Traveling Vietnam War Memorial Opens Thursday In Franklin

FRANKLIN, WI — The Wall That Heals, a traveling replica of the Vietnam Veterans Memorial in Washington, D.C., is scheduled to open for public viewing at Franklin High School on Thursday.

The replica will arrive in a 53-foot trailer alongside a mobile education center. The program is meant to spread the healing legacy of the wall and educate about the impacts the Vietnam War left, according to a news release from the Vietnam Veterans Memorial Fund.

The ¾-scale replica measures up at 375 feet long. At its tallest point, it is 7½ feet tall. Visitors will experience the wall in a way much like the original in our nation's capital — people are able to do name rubbings and experience the vastness of the memorial, the news release said.

The wall will be at Franklin High School, 8222 South 51st Street, from Thursday until July 3. You can view the wall 24 hours per day for free when it's in town. The City of Franklin and Franklin Public Schools are hosting the wall together, according to a news release

The wall is meant to honor the 3 million Americans who served in the Vietnam War, and it contains each name of the 58,281 American men and women who died as a result of the war.

The Wall That Heals made its debut in 1996. Since then, it's visited more than 700 communities in the U.S., plus Canada and Ireland.

“The Vietnam Veterans Memorial Fund (VVMF) is pleased to bring The Wall That Heals mobile exhibit to Franklin, Wisconsin, to allow local veterans and their family members a chance to experience The Wall,” said Jim Knotts, president and CEO of VVMF in the news release.

“Hosting The Wall That Heals provides an opportunity to honor and remember all those who served and sacrificed in the Vietnam War and educate visitors on the continuing impact of the Vietnam War on America," said Knotts.

The mobile education center arriving with the wall will feature photos of local service members whose names are on the wall, plus digital displays of Vietnam veterans from the local area, the news release said.

The center will also have educational exhibits, a replica of the in memory plaque, a timeline of the Vietnam War, and other exhibits all "designed to put American experiences in Vietnam in a historical and cultural context," the news release said.