Stoneham Historical Society Seeks Vietnam War Items, Photos

STONEHAM, MA — The Stoneham Historical Society is celebrating its 100th anniversary this year. As members celebrate, however, they are are seeking to fill a hole in their collection – the Vietnam War.

“We don't really have much of anything after World War Two, which is amazing,” Director-At-Large Joan Quigley told Patch last week.

“We have practically nothing from Vietnam, nothing from Korea, and now we have had the Gulf Wars and Afghanistan," she said.

Stoneham’s Vietnam War Memorial notes more than 250 town residents who served in Vietnam during the war. A separate plaque notes additional veterans from the Vietnam-era who served in the US or in other areas outside of Vietnam. At least four Stoneham residents died in the war, according to TheVirtualWall.org, which seeks to digitize information on each of the individuals named on the Vietnam Veterans Memorial in Washington DC.

The Stoneham Historical Society has its own lists dating back to the Vietnam War. As society members planned a series of decade-themed exhibits to mark this year’s historical society centennial, though, they noted that they lacked Vietnam material for their 1960s and 70s displays.

“This is history now,” Quigley said.

So, society members are seeking donations of anything from photos, to medals, to uniforms from community members interested in seeing their items preserved by the museum.

“We're just trying to put the word out that we would like to collect these things to keep them to put them on display,” Quigley said.

The Stoneham Historical Society is located at 36 William Street in Stoneham.

Anyone interested in making a donation should first contact the society to coordinate a time to drop off their item.

The historical society is on Facebook. Individuals can also contact the society by phone at
781-572-3126 or by email at historystoneham@gmail.com.