COLUMBIA, S.C. — After years, several obstacles, and delays, the Vietnam War exhibit in the Confederate Relic Room and Military Museum is finally coming together.
Flooding, COVID, shipment delays, a new HVAC, and an emergency sprinkler system are all obstacles the new exhibit has been facing.
"That all delayed it, but conversely that gave us a chance to really make the exhibit good," said Allen Roberson, executive director of the Confederate Relic Room and Military Museum.
It has allowed extra time for planning where the 500 artifacts will go.
"We wanted to look at what the servicemen did while they were there and the kinds of huge problems they dealt with," Fritz Hamer said. "Some of the high command thought they were fighting a war like we had in WWII, when in fact it was totally different. We were dealing with insurgent forces, guerilla forces."
The exhibit is designed for anyone looking to learn more about the Vietnam War and specifically South Carolina's involvement in it.
State legislators are allocating about $30K to this exhibit for programming and the $700,000 spent on the exhibit was paid for out of the Military Museum's budget.
Eight cases will have artifacts from local veterans, and some purchased, honoring the ultimate sacrifice of so many.
It will open on Veterans Day, which is November 11, 2022. The exhibit will stay up on display for at least 18 months.