FORT SMITH, Ark. (KATV) — This year marks the 50th anniversary of the fall of Saigon and the subsequent arrival of over 50,000 Vietnamese, Lao, and Hmong refugees at Fort Chaffee. For many, this site became their Ellis Island, a place where they began new lives as Americans.

In 1975, following the U.S. withdrawal from Vietnam, many locals who had supported American forces faced retaliation from the victorious North Vietnamese. In response, Congress enacted the Indochina Migration and Refugee Assistance Act, allowing refugees to enter the U.S. and become citizens. Fort Chaffee was the largest of four entry points, known as “Operation New Life.”

Tram Anh Nguyen, who arrived at Fort Chaffee as an infant, recalled, “It was a time for them to forget all the trauma that they had seen during the war in Vietnam and the bombings, the escape, all the terror and just be able to be kids. And to have the elders have a moment to catch their breath while they try to figure out, wow, I’m in a new country. How am I going to go ahead and create a life, a new life for me and my family?”

Between May and December of 1975, over 50,000 refugees were processed through Fort Chaffee and relocated across the country. Many were aided by sponsors or host families. Nguyen’s family was sponsored by a Catholic parish in St. Louis, where they eventually settled.

Bac Pham, who was 9 years old when he and his family arrived, said, “That’s where our life started and we start out with nothing…like all three of us, our family had pretty much nothing. We just start from scratch.”

Pham’s cousin, Dr. Tri Le, was 8 when he arrived. He described Fort Chaffee as feeling like a family reunion, saying, “We were introduced to the game of baseball, basketball. So, we’re just out there playing the sports that we love. All three of us just went back to Fort Chaffee just a few weeks ago to celebrate the 50th anniversary and it was very emotional.”

Many descendants of Fort Chaffee refugees have found success in America. Jaylin Williams, the son of a refugee, recently won the NBA Championship with the Oklahoma City Thunder and is also a former Arkansas Razorback. Dat Nguyen, born at the Fort Chaffee refugee camp, became the first NFL player of Vietnamese descent, as he played 7 seasons for the legendary Dallas Cowboys. He also has earned the honor of being in multiple Hall of Fames for his time in football.

Nguyen said, “I know it was all God’s hands that I had the chance to experience what I experienced, to represent the Vietnamese community.”

The Vietnamese community in Fort Smith, now numbering between 5,000 and 6,000, has established churches, temples, restaurants, and a supermarket. Eric and Lilly Nguyen, owners of Pho Vietnam restaurant, are among those who have built new lives in the area.

Jennifer Seaton Rambo, director of the Chaffee Crossing Historic District, emphasized the importance of preserving Fort Chaffee’s history as a refugee camp. “It is something that we want to share every day, and that will be through programs, through stories, possibly through exhibits and additions throughout the galleries,” she said.

Reflecting on the significance of Fort Chaffee, Dat Nguyen stated, “It’s where the Vietnamese Americans started, was at Fort Chaffee, Arkansas.”