Saigon Ranger Museum is located in a house more than 60 years old, once a secret operating place for the Saigon special forces. Currently, it is a favorite cultural and historical destination of residents as well as tourists coming to Ho Chi Minh City.
General information about Saigon Ranger Museum
The Saigon Ranger Museum is located on the second floor of a house built in 1963 on Tran Quang Khai Street, District 1. The house was originally the secret operating base of Saigon rangers, under the guise of facility for building new cyclos and processing furniture for the Independence Palace, managed by Mr. Tran Van Lai (also known as Nam Lai).
However, after 1975, Mr. Lai’s family divided the house into three and sold two parts. To have the museum as its today, it’s a long journey… Mr. Lai’s family has diligently searched for, redeemed and restored the houses, cellars, and memorabilia that marked activities of the Saigon – Gia Dinh rangers.
With persistent perseverance, the museum Saigon Ranger Museum officially opened on August 27, 2023. It should be noted this is a non-public museum and the only one in Vietnam about the Saigon – Gia Dinh rangers.
In addition to storing a number of historically valuable artifacts, the museum also uses modern tools such as 3D images, VR (virtual reality) and AR (augmented reality) to recreate important events and space related to Saigon rangers. And digitalization will spread and help young generations connect and understand more about the historical heritage of the Saigon Ranger.
- Opening hours: 7:30 am – 17:30 pm, every day.
- Address: 145 Tran Quang Khai street, Tan Dinh Ward, District 1, Ho Chi Minh City.
- Entrance fee: free
Recreate heroic history of Saigon Rangers
Currently, the museum displays 7 collections of valuable artifacts with more than 300 artifacts and image documents associated with each stage of the revolutionary activities of Mr. Tran Van Lai and the Saigon Rangers including the Collection secret bunkers to store weapons and hide troops; Collection of vehicles used by ranger soldiers for traveling; weapons collection and living items associated with the operations of the Saigon Rangers; Collection of production tools and equipment of Mr. Tran Van Lai in the guise of a contractor at the Independence Palace; Collection of communication equipment…Each artifact is a vivid, intimate, legendary story of the Saigon Rangers.
State-of-the-art equipment from previous times such as typewriters, radios… are also on display
The most numerous artifacts are collections of weapons and bombs used in battles and images of a number of raids on the enemy by the Saigon Rangers.
Types of combat weapons of the Saigon rangers
Notably, the 82 mm mortar was used to shoot at General Westmoreland’s headquarters and workplace on February 13, 1967. General Westmoreland served as Commander of the US Military Advisory Command in South Vietnam from 1964 to 1968.
The mortar (left) use to attacked General Westmoreland’s headquarters in 1967.
At the museum, the history of the Saigon Rangers appears vividly through a diagram built on an old map of Saigon. For the first time, an overview of the network and mysterious operation of the Saigon Rangers is fully and clearly visible through the system of weapons bunkers and military bunkers built right in the heart of the enemy for many years serving in the legendary battles of the rangers in the heart of Saigon, and for the General Offensive and Uprising Campaign of Spring Mau Than 1968.
The place that retains visitors the longest is the wall commemorating the soldiers of the rangers. Their portraits are reconstructed using AI technology.
The museum’s memorabilia is carefully displayed, but without glass frames or barriers, visitors can touch it to learn and feel more clearly about a legendary force in the past.
Special and unique to the Museum is the collection of secret bunkers and the collection of vehicles used for revolutionary activities of the ranger soldiers during the war time.
The French Velo Solex bike, manufactured in the 1950s, was used to carry secret documents.
There is also a large auditorium for visitors to sit and watch movies about the Saigon ranger forces, and a tea room with an antique barrel salon.
The special thing is that coffee and snacks are also served here, so that visitors can both visit, study and enjoy the taste of old Saigon cuisine without affecting the memorabilia in the museum.
Each month, the layout at the Saigon Rangers Museum will change to create appeal for visitors.
Source: collected by An
