Patriots Point marks Vietnam Veterans Day

MOUNT PLEASANT, S.C. (WCBD) – Saturday marked the 52nd anniversary of U.S. troops withdrawing from the Vietnam War, and Patriots Point in Mount Pleasant honored those who served during a commemoration event.

The museum welcomed veterans to the Vietnam Experience exhibit, now in its 10th year. 

The day began with a ceremony recognizing the service of over three million Americans, followed by a commemoration with the University of South Carolina Libraries, who presented visitors with archival films of marine combat footage and news broadcasts aboard the USS Yorktown.

“Today is Vietnam Veterans Day, this is an incredibly important day for us on Patriots Point. So, we’re standing right now in Vietnam Experience which is recreation of a brown water navy site. We have the sounds down right now, but typically you can hear the sounds of helicopters and the experience of what people would’ve had in Vietnam,” said Allison Hunt, Patriots Point’s executive director.

The ceremony also included remarks from a Vietnam Veteran.

“It was an interesting time period for us because things picked up dramatically. The war had picked up dramatically, and so a lot more fire fights. We unfortunately lost five sailors, that doesn’t sound like a lot but when you have 60 sailors – a lot of them are maintenance. We had probably 30% wounded in some way shape or form,” said John Smock, a Brown Water Navy Commander.

The exhibit is open year-round from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.