Where should the beginning milestone of Truong Son Trail (also known as the Ho Chi Minh Trail) be placed is still a question for many. Some think it should be Kim Boi District of Hoa Binh Province, where the 559 Army Corps was first established, while others believe that it is Ho mountain gorge in Quang Tri Province, where the first base of the logistics 301 Battalion was set up.
“At the town, there still remains a memorial stele to mark the opening day of the trail,” said a veteran of 559 Army Corps.
Tan Ky District is some 100 kilometers from Vinh, capital of Nghe An. Between 40 and 50 years ago, Lat Town used to be in ideal garrison for the troops because it was surrounded by primeval forests.
Tan Ky District’s former Party Committee Secretary Vo Viet Thanh said that on September 9, 1964, local militia, together with the Youth Volunteer Force and engineer soldiers of 559 Army Corps, started building the trail for transportation purposes.
He said, “Whether or not Lat Town is recognized as the starting point of the Truong Son Trail will depend on historical evidence and the decision of relevant authorities. Yet, in 1972, Lt. Gen. Dong Si Nguyen, of Truong Son High Command, did come here for a survey and decided to have a memorial stele erected in place as recognition.”
In 2003, while restoring the Ho Chi Minh Trail, the Ministry of Transport also built a VND6 billion monument next to the memorial stele in recognition of the milestone.
Found in the exhibition room near the monument is a milestone post made with a mixture of gravel and lime. The carved words are worn out by weather and time. According to the exhibition director, it is the zero kilometer milestone of Truong Son trail made by soldiers of 559 in 1959.
With the presence of the two historical recognitions in town, the local younger generations are proud of the historic land they are living in, but not many realize the hardships, challenges and losses that their grandparents and parents had to undergo during wartime.
Commander Doan Quang Trung, deputy chairman of the Tan Ky District Veteran Association, said that between 1965 and 1972, people in Tan Ky had to live with bomb raids and rocket attacks everyday, except cease-fire days.
Lat Town at the time was completely ruined. Many communes lying along path 15 were fiercely raided by the enemy, as they suspected that they were camping places for troops or where weapons and munitions were hidden.
During the period, more than 1,000 people in Tan Ky were killed and over 1,400 were seriously and permanently injured.
The grief, damage and losses did not discourage the heroic fighting spirit of the local people. More than 20,000 joined the army, Youth Voluntary Force and the Militia and Guerilla Force.
Young people in the district coordinated conscripted laborers to dig dugouts or chop branches and brushes to supply to the van groups. Drivers would camouflage their vehicles with the tree branches and shrubs.
Local people also provided cover for thousands for families of Vinh Linh and Gio Linh Districts in Quang Tri Province, who were finding their way to Tan Ky to shelter from the war, which was even worse in the districts they left.
In order to have enough food for evacuees and themselves, local people farmed while shooting back at bombers hovering over their heads. Their motto was “Share a bowl of rice and give half a grain of [uncooked] salt to evacuees.”
After the war, in recognition of Tan Ky District’s important role, the Party and State awarded the title ”Hero” to the Party Committee and people of Tan Ky District. Seven out of 21 communes of the district also received the title.
