Minnesota VI

Jasper, Minnesota is not very far from Sioux Falls, SD. I stopped and asked a lady in South Dakota if she knew of any Vietnam Memorials in the area. She asked if I had seen the one in Jasper, Mn? She tried to give me directions and then said, "Get in your car and follow me." She drove me to the spot and then stayed to show me around. It was not all that far away, maybe 20 minutes by car, but she didn't have to do this at all. I am constantly being reminded of how nice people can be.

 The memorial sits on N. Main Street in Jasper within the Jasper Cemetery. It, as you can see, is not specifically to Vietnam as is, so often, the case in small towns. I don't think that detracts in any way from what a great site this is.

As you can see, a number of conflicts are remembered here. For those who may not know, the white crosses are often associated with WW I: Flanders fields and "The Green Fields of France"; where so very many died.

Vietnam, like the others here, is remembered only by graphic depictions, not lists of names.

Names are listed upon the stones that make up the plaza in the front of the site. Many who served are honored here. I could not locate any names of those who may have been lost. I don't know if this means that Jasper did not lose anyone or if they simply chose to honor all who served. One of the above stones is in honor of the husband of the kind lady who brought me to this site.

An interesting side note. The lady who brought me here told me that Jasper is in Pipestone County, which is named for the soft, carve-able stone found there that Native Americans carved into pipes for smoking tobacco.

Next time, on August 7, we will make another stop in Mississippi where I was lucky enough to meet some very nice and interesting folks. Join me at 9:00am to see the pics and hear the story.

To see other memorials from Minnesota, or any other state, click the state name on the left side of this page.