Kentucky Vietnam Veterans Memorial

The Kentucky Vietnam Veterans Memorial is dedicated to those who served and died in the Vietnam War.

Located off Vernon Cooper Lane in Frankfort Kentucky.

Located on the hill overlooking the Kentucky State Capitol Dome, this memorial consists of a large sundial. The shadow of the indicator shaft falls on one of 327 granite panels on which are etched the names of 1,100 Kentuckians killed in Vietnam. Each name appears in a place the shadow touches annually on the anniversary of that soldier's death. Located behind the sundial, where the shadow never falls, are the names of 23 veterans missing in action.

One of the most popular visitor sites in the capitol city, the memorial serves as the site of the annual Rolling Thunder motorcycle rally of veterans in the 'run for the wall,' as well as a gathering place for veterans and their families throughout the year. Personal artifacts and mementoes left at the memorial are stored at the Kentucky Military History Museum in Frankfort, where a new permanent exhibit area for the items is currently under construction. Admission to the memorial site is free to the public.

The design concept is in the form of a large sundial. The stainless steel gnomon casts its shadow upon a granite plaza. There are 1,103 names of Kentuckians on the memorial, including 23 missing in action. Each name is engraved into the plaza, and placed so that the tip of the shadow touches his name on the anniversary of his death, thus giving each fallen veteran a personal Memorial Day.

The location of each name is fixed mathematically by the date of casualty, the geographic location of the memorial, the height of the gnomon and the physics of solar movement. The stones were then designed and cut to avoid dividing any individual name.

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