword by author Thomas Allen. The project was a collaboration between the National Park Service and Turner Publishing Company.
In the winter of 1995, an interactive CD-ROM was released by Magnet Interactiveof Washington, D.C. in conjunction with the NPS. The CD-ROM is entitled Beyond the Wall: Stories Behind the Vietnam Wall. The CD features selected images from the VVMC, a manipulable directory of the names on the Memorial, information on the Vietnam War generation, and information related to the design competition and subsequent building of the Vietnam Veterans and Vietnam Women's Memorials.
There have been other writings, both published and unpublished, about the collections; however, these are the only major works on the collection that were done with NPS collaboration as of this writing. Other projects are in the planning stages.
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HOW MUCH MONEY WAS RAISED TO BUILD THE MEMORIALS, AND HOW WAS IT RAISED? |
Approximately $8.4 million was raised to build the Vietnam Veterans Memorial, the 3-serviceman statue, and the U.S. flag on the site. The money was raised entirely through contributions from corporations, foundations, unions, veterans, veteran organizations, civic organizations, and more than 275,000 individual Americans.
(SOURCE: Vietnam Veterans Memorial Fund)
The Vietnam Women's Memorial was paid for by funds raised entirely by the Vietnam Women's Memorial Project, Inc.
(SOURCE: Vietnam Women's Memorial Project, Inc.)
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HOW MANY PEOPLE HAVE VISITED THE MEMORIAL? |
The Vietnam Veterans Memorial is one of the most visited memorials in the Nation's Capital. The NPS estimates that 20 million to 25 million people have visited the Memorial since 1982.
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HOW MANY ITEMS ARE IN THE COLLECTION? |
Currently, the Vietnam Veterans Memorial Collection encompasses approximately 53,000 objects, with visitors continuing to leave donations to this day.
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WHAT ARE THE TOP TEN ITEMS MOST COMMONLY LEFT? |
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The ten most common categories are:
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| 1. | Various small notes, writings, and framed tributes and sentiments (not all of which could be properly classified as "letters"). Many have no addressee in particular.| 2. | POW/MIA (Prisoner of War/Missing in Action) commemorative bracelets. |
| 3. | Rubbings taken from names on the Vietnam Veterans Memorial. |
| 4. | U. S. flags, and those of states and other countries (Canada appears to be the most common country after the U.S.) |
| 5. | Various small metal and cloth insignia (patches, badges, etc.) |
| 6. | Uniforms and parts of uniforms, including boots. |
| 7. | Small pieces of personal gear (lighters, can openers, etc.) |
| 8. | Various small religious and other devotional items (Bibles, rosaries, personal considerations distinguished by scriptural passages, etc.) |
| 9. | Foodstuffs of various kinds and ages of manufacture. |
| 10. | Photographs, both of places and of people in Vietnam. These images capture both people and events reflecting the Vietnam-era on both the home and the war front. |
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HOW MANY OF EACH OF THE ABOVE CATEGORIES OF ARTIFACTS HAVE BEEN LEFT? |
Numbers one and two on the list number in the thousands; the rest are in the hundreds. That is as precise as we can be at present.
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Last Updated: June 5, 1997
http://www.nps.gov/mrc/vvmc/faqs.htm
mrce@nps.gov