Description

Essentials about the National September 11 Memorial and Museum in brief

The National September 11 Memorial and Museum (usually just called the “9/11 Memorial” for short) is the official national memorial to the approximately 3,000 victims of the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001. It is located on the site of the former World Trade Center in southern Manhattan and consists of two sections: A memorial with two large pools of water located on the exact sites of the two destroyed Twin Towers, and a museum that reflects on the events of September 11, 2001 through thousands and thousands of pictures, objects, audio and video recordings.

The history of the National September 11 Memorial and Museum

The 9/11 Memorial is based on a design by architect Michael Arad and landscape architect Peter Walker, who beat out 5,000 other designs in a competition. Work on the memorial began in 2006, and construction of the adjacent museum began at the same time. Ten years after the attacks, on September 12, 2011, the memorial was opened to the public. The museum was opened three years later in May 2014.

The National September 11 Memorial: The water basins

As early as 1993, a water basin was erected as a memorial for the six victims of the World Trade Center bombing at that time. This reflecting pool was inscribed with the names of those killed. The new memorial, which commemorates both the 1993 and 2001 victims, echoed this concept. Exactly at the sites of the two destroyed twin towers, resembling “footprints,” are two large pools. These have a copper border engraved with the names of the 2,983 people who died in the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001 and February 26, 1993. The list includes those killed at the World Trade Center, as well as those killed at the Pentagon, on the four hijacked airliners, and all the rescue workers and volunteers who perished. The names of the bombers have been omitted.

In the middle of each of the two water features at street level, the water falls nine meters into a basement. They are the largest man-made waterfalls in the United States. Daylight falls through the water walls into the pavilion located below the basins. Inside are two memorial rooms with the names of the dead and a museum. The name of the memorial Reflecting Absence is best translated as “Thinking about what is missing.” At the same time, the name is a play on words with the reflecting water surface of the basins. The two water basins/falls have a special effect in the evening when they are illuminated at nightfall.

The National September 11 Memorial: The Park and the Survivor Tree

Surrounding the two water basins is a park with trees. All the trees are oaks, except one – a pear tree called the “Survivor Tree”. It stood on the site before the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001, but was severely damaged when the Twin Towers collapsed. After it was discovered during cleanup and freed from the rubble, the New York City Department of Parks and Recreation nursed it back to health. After its recovery, the tree was planted at the memorial in 2010. Its new shoots and leaves, however, do not obscure the gnarled stumps. Thus, the tree is a living symbol of survival and rebirth.

The National September 11 Museum

The museum brings the events of September 11, 2001, back to life through 40,000 images, 14,000 objects, 3,500 sound recordings and more than 500 hours of video footage. Designed by the architectural firm of Davis Brody Bond, the building is located approximately 21 feet below ground and is entered through an above-ground pavilion. The pavilion has a deconstructivist design and resembles a partially collapsed building.

The approximately 10,000-square-foot space displays a wide variety of items discovered during the cleanup after the attacks, such as a destroyed fire truck and metal pieces from all seven of the World Trade Center’s former buildings (including the last steel beam, made famous as a symbol, which was removed from the site in 2002).

Most moving of all are certainly the personal testimonies of the victims, such as their photographs, audio recordings of last phone calls made by people who were on the planes and in the World Trade Center towers, and video footage of the attacks and the collapses of the Twin Towers. The design of the museum is such that it evokes memories, but without awakening new consternation and grief in visitors. To what extent this succeeds with so many depressing exhibits, each visitor must judge for himself.

Website

911memorial.org

Opening hours

Opening hours Memorial:

Admission fees

Address

Getting there

By public transport:

Subway lines A, C, 1, 2 and 3: Stop Chambers St

Subway lines A, C, J, Z, 2, 3, 4 and 5: Stop Fulton St

Subway lines 2 and 3: Stop Park Place

Subway line E: Stop World Trade Center

Subway line R: Stop Rector St and Cortlandt St

Subway line 1: Stop Rector St

Mit dem Auto:

In the immediate vicinity of the National September 11 Memorial and Museum there are a number of parking garages.