[citation needed] The location of the cemetery was marked by a 13 feet (4.0 m) tall statue on Highway 1 by Vietnamese sculptor, Nguyen Thanh Thu, depicting a weary ARVN soldier seated with his M1 rifle on his lap that would come to be nicknamed Thuong Tiec.

Over time legends grew of the Thuong Tiec statue coming to life to warn of Vietcong attacks.

[3] The statue stood at the beginning of a ceremonial road leading to a hilltop pagoda accessible by stairs, behind the pagoda was a ceremonial walkway leading into the cemetery with the graves laid out in a series of circles around a circular monument and obelisk.

[citation needed] Following the Fall of Saigon the Thuong Tiec statue was destroyed and access to the cemetery was restricted until 2006 when families were allowed to tend the graves.

[4] A sign was erected outside the cemetery which read "Here lie the Americans' puppet soldiers who have paid the price for their crimes.