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Commemorative Landscapes of North Carolina
Commemorative Landscapes of North Carolina
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Source:  Orange Heart Memorial (Agent Orange Victims), Rocky Mount. Photo by Brandon D Cross

  • Monument Name

    Orange Heart Memorial (Agent Orange Victims), Rocky Mount

  • Type

    Marker

  • Subjects

    Tragedy

    Vietnam War, 1960-1975

  • City

    Rocky Mount

  • County

    Nash

  • Description

    The memorial to Agent Orange victims is a tablet style marker with a low serpentine top standing perhaps two feet tall. The memorial is polished granite and stands on a narrow single base with rough hewn edges on a concrete foundation. To the left of the inscription is a representation of the Agent Orange Veterans Medal and Ribbon.

  • Inscription

    IN MEMORY AND HONOR OF / THOSE WHOSE LIVES WERE / AFFECTED BY THE CHEMICAL / AGENT ORANGE

  • Dedication Date

    Circa 2021

  • Decade

    2020s

  • Geographic Coordinates

    35.949430 , -77.817810 View in Geobrowsemap pin

  • Supporting Sources

      “Agent Orange Victims,” The Historical Marker Database, HMdb.org, (accessed October 6, 2023) Link

      “The U.S. Military and the Herbicide Program in Vietnam,” National Institute of Health, ncbi.nlm.nih.gov, (accessed October 6, 2023) Link

      “VFW Facilitating Orange Heart Medals for Vietnam Veterans,” The Dillon Herald (Dillon, SC), October 4, 2022, (accessed October 6, 2023) Link

  • Public Site

    Yes

  • Materials & Techniques

    Granite

  • Subject Notes

    Agent Orange was a tactical herbicide used by the U.S. military to reduce vegetation and increase visibility. The military sprayed almost 19,000 gallons of herbicides during the Vietnam War of which 11,000 gallons were Agent Orange. The Orange Heart Medal honors and recognizes victims of Agent Orange exposure during the war. Different from the Purple Heart Medal which acknowledges visible injuries, the Orange Heart Medal acknowledges an invisible injury that often only became known many years later in the form of cancers or other serious maladies. Estimates of the number of U.S. military personnel who served in Vietnam during this period of herbicide use vary from 2.6 to 3.8 million.

  • Location

    The memorial stands in a grass-covered median at the intersection of Beal Street, Bryant Street and Sunset Avenue in Rocky Mount, NC. A few feet away is the Nash County Vietnam Memorial.

  • Landscape

    The marker is in a small park-like area. Shade trees surround the site.

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