Vietnam Veterans Museum

The Story

The National Vietnam Veterans Museum (NVVM) was founded by Vietnam Veterans to help other veterans cope better with their experiences both during the war and after their return to Australia. 

In 1996, Vietnam Veteran John Methven and his wife Krishna joined the ‘Vets Connect’ journey around Australia. With fuel funded by the Department of Veterans Affairs (DVA), their Land Rover pulled a display trailer of John’s war memorabilia as a mobile museum. The aim was to reach out to the many veterans who had ‘gone bush’ and make them aware that the Vietnam Veterans Association of Australia (VVAA) had been formed to lobby for proper recognition and improved welfare for all veterans affected by the war.

Official Memorabilia

Collections Objects and Stories

Our collection contains thousands of items that Australians serving in Vietnam used, found, swapped, bought, sent or brought home with them. On display are dog tags and cigarette lighters, call-up notices and letters, uniforms and medals, souvenirs, and memorabilia.

Alongside veteran stories, you will find reminders that entertainers, Red Cross and Salvation Army workers went to the warfront too, while on the home front, anti-war protests took place.

Vietnam War Battles

Models

On display are well over 100 detailed scale models of the vehicles and heavy machinery used by the Army, Navy and Air Force. You will see everything from the enormous HMAS Sydney transport ship nickname the Vung Tau Ferry to

Armament

The conflict in Vietnam raged for more than a decade and combat troops from six different countries supported the South. So, the weaponry used varied between armies and through the years —from the crossbows of the indigenous Montagnard people to the sophisticated Precision Guided Missiles on United States gunships, from the poison–laden punji sticks of the Viet Cong to the M16 Jumping Jack (Bouncing Betty) mines laid by the allies.