Texas XX

I have mentioned, in the past, my visit to Austin and the mock-up of a proposed memorial. The memorial was to rest on the lawn of the Capitol Building, but only a "Coming Soon" sign was there at the time.

I have not been able to return to Texas to visit the now completed memorial, hopefully this will happen someday.

I did get looking at my pics of the mock up which was in the LBJ Library and decided that I might be able to pull some faces out to share.

The memorial depicts a group of soldiers on patrol, but, today just their faces, honoring their service and diversity.

Here the promised faces:

The memorial has several scenes around the base.

As I said above, I really hope to get back to Austin and take photos of the actual memorial and you can be sure that when that happens I'll post them here.

Next time, on the 8th, we will revisit Virginia, so meet me there, as always, at 9:00am.

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

I will ask, as I do at the end of nearly every post now, for anyone who has pictures of Vietnam memorials not seen here to please send them to me. I will give you full photo credit for the pic and any information about it you may know. Check your state, or anywhere you may have visited, from the list at the left, or any place else. Please send them to the email at the left or directly to me at Ldddad@comcast.net. Thanks.

Texas IX

Located with the model of the new Vietnam memorial in the LBJ Library was an unexpected surprise.

Two Vietnam vets created replica dog tags for every Texan lost in Vietnam; all 3417 of them. Hanging in alphabetical order they include the 105 MIAs (as of 2012) and two extra blank tags for those "known only to God." All of the names are listed on the bottom, shelf like portion of the display to help name seekers locate their loved ones. In truth, they created two complete sets, one of which will be forever enshrined inside the new memorial when it is completed. As I mentioned in the last post from LBJ, the new memorial will be dedicated on March 29th, 2014, just three days after this post will appear.

I have read a number of times about a display of more than 58,000 tags in Chicago, but when I was there it was not available to the public, so I was really quite pleased to discover this one in Austin. This one is, indeed, smaller, but perhaps more intimate and meaningful to our brothers and sisters in Texas.

The display tells the story of the exhibit and highlights the first and last Texan lost. the first, M Sgt. Chester M. Orvand was lost in 1959 and the last, PFC Antonio R. Sandoval, was lost in 1975.

There are several areas of text and information at the site. This one tells how the legacy of Vietnam haunts Americans and our leaders but I can't help but wonder if that is still the case?

Detail

The logo, seen throughout the display, depicts, in its center, the new memorial.

Next time, on the 31st, we will return to Vermont, so join me at 9:00am.

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

Texas VIII

I read a number of stories about a new memorial being built on the grounds of the Texas State Capitol in Austin. So, it was with great anticipation that I finally got there a few months after it was to have been started. I was disappointed to find not so much as a hole in the ground when I visited. An employee at the Capitol explained that there had been some difficulties and that as recently as the day before I was there a meeting had been held to iron these out and to get the project rolling.

That very night I was reading a local publication and discovered that a mock-up of the memorial was on display at the LBJ Library. I went there the next day and these pictures are from that visit.

Originally, an additional soldier was to have been included in this memorial. He was to have been a Vietnamese soldier, but in the end it was decided to omit him.

The destruction and devastation of a country and culture are depicted in some of the detail from this sculpture. There are scenes of river patrols, choppers in flight, and other typical in-country activity around the base.

Detail of one of the five soldiers

Even though the RVN soldier was omitted, the Vietnamese dragon highlights one of the depictions on the base.

Tonight, I checked again and discovered that the new memorial is to be dedicated on March 29th, 2014, so this posting is particularly timely.

In the next posting, on March 26th, I'll feature a real surprise that I found at the LBJ Library. Check it out at 9:00am, as always.

To see the other postings from Texas, or any other state, click the state name on the left side of this page,