Vietnam Women's Memorial Project, Inc. collection
Collection
Identifier: L548
Scope and Contents
The collection contains records pertaining to the Vietnam Women's Memorial Project, Inc., ranging from 1968 to 2007. There are correspondence, meeting minutes, reports, financial records, and materials concerning public relations, fundraising, and volunteer activities. Most of the materials concerns Theodora Brown and her work, especially as Indiana state coordinator, including daily journals, newspaper clippings, brochures, photographs, and four posters related to the project and other groups honoring veterans from other wars. There are also correspondence, papers, and employment information from her brief period as executive director in 1989.
There is also an oversize folder containing undated, double-sided poster (2 copies) and a photocopy of a newspaper article, May 25, 1986 (OBD037).
There is also an oversize folder containing undated, double-sided poster (2 copies) and a photocopy of a newspaper article, May 25, 1986 (OBD037).
Dates
- 1968-2007
Creator
- Vietnam Women's Memorial Project, Inc. (Organization)
Conditions Governing Access
This collection is open for research.
Conditions Governing Use
Legal title, copyright, and literary rights reside with Rare Books and Manuscripts, Indiana State Library, Indianapolis, IN. All requests to publish or quote from manuscripts must be submitted to Rare Books and Manuscripts.
Historical Note
Vietnam Women’s Memorial Project, Inc. (VWMP) began in Minnesota, founded by Diane Carlson Evans, a former army nurse and Vietnam veteran, as a grassroots fundraising project in 1984. The purpose of the venture was to finance the construction of a monument commemorating nurses who served in the Vietnam War. The goal of the organization was to place the memorial near the Vietnam Veterans War Memorial in Washington, D.C. in order to educate the public about women who served in the war.
The organization moved from Minnesota to new headquarters in Washington, D.C. in 1988. Evans served as the first executive director of the organization. She was followed by other servicewomen and registered nurses, Donna-Marie Boulay, Evangeline Jamison, Theodora "Teddy" Brown, and more.
The Vietnam Women's Memorial was dedicated on November 11, 1993. Sculpted by Glenna Goodacre, it depicts three uniformed women with a wounded soldier, representing women's roles in the war as nurses, physicians, intelligence officers, communication specialists, and air traffic controllers. The memorial is ocated in the National Mall, south of The Wall and north of the Reflecting Pool, in Washington, D.C.
In 2023, the organization still exists, renamed the Vietnam Women's Memorial Foundation.
Sources:
Items in the collection.
Loose, Cindy. “‘Our Place for the Healing': Vietnam Women’s Memorial Dedicated Amid Tears, Hugs.” Washington Post, November 12, 1993. Accessed October 26, 2023. https://vietnamwomensmemorial.org/about-us/dedication-of-the-memorial.
National Park Service. "Vietnam Women's Memorial." NPS.gov. Accessed October 26, 2023. https://www.nps.gov/places/000/vietnam-womens-memorial.htm
Vietnam Women's Memorial Foundation. "Message from the Founder." Accessed October 26, 2023. https://vietnamwomensmemorial.org/message-from-the-founder.
Wikipedia. "Vietnam Women's Memorial." Wikipedia.org. Accessed October 26, 2023. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vietnam_Women%27s_Memorial.
The organization moved from Minnesota to new headquarters in Washington, D.C. in 1988. Evans served as the first executive director of the organization. She was followed by other servicewomen and registered nurses, Donna-Marie Boulay, Evangeline Jamison, Theodora "Teddy" Brown, and more.
The Vietnam Women's Memorial was dedicated on November 11, 1993. Sculpted by Glenna Goodacre, it depicts three uniformed women with a wounded soldier, representing women's roles in the war as nurses, physicians, intelligence officers, communication specialists, and air traffic controllers. The memorial is ocated in the National Mall, south of The Wall and north of the Reflecting Pool, in Washington, D.C.
In 2023, the organization still exists, renamed the Vietnam Women's Memorial Foundation.
Sources:
Items in the collection.
Loose, Cindy. “‘Our Place for the Healing': Vietnam Women’s Memorial Dedicated Amid Tears, Hugs.” Washington Post, November 12, 1993. Accessed October 26, 2023. https://vietnamwomensmemorial.org/about-us/dedication-of-the-memorial.
National Park Service. "Vietnam Women's Memorial." NPS.gov. Accessed October 26, 2023. https://www.nps.gov/places/000/vietnam-womens-memorial.htm
Vietnam Women's Memorial Foundation. "Message from the Founder." Accessed October 26, 2023. https://vietnamwomensmemorial.org/message-from-the-founder.
Wikipedia. "Vietnam Women's Memorial." Wikipedia.org. Accessed October 26, 2023. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vietnam_Women%27s_Memorial.
Extent
1.1 Cubic Feet (3 manuscript boxes, 1 extra-large oversize folder)
Language of Materials
English
Arrangement
This collection is arranged by subject.
Custodial History
This collection was received by Rare Books and Manuscripts as a donation from Theodora Brown in 2007/01.
Accruals
No further additions are expected.
Processing Information
Collection processing completed 2007/12 by Alison Smith. EAD finding aid created 2007/12 by Alison Smith. Collection reprocessed 2023/10/31 by Brittany Kropf. EAD finding aid revised 2020/09/04; 2022/11/16; 2023/10/31 by Brittany Kropf.
Creator
- Vietnam Women's Memorial Project, Inc. (Organization)
- Brown, Theodora M. (Person)
- Title
- Vietnam Women's Memorial Project, Inc. collection
- Status
- Completed
- Description rules
- Describing Archives: A Content Standard
- Language of description
- English
- Script of description
- Latin
Repository Details
Part of the Rare Books and Manuscripts Repository
Contact:
140 North Senate Avenue
Indianapolis, Indiana 46204 U.S.A.
317-232-3671
140 North Senate Avenue
Indianapolis, Indiana 46204 U.S.A.
317-232-3671
