South Dakota XVI

I drove around South Dakota on a free day. I stumbled on to several memorials that I had been unaware of at the time. This is not unusual as there is no central database of Vietnam memorials. The V.V.A. tried for some time to compile the data but eventually had to give up. Someday, I would like to see this accomplished. For now, I hope that this site will serve as a beginning.

Huron had a memorial in a park for about 20 years that very few knew about and when a nearby building needed expansion, it was decided to more the memorial to a more public place. The memorial honors those who perished in our most recent wars and was recently updated to include those lost in the middle east.

The Vietnam portion lists the 10 from the area who made the ultimate sacrifice.

The town has plans to add statues and a wall listing all who served from the area, but as of 2014 work had not been started. I'll post more as I learn it.

Huron is located in Beadle county and the memorial may be found on the corner of Wisconsin Ave. and 3rd Street.

Our next stop, on the14th, will be back in Texas.  So, join me there, as always, at 9:00am.

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

Independence Day 2015

Followers know that at certain times of the year I choose to write about something other than Vietnam Memorials; Thanksgiving, Christmas, Veteran's Day, Memorials Day and others.

I have been thinking a lot recently about Independence Day and what it means. I guess if we asked 100 people we might get 100 different answers, but I think that it represents the bravery and thoughtful consideration of some very great men. Men who wanted freedom from tyranny and freedom to make their own choices, to establish rights for the common people, to live as they chose to live. A struggle that continues to this very day.

It got me thinking about how many have been willing to defend, often to their death, this dream. I went looking for this information and was, quite honestly, astonished at the numbers and some of the events, which I had never even heard of prior to seeing the list.

The numbers are staggering.

Since 1775, 664,440 have been lost in combat, more, 673,929 were lost to other war related incidents for a total of 1,354,644 lost, add to that the wounded and it doubles, again, 2,852,901.

These numbers are, of course, not exact or completely up to date as they change all the time. Recently, in May of 2015 several more names were added to the Vietnam Memorial, bringing the total to over 58, 300.

Vietnam ranks as the 4th highest loss rate of American wars, behind only the Civil Wat, WWI and WWII. Korea is 5th on the list and cost almost as many as Vietnam, but in far fewer years. Vietnam averaged 11 deaths a day while Korea averaged 45.

So, as we celebrate our founding and our freedoms lets also remember and honor the, literally, millions who made them possible.

Here, if you are interested, is the source of this information. Wiki is often criticized for inaccuracy and as I said these numbers can never really be known, but the number of involvements is astonishing, so check it out.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_military_casualties_of_war

The 4th of July was one of my favorite holidays in my youth. Summer, school was out, picnics, hot dogs and watermelon and fireworks, what kid could ask for more. Then, of course, I didn't really, deeply. fully, understand about the sacrifice, pain, and death that all of this encompassed. Now, I have a better idea and it saddens me. I don't much care for the holiday any longer. It is not that I don't respect and treasure the Founding Fathers, their efforts and the costs paid by those supporting these new ideas, no, it is that I no longer like the smell of the fireworks or the noise associated with them. It brings back too mush. I go every year because my son, years ago, and now his children, like all children, like me as a boy, enjoy it. I hope every year that just maybe this year will be better, but it never is. Sometimes, later in the evening, I watch the rerun of the fireworks on The Mall in D.C. on PBS and this is usually better; No noise, no smell of cordite. I will continue to go for the kids as long as they are interested, but am not sure what will happen after that. Perhaps, I will have moved on some more and it will be OK, but I doubt it, after all, it has been 50 years. I have no way to elegantly end this, so...

I'll end with a little historical side note.

Sometimes, it seems even the things we think we know are not so! We celebrate Independence Day, the day the Declaration of Independence was signed, on July 4th, but that is not the actual day the Declaration
was signed. It was signed on July 2nd, but the printer did not get around to printing it until the 4th, hence he dated it the 4th and the rest as we say, is history!

Next time, on the 9th we will return to South Dakota, so join me there at 9:00am.

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

South Carolina VI

Conway is in Horry County, South Carolina, not too far northwest of Myrtle Beach. At the corner of Elm and third stands this memorial to all those from the county that were lost.

As is so often the caw, additional names were found that should have been included on the face of the memorial. These names were added to the reverse side and upon inspection, I found something odd.

Note the last of the four names. He died in 1995. I do know of at least one case where a vet from Illinois was in a coma for 30 years and only, relatively recently added to the Illinois memorial in Springfield. I could find no information about this soldier, so I am counting on you to get in touch if you have any information. I have made this request before and have gotten details about other mysteries. So, folks, let me hear from you if you can help. I'd like to know and be able to tell his story

So, next time, on the 4th, look for a special post, at 9:00am as always.

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

North Carolina IX

I am always pleased and often moved by what very small towns do for their vets, as I have said so many times before.

This memorial, simple, elegant stands on the grounds of the Library in Laurinburg, North Carolina. It contains no names just a wish to honor and remember the eight from Laurinburg who were lost in 'Nam.

The Library is located on W. Church Street.

Sometimes, there is just not too much to say, the memorial says it all.

Next time, on June 29th, we will head due south and  revisit South Carolina. So, meet me there at 9:00am, as usual.

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

New York VII

The Western New York Vietnam Monument is located on the water in Buffalo and is quite beautiful. On the corner of Erie Street and Marine Drive, it looks out over the water and honors 488 from western New York.

It was designed by a local artist, a Vietnam vet, whom I tried in vain to contact. Perhaps another time.

Oddly, the monument is so close to the water that it is a little hard to photograph. Try as I might, I could not get a complete, straight on picture, even with a fairly wide 18mm lens.

While trying to figure out how to get the best shot, I noticed that several ships were tied up at the dock and I thought if I could get on one of them, maybe I could get a better angle. I went over and talked to a guy on one of them and it turns out they were open to the public for a sizable fee. I told him what I was up to and he said "just re close anything you open" and let me proceed. A tip of the hat and my thanks to him.

From the very tip of the bow I was able to get the first shot you see in this series. Still not straight on, but I like it anyway. Below, the MIAs are given special attention at the site.

Closer inspection of the memorial showed this correction of some kind. It was difficult to tell exactly what happened, but obviously, something was changed at some point. Look closely at the word states to see.

I cannot say for sure but the soldier in the picture certainly could be Vietnamese and it seems fitting that we take a moment to remember their sacrifice as well as our own.

Next time, on the 24th, we will return to North Carolina to a small, local memorial in Laureinburg. Join me thee, as always, at 9:00am.

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

New Mexico VIII

I have visited the Veterans Memorial in Albuquerque a number of times. The first time I visited the Vietnam memorial was either incomplete or under repair and not suitable for photos. The next time, it was snowing and I was able to get some interesting pics of the recently added statue, but not quite what I wanted. The next time, the site was complete, undamaged and it was not snowing. The following pictures are from this most recent visit.

The soldier here, kneels before a Field Cross, a tradition dating back to the Civil War. Someone had recently placed a small American flag on the statue.

 The face of loss and sorrow, universal to all, is captured, here, so remarkably by the sculptor.

This is the plaque on the wall seen in the first picture. It lists the names of the some 400 New Mexicans who were sacrificed in 'Nam. I know I said the site was undamaged, but on closer inspection there seems to be something missing here.

This plaque sits on the corner of the stone base and explains its color.

There are a number of these stiles explaining the history of the war. I found them to full of inaccuracies. I have no idea if these were just honest mistakes or further examples of the revisionist history that I find, all too often, in my travels. I hope they are just errors because I met some of the folks that run this place and they seem like great people.

There is more than enough here to go on and on, so I will come back to this wonderful site at a later time. this memorial sits among many others in this 25 acre park. It is filled with roses and tributes of many kinds. It can be found near Kirtland AFB at 1100 Louisiana Blvd. in Albuquerque.

Join me on the 19th, when we will revisit New York, as always at 9:00am.

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

Nevada IV

About 26 miles southeast of Las Vegas is Boulder City, the home of the Southern Nevada Memorial Cemetery. Within the cemetery there is a memorial garden which commemorates those who have been lost from our various involvements over the years. Nearly 6,000 are interred here and 10 of these, Vietnam vets, are honored, forever.

The main memorial to our brothers and sisters from 'Nam is a facsimile of The Wall. It is, of course much smaller and contains the names of those from the area. ( There is, also, a Northern cemetery that I will feature at another time. )

Each name is given its own panel which lists name, date of birth, date of loss, and hometown..

A couple of years ago I met the guy who actually perfected the mean of inscribing The Wall and in his business was a large piece from one of the panels. He explained that a number were damaged or broken during the process of creating them. Even though, this is the only other fragment I have in my travels.

As I was leaving the cemetery, I came upon this particularly beautiful memorial. It, clearly, is dedicated to all and is a beautiful and fitting tribute to those who serve. It surprises some folks how few actually do serve. the number varies, of course, according to the times and conflict, but in general it is usually well under 3% and most often about 1.5%.

Next time, on the 14th, we will return to New Mexico, so, join me there at 9:00am.

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