Fort Harrison State Park to host Vietnam Re-enactment, July 17-18

Indiana DNR Release:

The Museum of 20th Century Warfare and Fort Harrison State Park will team up to host the Vietnam Experience Re-enactment on July 17 and 18.

The program will recreate American units who will be opposing Vietcong forces in a Vietnamese-style public battle. The encampments and tactical battles tell the stories of the veterans who passed through Fort Harrison when it was a military reservation.

Dressed in authentic or recreated uniforms the unpaid hobbyist re-enactors use Vietnam-era equipment and weapons to drill, exercise and simulate combat situations. The soldiers will “fight” during the re-enactment much as soldiers did during the Vietnam War.

Fort Harrison State Park was an active military base from 1906 until 1996. It has also served as an induction center during the Vietnam War and was home to several base hospitals, support schools and the Finance Center. Fort Harrison was decommissioned and turned over to the Indiana Department of Natural Resources in 1996.

Both the re-enactment and the military camp will be open to the public. The program will be conducted regardless of the weather; park visitors coming to the re-enactment are advised to dress for the weather, as this is an outdoor event. The public tactical will begin at the historic Walnut Plantation at 2 p.m. on July 17, with a weapons demonstration at 2 p.m. on July 18.

There is no cost for the program, but the normal $5 weekend in-state and $7 out-of-state gate fee applies. For more information, please contact the park office at (317) 591-0122.