lion visitors each year .

Following a national design competition in 1980 and over 3000 submittals , the judges selected the winning design work of Maya Ying Lin of Athens , Ohio , a 21-year-old senior at Yale University . At age 21 and still an undergraduate , Lin conceived her design as creating a park within a park and quiet protected place unto itself , yet harmonious with the overall plan of Constitution Gardens . To achieve this effect she chose polished black granite for the walls . Its mirror-like surface reflects the images of the surrounding trees , lawns and monuments .

The Memorial ’ s walls point to the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial , thus bringing the Memorial into the historical context of our country .

The names are inscribed in the chronological order of their dates of casualty , showing the war as a series of individual human sacrifices and giving each name a special place in history . The Memorial was dedicated on Nov . 13 , 1982 and attracts nearly 5 million visitors each year .

The Vietnam Veterans Memorial stands as a symbol of America ’ s honor and recognition of the men and women who served and sacrificed

their lives in the Vietnam War . Inscribed on the black granite walls are the names of more than 58,000 men and women who gave their lives or remain missing . The Memorial is dedicated to honor the courage , sacrifice and devotion to duty and country of all who answered the call to serve during one of the most divisive wars in U . S . history .

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 . Dewitt wanted to capture the spirit he felt in Washington , D . C . and share it with people who couldn ’ t get there . Dewitt had served in the Army- First Air Cavalry door gunner and crew chief on assault helicopters .

The Moving Wall visited 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 . The 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 .”

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 .

Kenneth Lee , a former Marine and president of the H . E . A . R . T . S . Veterans Museum of Huntsville , reported that the company that built the Vietnam Traveling Wall was building a new one and wanted to sell the existing one .

Two and a half years in the making and approximately

$ 300,000 later , the project was made possible through city , county and private donor funding .

On March 27 , 2022 , the memorial was dedicated and is on the west side of the Huntsville H . E . A . R . T . S . Museum , open to the public 24 hours a day .

The replica is constructed of Avonite , a synthetic granite , and its 140 numbered panels are supported by an aluminum frame . Machine engraving of the more than 58,000 names along with modern LED lighting provide readability of The Wall day and night .

The Moving Wall is more than 252 feet long from end to end and stands over 7 feet tall at its highest point in the center . The names of the eight women ( Army Nurses ) who died in Vietnam are also included .

For more information on the efforts of Jan Scruggs and the creation of the Washington Memorial Wall , www . founderofthewall . com

The Huntsville H . E . A . R . T . S . Museum and Memorial Wall are located at 463 Highway 75 North , Huntsville .

For more information , contact the www . heartsmuseum . com or 936-295-5959 .