Vietnam Veterans Memorial - wikipedia Vietnam Veterans Memorial For the plaza in New York City, see Vietnam Veterans Plaza. This article needs additional citations for verification. Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. ( November 2017 ) Vietnam Veterans Memorial Visitors at the wall in January 2005. Show map of Central Washington, D.C. Show map of the US Show all Location Washington, D.C., United States Coordinates 38 ° 53 ′ 28 '' N 77 ° 2 ′ 52 '' W ﻿ / ﻿ 38.89111 ° N 77.04778 ° W ﻿ / 38.89111 ; - 77.04778 Coordinates : 38 ° 53 ′ 28 '' N 77 ° 2 ′ 52 '' W ﻿ / ﻿ 38.89111 ° N 77.04778 ° W ﻿ / 38.89111 ; - 77.04778 Area 2 acres ( 0.81 ha ) Established November 13, 1982 Visitors 3,799,968 ( in 2006 ) Governing body National Park Service Website Vietnam Veterans Memorial U.S. National Register of Historic Places U.S. National Monument Architect Maya Lin NRHP reference # 01000285 Added to NRHP November 13, 1982 The Vietnam Veterans Memorial is a 2 - acre ( 8,000 m2 ) U.S. national memorial in Washington D.C. It honors service members of the U.S. armed forces who fought in the Vietnam War, service members who died in service in Vietnam / South East Asia, and those service members who were unaccounted for ( missing in action, MIA ) during the war. Its construction and related issues have been the source of controversies, some of which have resulted in additions to the memorial complex. The memorial consists of three separate parts : the Vietnam Veterans Memorial Wall, completed first and the best - known part of the memorial ; The Three Soldiers, and the Vietnam Women 's Memorial. The main part of the memorial, which was completed in 1982, is in Constitution Gardens adjacent to the National Mall, just northeast of the Lincoln Memorial. The memorial is maintained by the U.S. National Park Service, and receives around 3 million visitors each year. The Memorial Wall was designed by American architect Maya Lin. In 2007, it was ranked tenth on the `` List of America 's Favorite Architecture '' by the American Institute of Architects. As a National Memorial, it is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. Contents 1 Appearance 1.1 Memorial Wall 1.1. 1 Names 1.2 The Three Servicemen 1.3 Women 's Memorial 1.4 In Memory memorial plaque 2 Ritual 3 History 3.1 Opposition to design and compromise 3.2 Building the memorial 3.2. 1 Timeline for those listed on the wall 3.3 Addition of the Women 's Memorial 3.4 Memorial plaque 3.5 Education center 4 Vietnam Veterans Memorial Collection 5 Inspired works 5.1 Traveling replicas 5.2 Fixed replicas 5.3 As a memorial genre 6 Vandalism 7 See also 8 References 8.1 Footnotes 8.2 Works cited 9 Further reading 10 External links Appearance An aerial photograph of `` The Wall '' taken on April 26, 2002 by the United States Geological Survey. The dots visible along the length of the angled wall are visitors. For a satellite view of the Wall in relation to other monuments, see Constitution Gardens. Memorial Wall The Memorial Wall is made up of two 246 - foot - 9 - inch ( 75.21 m ) long black granite walls, polished to a high finish making them appear to have a mirror effect ; while etched with the names of the servicemen being honored in 144 panels of horizontal rows with regular typeface and spacing. The walls are sunken into the ground, with the earth behind them. At the highest tip ( the apex where they meet ), they are 10.1 feet ( 3.1 m ) high, and they taper to a height of 8 inches ( 200 mm ) at their extremities. Symbolically, this is described as a `` wound that is closed and healing ''. The stone for the 144 panels was quarried in Bangalore, India. When a visitor looks upon the wall, his or her reflection can be seen simultaneously with the engraved names, which is meant to symbolically bring the past and present together. One wall points toward the Washington Monument, the other in the direction of the Lincoln Memorial, meeting at an angle of 125 ° 12 ′. Each wall has 72 panels, 70 listing names ( numbered 1E through 70E and 70W through 1W ) and two very small blank panels at the extremities. There is a pathway along the base of the Wall where visitors may walk. The wall originally listed 57,939 names when it was dedicated in 1982 ; however other names have since been added and as of May 2018 there were 58,320 names, including eight women. The number of names on the wall is different than the official number of U.S. Vietnam War deaths, which is 58,220 as of May 2018. The names inscribed are not a complete list of those who are eligible for inclusion as some names were omitted at the request of families. Directories containing all of the names are located on nearby podiums at both ends of the monument where visitors may locate specific names. The memorial has had some unforeseen maintenance issues. In 1984, cracks were detected in the granite and, as a result, two of the panels were temporarily removed in 1986 for study. More cracks were later discovered in 2010. There are a number of theories about the cause of the cracks, with one often forwarded being due to thermal cycling. In 1990, the Vietnam Veterans Memorial Fund purchased several blank panels to use in case any were ever destroyed, which were placed into storage at Quantico Marine Base. Two of the blank panels were shattered by the 2011 Virginia earthquake. Names One panel of ' The Wall ', displaying some of the names of fallen U.S. service members from the Vietnam War. Inscribed in the memorial are the names of service members classified as `` declared dead '' ; as the memorial contains names of individuals who had died due to circumstances other than killed in action, including murder, vehicle accidents, drowning, heart attack, animal attack, snake bites and others. Also included are the names of those whose status is unknown, which typically means `` missing in action '' ( MIA ). The names are inscribed in Optima typeface. Information about rank, unit, and decorations is not given. Those who are declared dead are denoted by a diamond, and those who are status unknown are denoted with a cross. When the death of one who was previously missing is confirmed, a diamond is superimposed over the cross. If the missing were to return alive, which has never occurred to date, the cross is to be circumscribed by a circle. The earliest date of eligibility for a name to be included on the memorial is November 1, 1955, which corresponds to President Eisenhower deploying the Military Assistance Advisory Group to train the Army of the Republic of Vietnam. The last date of eligibility is May 15, 1975, which corresponds to the final day of the Mayaguez incident. There are circumstances that allow for a name to be added to the memorial, but the death must be directly attributed to a wound received within the combat zone while on active duty. In such cases, the determination is made by the Department of Defense. In these cases, the name is added according to the date of injury -- not the date of death. The names are listed in chronological order, starting at the apex on panel 1E in July 8, 1959, moving day by day to the end of the eastern wall at panel 70E, which ended on May 25, 1968, starting again at panel 70W at the end of the western wall which completes the list for May 25, 1968, and returning to the apex at panel 1W in 1975. There are some deaths that predate July 8, 1959 including the death of Richard B. Fitzgibbon Jr. in 1956. The names of 32 men were erroneously included in the memorial, and while those names remain on the wall, they have been removed from the databases and printed directories. The extra names resulted from a deliberate decision to err on the side of inclusiveness, with 38 questionable names being included. One person, whose name was added as late as 1992, had gone AWOL immediately upon his return to the United States after his second completed tour of duty. His survival only came to the attention of government authorities in 1996. These survivor names could be removed if the panel their name is on is replaced in the future. The Three servicemen The Three Soldiers by Frederick Hart Wreaths placed around The Three Soldiers statue Main article : The Three Soldiers A short distance away from the wall is another Vietnam memorial, a bronze statue named The Three Servicemen ( sometimes called The Three Soldiers ). The statue depicts three soldiers, purposefully identifiable as European American, African American, and Hispanic American. In their final arrangement, the statue and the Wall appear to interact with each other, with the soldiers looking on in solemn tribute at the names of their fallen comrades. The distance between the two allows them to interact while minimizing the effect of the addition on Lin 's design. Women 's Memorial Main article : Vietnam Women 's Memorial The Vietnam Women 's Memorial is a memorial dedicated to the women of the United States who served in the Vietnam War, most of whom were nurses. It serves as a reminder of the importance of women in the conflict. It depicts three uniformed women with a wounded soldier. It is part of the Vietnam Veterans Memorial, and is located on National Mall in Washington, D.C., a short distance south of The Wall, north of the Reflecting Pool. In Memory Memorial Plaque A memorial plaque, authorized by Pub. L. 106 -- 214, was dedicated on November 10, 2004, at the northeast corner of the plaza surrounding the Three Soldiers statue to honor veterans who died after the war as a direct result of injuries suffered in Vietnam, but who fall outside Department of Defense guidelines. The plaque is a carved block of black granite, 3 by 2 feet ( 0.91 by 0.61 m ), inscribed `` In memory of the men and women who served in the Vietnam War and later died as a result of their service. We honor and remember their sacrifice. '' Ruth Coder Fitzgerald, founder of The Vietnam War In Memory Memorial Plaque Project, worked for years and struggled against opposition to have the In Memory Memorial Plaque completed. The organization was disbanded, but their web site is maintained by the Vietnam War Project at Texas Tech University. Ritual Visitors to The Wall will take a piece of paper and place it over a name on The Wall and rub a wax crayon or graphite pencil over it as a memento of their loved ones. This is called `` rubbing ''. Visitors to the memorial began leaving sentimental items at the memorial at its opening. One story claims this practice began during construction, when a Vietnam veteran threw the Purple Heart his brother received posthumously into the concrete of the memorial 's foundation. Several thousand items are left at the memorial each year. The largest item left at the memorial was a sliding glass storm door with a full - size replica `` tiger cage ''. The door was painted with a scene in Vietnam and the names of U.S. POWs and MIAs from the conflict. History The Main Navy and Munitions Building site, with the Munitions buildings behind the Navy building On April 27, 1979, four years after the Fall of Saigon, The Vietnam Veterans Memorial Fund, Inc. ( VVMF ), was incorporated as a non-profit organization to establish a memorial to veterans of the Vietnam War. Much of the impetus behind the formation of the fund came from a wounded Vietnam veteran, Jan Scruggs, who was inspired by the film The Deer Hunter, with support from fellow Vietnam veterans such as retired Navy chaplain Arnold Resnicoff. Eventually, $8.4 million was raised by private donations. A year later, a site near the Lincoln Memorial was chosen and authorized by Congress on the site of the demolished World War I Munitions Building. Congress announced the winner of a design competition will design the park. By the end of the year 2,573 registered for the design competition with a prize of $20,000. On March 30, 1981, 1,421 designs were submitted. The designs were displayed at an airport hangar at Andrews Air Force Base for the selection committee, in rows covering more than 35,000 square feet ( 3,300 m ) of floor space. Each entry was identified by number only, to preserve the anonymity of their authors. All entries were examined by each juror ; the entries were narrowed down to 232, then 39. Finally, the jury selected entry number 1026, designed by Maya Lin. Opposition to design and compromise See also : Maya Lin § Vietnam Veterans Memorial The selected design was very controversial, in particular its unconventional design, its black color and its lack of ornamentation. Some public officials voiced their displeasure, calling the wall `` a black gash of shame. '' Two prominent early supporters of the project, H. Ross Perot and James Webb, withdrew their support once they saw the design. Said Webb, `` I never in my wildest dreams imagined such a nihilistic slab of stone. '' James Watt, Secretary of the Interior under President Ronald Reagan, initially refused to issue a building permit for the memorial due to the public outcry about the design. Since its early years, criticism of the Memorial 's design faded. In the words of Scruggs, `` It has become something of a shrine. '' Negative reactions to Maya Lin 's design created a controversy ; a compromise was reached by commissioning Frederick Hart ( who had placed third in the original design competition ) to produce a bronze figurative sculpture in the heroic tradition. Opponents of Lin 's design had hoped to place this sculpture of three soldiers at the apex of the wall 's two sides. Lin objected strenuously to this, arguing that this would make the soldiers the focal point of the memorial, and her wall a mere backdrop. A compromise was reached, and the sculpture was placed off to one side to minimize the impact of the addition on Lin 's design. On October 13, 1982, the U.S. Commission of Fine Arts approved the erection of a flagpole to be grouped with sculptures. Building the Memorial On March 11, 1982, the revised design was formally approved, and on March 26, 1982, ground was formally broken. Stone for the wall came from Bangalore, Karnataka, India. It was chosen because of its reflective quality and also because of opposition to Swedish and Canadian stone, as those countries were destinations for draft evaders. Stone cutting and fabrication was done in Barre, Vermont. The typesetting of the original 57,939 names on the wall was performed by Datalantic in Atlanta, Georgia. Stones were then shipped to Memphis, Tennessee where the names were etched. The etching was completed using a photoemulsion and sandblasting process. The negatives used in the process are in storage at the Smithsonian Institution. The memorial was dedicated on November 13, 1982, after a march to its site by thousands of Vietnam War veterans. About two years later the Three Soldiers statue was dedicated. Vietnam Veterans Memorial Wall with Christmas ornaments Timeline for those listed on the Wall A Marine at Vietnam Memorial on July 4, 2002 November 1, 1955 -- Dwight D. Eisenhower deployed the Military Assistance Advisory Group, referred to now as MAAG, to train the South Vietnamese military units and secret police. However, the U.S. Department of Defense does not recognize this date since the men were supposedly training only the Vietnamese, so the officially recognized date is the formation of the Military Assistance Command Viet Nam, better known as MACV. This marked the official beginning of American involvement in the war as recognized by the memorial. June 8, 1956 -- The first official death in Vietnam was United States Air Force Technical Sergeant Richard Bernard Fitzgibbon Jr. of Stoneham, Massachusetts, who was murdered by another U.S.A.F. airman. October 21, 1957 - Capt. Harry Griffith Cramer, Jr. a graduate of the United States MIlitary Academy at West Point, was killed near Nha Trang, Vietnam. He served in Korea, where he was injured and awarded the Purple Heart, as well as in Vietnam. He was the first US Army soldier to be killed in the line of duty in the Vietnam War. A street at Fort Lewis, Washington, is named in his honor. He is buried at the United States Military Academy, West Point, New York. July 8, 1959 -- Chester M. Ovnand and Dale R. Buis were killed by guerrillas at Bien Hoa while watching the film The Tattered Dress. They are listed Nos. 1 and 2 at the wall 's dedication. Ovnand 's name is spelled on the memorial as `` Ovnard, '' due to conflicting military records of his surname. April 30, 1975 -- Fall of Saigon. The U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs uses May 7, 1975, as the official end date for the Vietnam War era as defined by 38 U.S.C. § 101. May 15, 1975 -- 18 U.S. servicemen ( 14 Marines, two Navy corpsmen, and two Air Force crewmen ) are killed on the last day of a rescue operation known as the Mayagüez incident with troops from the Khmer Rouge in Cambodia. They are the last servicemen listed on the timeline. Since 1982, over 400 names have been added to the memorial, but not necessarily in chronological order. Some were men who died in Vietnam but were left off the list due to clerical errors. Others died after 1982, and their deaths were determined by the Department of Defense to be the direct result of their Vietnam service. For those who died during the war, their name is placed in a position that relates to their date of death. For those who died after the war, their name is placed in a position that relates to the date of their injury. Because space is usually not available in the exact right place, names are places as close to their correct chronological position as possible, but usually not in the exact spot. The order could be corrected as panels are replaced. Furthermore, over 100 names have been identified as misspelled. In some cases, the correction could be done in place. In others, the name had to be chiseled again elsewhere, moving them out of chronological order. Others have remained in place, with the misspelling, at the request of their family. Addition of the Women 's Memorial The Women 's Memorial was designed by Glenna Goodacre for the women of the United States who served in the Vietnam War. Before Goodacre 's design was selected, two design entries had been awarded as co-finalists - one a statue and the other a setting - however the two designs were unable to be reconciled. Glenna Goodacre 's entry received an honorable mention in the contest and she was asked to submit a modified maquette ( design model ). Goodacre 's original design for the Women 's Memorial statue included a standing figure of a nurse holding a Vietnamese baby, which although not intended as such, was deemed a political statement, and it was asked that this be removed. She replaced them with a figure of a kneeling woman holding an empty helmet. On November 11, 1993, the Vietnam Women 's Memorial was dedicated. There is a smaller replica of that memorial at Vietnam Veterans Memorial State Park in Angel Fire, New Mexico. Memorial Plaque On November 10, 2000, a memorial plaque, authorized by Pub. L. 106 -- 214, honoring veterans who died after the war as a direct result of injuries suffered in Vietnam, but who fall outside Department of Defense guidelines was dedicated. Ruth Coder Fitzgerald, founder of The Vietnam War In Memory Memorial Plaque Project, worked for years and struggled against opposition to have the In Memory Memorial Plaque completed. The organization was disbanded, but their web site is maintained by the Vietnam War Project at Texas Tech University. Education center In 2003, after some years of lobbying, the National Park Service and the Vietnam Veterans Memorial Fund won permission from Congress to build The Education Center at The Wall. This 37,000 - square - foot ( 3,400 m ), two - story museum, located belowground just west of the Maya Lin - designed memorial, highlights the history of the Vietnam War and the multiple design competitions and artworks which make up the Vietnam Veterans Memorial, Vietnam Women 's Memorial, and the Memorial Plaque. The center will also provide biographical details on and photographs of many of the 58,000 names listed on the Wall as well as the more than 6,600 servicemembers killed since 2001 fighting the War on Terror. The $115 - million museum will be jointly operated by the Park Service and the Fund. Groundbreaking for the project occurred in November 2012, with the center expected to open in 2020. Vietnam Veterans Memorial collection Various items left at `` The Wall ''. Flags and flowers Items left at the Vietnam Veterans Memorial are collected by National Park Service employees and transferred to the NPS Museum Resource Center, which catalogs and stores all items except perishable organic matter ( such as fresh flowers ) and unaltered U.S. flags. The flags are redistributed through various channels. From 1992 to 2003, selected items from the collection were placed on exhibit at the Smithsonian Institution 's National Museum of American History as `` Personal Legacy : The Healing of a Nation '' including the Medal of Honor of Charles Liteky, who renounced it in 1986 by placing the medal at the memorial in an envelope addressed to then - President Ronald Reagan. Inspired works Traveling replicas The Moving Wall at Mount Trashmore Park in Virginia There are several transportable replicas of the Vietnam Veteran 's Memorial created so those who are not able to travel to Washington, D.C., would be able to simulate an experience of visiting the Wall. Using personal finances, John Devitt founded Vietnam Combat Veterans, Ltd. With the help of friends, the half - size replica of the Vietnam Veterans Memorial, named The Moving Wall, was built and first put on display to the public in Tyler, Texas, in 1984. The Moving Wall visits hundreds of small towns and cities throughout the U.S., staying five or six days at each site. Local arrangements for each visit are made months in advance by veterans ' organizations and other civic groups. Desire for a hometown visit of The Moving Wall was so high that the waiting list became very long. Vietnam Combat Veterans built a second structure of The Moving Wall. A third structure was added in 1989. In 2001, one of the structures was retired due to wear. By 2006, there had been more than 1,000 hometown visits of The Moving Wall. The count of people who visited The Moving Wall at each display ranges from 5,000 to more than 50,000 ; the total estimate of visitors is in the tens of millions. As the wall moves from town to town on interstates, it is often escorted by state troopers and up to thousands of local citizens on motorcycles. Many of these are Patriot Guard Riders, who consider escorting The Moving Wall to be a `` special mission '', which is coordinated on their website. As it passes towns, even when it is not planning a stop in those towns, local veterans organizations sometimes plan for local citizens to gather by the highway and across overpasses to wave flags and salute the Wall. The first Moving Wall structure to retire has been on permanent display at the Veterans Memorial Amphitheater in Pittsburg, Kansas since 2004. The Memorial is open to the public with no admission fee, 24 hours a day, year round. `` The Wall That Heals '' at the LBJ Presidential Library in 2016 The Wall That Heals is a traveling half - scale replica of the Vietnam Veterans Memorial started in 1996 by the Vietnam Veterans Memorial Fund. A 53 - foot ( 16 m ) tractor - trailer transports the 250 - foot ( 76 m ) wall replica and converts to a mobile Education Center at each stop, showing letters and memorabilia left at The Wall in Washington, D.C. and more details about those whose names are shown. This half - scale replica has been retired to permanent display in front of the James E. Van Zandt VA Medical Center in Altoona, PA. The VVMF has resumed a half - scale replica touring throughout the U.S. of The Wall That Heals. Their 2015 schedule can be found at www.vvmf.org/twth Created by the American Veterans Traveling Tribute, The Traveling Wall is an 80 % replica Vietnam Veterans Memorial Wall and is 360 feet ( 110 m ) long and 8 feet ( 2.4 m ) tall at its apex. It claims to be the largest traveling replica. Created by Vietnam and All Veterans of Brevard, Inc, The Vietnam Traveling Memorial Wall is a ​ ⁄ scale of the Vietnam Veterans Memorial and is almost 300 feet ( 91 m ) long and 6 feet ( 1.8 m ) tall at the center. Created by Dignity Memorial, the Dignity Memorial Vietnam Wall is ​ ⁄ scale of the Vietnam Veterans Memorial. Fixed replicas Located at 200 S. 9th Ave in Pensacola, FL the first permanent replica of the National Vietnam Memorial was unveiled on October 24, 1992. Now known as `` Wall South, '' the half - size replica bears the names of all Americans killed or missing in Southeast Asia and is updated each Mother 's Day. It is the centerpiece of Veterans Memorial Park Pensacola, a five - and - one - half acre site overlooking Pensacola Bay, which also includes a World War I Memorial, a World War II Memorial, a Korean War Memorial, a Revolutionary War Memorial and a running series of plaques to honor local warriors who have fallen in the Global War on Terror. There is also a Purple Heart Memorial, a Marine Corps Aviation Bell Tower and a monument to the submarine lifeguards who rescued Navy pilots in World War II. A Global War on Terror Memorial is planned to be completed in 2017 and will include an artifact from the World Trade Center as a component of the sculpture. Located in Fox Park in Wildwood, New Jersey, The Wildwoods Vietnam Memorial Wall was unveiled and dedicated on May 29, 2010. The memorial wall is an almost half - size granite replica of the National Vietnam Memorial, and the only permanent memorial north of the nation 's capital. Located 401 East Ninth Street in Winfield, Kansas. Plans for the Vietnam War Memorial in Winfield began in 1987 when friends who had gathered for a class reunion wanted to find a way to honor their fallen classmates. The project quickly grew from honoring only Cowley County servicemen to representing all 777 servicemen and nurses from Kansas who lost their lives or are missing in action from the Vietnam War. The memorial is a replica of the Vietnam War memorial in Washington D.C. It was also created as a tribute to servicemen and nurses who served in any world war. Located at Freedom Park in South Sioux City, Nebraska exists a half - scale replica of the Vietnam Veterans Memorial wall that duplicates the original design in Washington, DC. Dedicated in 2014, the 250 foot wall is constructed with black granite mined from the same quarry in India as the original memorial wall and bears the names of the 58,000 US servicemen who lost their lives in the Vietnam War. Located in Layton Utah, The Layton Vietnam Memorial Wall at 437 N Wasatch Dr, Layton, UT 84041 contains the names of all 58 thousand plus Americans who died in the war etched along its 360 feet. According to Utah Vietnam Veterans of America, the wall is 80 percent of the original size of the memorial in Washington, D.C., and it is the only replica of its size west of the Mississippi. The memorial was officially opened and dedicated on Saturday, July 14, 2018. As a Memorial genre The first US memorial to an ongoing war, the Northwood Gratitude and Honor Memorial in Irvine, California, is modeled on the Vietnam Veterans memorial in that it includes a chronological list of the dead engraved in dark granite. As the memorialized wars ( in Iraq and Afghanistan ) have not concluded, the Northwood Gratitude and Honor Memorial will be updated yearly. It has space for about 8000 names, of which 5,714 were engraved as of the Dedication of the Memorial on November 14, 2010. Vandalism There have been hundreds of incidents of vandalism at the memorial wall. Some of the most notable cases are In April 1988, when a swastika and various scratches were found etched in two of the panels. In 1993, someone burned one of the directory stands at the entrance to the memorial. On September 7, 2007, an oily substance was found by park rangers on the memorial 's wall panels and paving stones. It was spread over an area of 50 -- 60 feet ( 15 -- 18 m ). Memorial Fund founder Jan Scruggs deplored the scene, calling it an `` act of vandalism on one of America 's sacred places ''. The removal process took a few weeks to complete. Panorama of the Vietnam Veterans Memorial and The Three Soldiers statue See also List of public art in Washington, D.C., Ward 2 List of Vietnam War memorials Northwood Gratitude and Honor Memorial Vietnam Forces National Memorial, Canberra Vietnam Veterans Memorial ( The Wall - USA ), an online memorial Vietnam Veterans of America, chartered by Congress and campaigns on issues important to Vietnam veterans Vietnam War Memorial, Hanoi The Virtual Wall, an online memorial The Wall That Heals, a 1997 film References Footnotes Jump up ^ National Park Service ( July 9, 2010 ). `` National Register Information System ''. National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. Jump up ^ Robbins, Eleanora I. ( 2001 ). Building Stones and Geomorphology of Washington, D.C. : The Jim O'Connor Memorial Field Trip. CiteSeerX 10.1. 1.124. 7887. Jump up ^ Rasmussen, Kenneth ( October 16, 2010 ). `` The Post Could Have Better Explained Cracks in the Wall ''. Opinions. The Washington Post ( Letter to the Editor ). Retrieved October 16, 2010. ^ Jump up to : `` Vietnam Veterans Memorial Fund Frequently Asked Questions ''. www.vvmf.org. Retrieved November 26, 2017. Jump up ^ `` America 's Wars Fact Sheet '' ( PDF ). Retrieved November 29, 2017. Jump up ^ Hagopian, Patrick ( 2011 ). The Vietnam War in American Memory : Veterans, Memorials, and the Politics of Healing. Univ of Massachusetts Press. p. 474. ISBN 1558499024. Jump up ^ Ruane, Michael ( October 7, 2010 ). `` New cracks discovered in Wall at Vietnam Veterans Memorial ''. Retrieved November 29, 2017. Jump up ^ Shannon, Don ( February 7, 1990 ). `` Vietnam Memorial Develops Thin Cracks : Veterans : The project 's main fund - raiser starts a $1 - million campaign to pay for unanticipated repairs. Who is at fault has yet to be determined ''. Retrieved November 29, 2017. Jump up ^ `` THE VIETNAM VETERANS MEMORIAL -- A MODEL PARTNERSHIP ON AMERICA 'S MALL BY JAN C. SCRUGGS, ESQ ''. January 20, 2012. Retrieved November 29, 2017. Jump up ^ `` Vietnam Veterans Memorial Fund - Founders of The Wall ''. www.vvmf.org. Retrieved November 26, 2017. Jump up ^ `` The Memorial -- The Wall ''. Jump up ^ `` Survivied ''. The Virtual Wall. Retrieved November 29, 2017. Jump up ^ `` On Memorial To the Dead, 14 Who Live ''. February 11, 1991. Retrieved November 29, 2017. Jump up ^ Castaneda, Ruben ( February 15, 1991 ). `` 38 VETERANS LISTED ON WALL MAY HAVE SURVIVED VIETNAM ''. Retrieved November 29, 2017. Jump up ^ `` Vietnam Memorial Fund : FAQs ''. Archived from the original on April 5, 2012. Jump up ^ `` The Vietnam War In Memory Memorial Plaque Project ''. Retrieved November 29, 2017. ^ Jump up to : Dutill, The Vietnam Project, Michael ( July 1, 2002 ). `` The Vietnam Project Portal - Association Portal Page ''. www.vietnamproject.ttu.edu. Jump up ^ `` MRCE : Frequently Asked Questions ( continued ) ''. National Park Service. Retrieved June 21, 2010. Jump up ^ `` Vietnam Veterans ' Memorial Founder : Monument Almost Never Got Built ''. ^ Jump up to : Garber, Kent ( November 3, 2007 ). `` A Milestone for a Memorial that Has Touched Millions ''. U.S. News and World Report. Retrieved November 11, 2009. Jump up ^ Wills, Denise ( November 1, 2007 ). `` The Vietnam Memorial 's History ''. The Washingtonian. Retrieved November 11, 2009. Jump up ^ `` Names Added ''. The Virtual Wall. Retrieved November 29, 2017. Jump up ^ `` Vietnam Memorial Has Spelling Errors Set In Stone ''. February 24, 2014. Retrieved November 29, 2017. Jump up ^ Times, Irvin Molotsky and Special To the New York. `` Sculptor Picked for Vietnam Memorial to Women ''. Jump up ^ and, Eric Schmitt. `` A Belated Salute to the Women Who Served ''. Jump up ^ `` Vietnam War In Memory Memorial Plaque Project ''. www.vietnamproject.ttu.edu. ^ Jump up to : Neibauer, Michael ( June 24, 2015 ). `` Decade - long saga over $115 M underground National Mall construction project nears resolution ''. Washington Business Journal. Retrieved March 26, 2017. ^ Jump up to : Lin, C.j. ( November 28, 2012 ). `` Ground is broken for education center at Vietnam Veterans Memorial ''. Stars and Stripes. Retrieved March 26, 2017. Jump up ^ `` MRCE : Frequently Asked Questions ''. National Park Service. Retrieved June 21, 2010. ^ Jump up to : `` Local AMVETS to Salute Wall ''. Greenville Advocate. July 17, 2007. Jump up ^ https://www.psuvetmemorial.org/vietnam-wall.html Jump up ^ `` Vietnam Veterans Memorial Fund - The Wall That Heals : Mobile Exhibit ''. www.vvmf.org. Jump up ^ http://www.veteransmemorialparkpensacola.com/land/Welcome Jump up ^ Giberson, Art ( 2015 ). Wall South : Veterans Memorial Park. Pensacola, FL : CreateSpace. Jump up ^ `` Veterans Memorial Park Pensacola ''. Veterans Memorial Park Foundation. Jump up ^ `` The Wildwoods Vietnam Memorial Wall ''. Wildwood, NJ. Jump up ^ `` Kansas Vietnam War Memorial ''. Winfield, KS. Jump up ^ `` Vietnam memorial replica dedicated in South Sioux City ''. Jump up ^ `` The Northwood Gratitude and Honor Memorial ''. northwoodmemorial.com. Jump up ^ Kang, Sukhee ( February 22, 2010 ). `` Letter ''. City of Irvine. Retrieved June 21, 2010. Jump up ^ `` Vandals Scratch Swastika on Face of Viet Veterans Memorial ''. Los Angeles Times. United Press International. May 3, 1988. ^ Jump up to : `` Substance on Vietnam Memorial is Vandalism ''. Oswego, NY : WTOP - TV. Retrieved September 2, 2010... Works cited Vietnam Veterans Memorial ( Leaflet ). National Park Service. GPO : 2004 -- 304 -- 377 / 00203. The National Parks : Index 2001 -- 2003. Washington : United States Department of the Interior. Further reading Ashabranner, Brent K. ( 1989 ). Always to Remember : The Story of the Vietnam Veterans Memorial. New York : Putnam. -- -- -- ( 1998 ). Their Names to Live : What the Vietnam Veterans Memorial Means to America. Brookfield, CT : Twenty - first Century Press. Berdahl, Daphne. `` Voices at the Wall : Discourses of Self, History and National Identity at the Vietnam Veterans Memorial ''. History & Memory : Studies in Representation of the Past. 6 ( Fall -- Winter 1994 ) : 88 -- 124. Blair, Carole ; Jeppeson, Marsha S. & Pucci, Enrico Jr. ( August 1991 ). `` Public Memorializing in Postmodernity : The Vietnam Veterans Memorial as Prototype ''. Quarterly Journal of Speech. 77 : 263 -- 288. doi : 10.1080 / 00335639109383960. Capasso, Nicholas ( 1998 ). The National Vietnam Veterans Memorial in Context : Commemorative Public Art in America, 1960 -- 1997 ( PhD Thesis ). Rutgers University. Carlson, A. Cheree & Hocking, John E. ( September 1988 ). `` Strategies of Redemption at the Vietnam Veterans Memorial ''. Western Journal of Speech Communication. 52 : 203 -- 215. doi : 10.1080 / 10570318809389636. Carney, Lora S. ( 1993 ). `` Not Telling Us What to Think : The Vietnam Veterans Memorial ''. Metaphor and Symbolic Activity. 8 ( 3 ) : 211 -- 219. doi : 10.1207 / s15327868ms0803_6. Danto, Arthur ( August 31, 1985 ). `` The Vietnam Veterans Memorial ''. The Nation. pp. 152 -- 155. Ellis, Caron S. ( Summer 1992 ). `` So Old Soldiers Do n't Fade Away : The Vietnam Veterans Memorial ''. Journal of American Culture. 15 : 25 -- 28. doi : 10.1111 / j. 1542 - 734x. 1992. t01 - 1 - 00025. x. Ehrenhaus, Peter ( March 1988 ). `` Silence and Symbolic Expression ''. Communication Monographs. 55 : 41 -- 57. doi : 10.1080 / 03637758809376157. Foss, Sonja K. ( Summer 1986 ). `` Ambiguity as Persuasion : The Vietnam Veterans Memorial ''. Communication Quarterly. 34 : 326 -- 340. doi : 10.1080 / 01463378609369643. Friedman, Daniel S. ( November 1995 ). `` Public Things in the Modern City : Belated Notes on Tilted Arc and the Vietnam Veterans Memorial ''. JAE : Journal of Architectural Education. 49 : 62 -- 78. doi : 10.1080 / 10464883.1995. 10734669. Giberson, Art ( 2015 ). Wall South : Veterans Memorial Park. Pensacola, FL : CreateSpace. Griswold, Charles L. ( Summer 1986 ). `` The Vietnam Veterans Memorial and the Washington Mall : Philosophical Thoughts on Political Iconography ''. Critical Inquiry. 12 : 688 -- 719. doi : 10.1086 / 448361. Haines, Harry ( 1986 ). `` ' What Kind of War ? ' : An Analysis of the Vietnam Veterans Memorial ''. Critical Studies in Mass Communucation. 3 : 1 -- 20. doi : 10.1080 / 15295038609366626. Hass, Kristin Ann ( 1998 ). Carried to the Wall : American Memory and the Vietnam Veterans Memorial. Berkeley : University of California Press. Hass, Kristin Ann ( 2015 ). Sacrificing Soldiers on the National Mall. Berkeley, CA : University of California Press. Hess, Elizabeth ( 1987 ). `` Vietnam : Memorials of Misfortune ''. In Williams, Reese. Unwinding the Vietnam War : From War into Peace. Seattle : Real Comet Press. pp. 261 -- 270. Hubbard, William ( Winter 1984 ). `` A Meaning for Monuments ''. The Public Interest. 74 : 17 -- 30. Katakis, Michael ( 1988 ). The Vietnam Veterans Memorial. New York : Crown. Lopes, Sal ( 1987 ). The Wall : Images and Offerings from the Vietnam Veterans Memorial. New York : Collins. McLeod, Mary ( 1989 ). `` The Battle for the Monument : The Vietnam Veterans Memorial ''. In Lipstadt, Helene. The Experimental Tradition. New York : Rizzoli. pp. 115 -- 137. Morrissey, Thomas F. ( 2000 ). Between the Lines : Photographs from the National Vietnam Veterans Memorial. Syracuse, NY : Syracuse University Press. Ochsner, Jeffrey Karl ( February 1997 ). `` A Space of Loss : The Vietnam Veterans Memorial ''. JAE : Journal of Architectural Education. 50 : 156 -- 171. doi : 10.1080 / 10464883.1997. 10734719. Palmer, Laura ( 1987 ). Shrapnel in the Heart : Letters and Remembrances from the Vietnam Veterans Memorial. New York : Random House. Resnicoff, Arnold E. ( 2009 ). `` Dedication Prayer for the Vietnam Veterans Memorial ''. In Moore, James P. Jr. The Treasury of American Prayer. Doubleday. p. 317. Scott, Grant F. ( Fall 1990 ). `` Meditations in Black : The Vietnam Veterans Memorial ''. Journal of American Culture. 13 : 37 -- 40. doi : 10.1111 / j. 1542 - 734x. 1990.1303 _37. x. Scruggs, Jan C. & Swerdlow, Joel L. ( 1985 ). To Heal a Nation : The Vietnam Veterans Memorial. New York : Harper & Row. Sturken, Marita ( Summer 1991 ). `` The Wall, the Screen, and the Image : The Vietnam Veterans Memorial ''. Representations. 35 : 118 -- 142. doi : 10.1525 / rep. 1991.35. 1.99 p00683. Wagner - Pacific, Robin & Schwartz, Barry ( 1991 ). `` The Vietnam Veterans Memorial : Commemorating a Difficult Past ''. The American Journal of Sociology. 97 : 376 -- 420. doi : 10.1086 / 229783. External links Wikimedia Commons has media related to Vietnam Veterans Memorial. Wikisource has original text related to this article : Maya Lin 's original competition submission for the Vietnam Veterans Memorial `` Tenth Anniversary Commemoration ''. C - SPAN. November 11, 1992. Retrieved May 29, 2015. A number of dignitaries spoke at a ceremony marking the tenth anniversary of the Vietnam Veterans Memorial on a rainy day in Washington, DC. The keynote speakers, former Lebanese hostage Terry Anderson and Vice President - elect Al Gore, Jr., honored the Vietnam veterans living and dead for their service to their country. Sen. Gore also pledged to investigate every POW and MIA from the Vietnam War, and also improve the veterans health care system. Following the speeches, Sen. Gore and Mr. Scruggs placed a wreath at the base of the Vietnam Veterans Memorial, and a lone bugle player played ' Taps '. Landmarks of Washington, D.C. Memorials Adams African American Civil War American Veterans Disabled for Life Belmont - Paul Women 's Equality National Monument Mary McLeod Bethune Boy Scout James Buchanan D.C. War Albert Einstein Emancipation John Carroll John Ericsson First Division James A. Garfield Samuel Gompers Ulysses S. Grant Holocaust Museum Holodomor Genocide Japanese American Patriotism During World War II Jefferson Memorial Lyndon Baines Johnson Grove John Paul Jones Marquis de Lafayette Law Enforcement Officers Lincoln Memorial Martin Luther King, Jr. Korean War Veterans George Mason George Meade National Statuary Hall Collection Navy -- Merchant Marine Nuns of the Battlefield Peace Monument Pentagon Second Division Signers of the Declaration of Independence The Extra Mile The Three Soldiers Jean de Rochambeau Franklin Delano Roosevelt Theodore Roosevelt Island Taras Shevchenko Statues of the Liberators Oscar Straus Robert A. Taft Titanic United States Air Force United States Navy Victims of Communism Vietnam Veterans Vietnam Women 's Washington Monument Daniel Webster World War II Rainbow Pool Other Capitol Reflecting Pool Immaculate Conception Basilica Ford 's Theatre Petersen House Healy Hall Islamic Center Jefferson Pier John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts Library of Congress National Arboretum National Capitol Columns National Building Museum National Gallery of Art Lincoln 's Cottage at Soldiers ' Home Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool National Archives Newseum National Cathedral National Mall Old Post Office Pavilion Old Stone House Smithsonian Institution The Arts of War and The Arts of Peace Tidal Basin Treasury Building Tudor Place Union Station United States Capitol United States Supreme Court Building White House Willard Hotel Parks and plazas Constitution Gardens Dupont Circle East Potomac Park Freedom Plaza Lafayette Square L'Enfant Plaza Meridian Hill Park National Arboretum Pershing Park Rock Creek Park The Ellipse United States Botanic Garden West Potomac Park Boundaries Anacostia River Arlington Memorial Bridge Boundary Markers of the Original District of Columbia Chesapeake and Ohio Canal Constitution Avenue Francis Scott Key Bridge Pennsylvania Avenue Potomac River Zero Milestone Planned Adams Memorial Dwight D. Eisenhower Memorial General Francis Marion Memorial Gold Star Mothers Monument National Desert Storm and Desert Shield War Memorial National Liberty Memorial Peace Corps Commemorative World War I Related National Capital Memorial Advisory Commission National Mall and Memorial Parks List of National Historic Landmarks in Washington, D.C. National Register of Historic Places in Washington, D.C. Public art in Washington, D.C. ( Outdoor sculpture, American Revolution Statuary, Civil War Monuments, commemorating African - Americans ) WorldCat Identities GND : 4491270 - 5 SUDOC : 121832406 VIAF : 210229529 Retrieved from `` https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Vietnam_Veterans_Memorial&oldid=864635036 '' Categories : Vietnam Veterans Memorial 1982 establishments in Washington, D.C. Artworks in the collection of the National Park Service Buildings and structures completed in 1982 Government buildings on the National Register of Historic Places in Washington, D.C. Landscape design history of the United States Monuments and memorials in Washington, D.C. Monuments and memorials on the National Register of Historic Places in Washington, D.C. National Mall and Memorial Parks National Mall National Memorials of the United States Outdoor sculptures in Washington, D.C. Vietnam War monuments and memorials in the United States Vandalized works of art in Washington, D.C. 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Question: what is the central idea of the vietnam wall
Answer: honors service members of the U.S. armed forces who fought in the Vietnam War, service members who died in service in Vietnam/South East Asia, and those service members who were unaccounted for (missing in action, MIA) during the war