Larry E. Smedley National Vietnam War Museum

Description

Recognizing that the tragedy of the war in southeast Asia has become comfortably distant in the minds of many Americans, this organization has embarked on a very ambitious undertaking; building a war museum that will bring the people and events of this bitter, divisive conflict to life, so that current and future generations of Americans remember the Vietnam Veterans legacy of service, sacrifice, and valor. The museum is dedicated to future Americans from local schools and youth organizations to soldiers currently defending our great nation, in the hope that everyone passing through the gates will leave with a better understanding of past and present military conflicts. The Larry E. Smedley National Vietnam War Museum includes the first dedicated monument to Fallen Vietnam War Veterans in the state of Florida, with 167 names of men and women from Orange County, Florida. Other static displays consists of a U.S. Navy Patrol Boat River (PBR), also known as “River Rat”, Douglas A-4B Skyhawk aircraft that is currently on loan from the National Museum of Naval Aviation, Pensacola, Florida, and a Bell UH-1 (Huey) Dustoff helicopter. The existing museum center includes numerous artifacts from the Vietnam era; a room-size, to scale, firebase recreation that took approximately eleven years to complete; and recently remodeled an educational media/research room with enhanced audiovisual capabilities.