Recently, I had an opportunity to visit the new 9/11 Memorial Museum in
Lower Manhattan.
I would like to share these experiences with the WHS
Class of 1970.
First some background. I did not know anyone who died or suffered a
loss on 9/11.
At the same time, I remember VERY well how I felt
when everything took place almost 13 years ago. I was angry,
sad, and very emotional.
As a widower, I felt a very strong sense of loss for
those who lost someone close. In 2007, I met and dated someone who
happened to be in the North Tower the day the planes hit. She was on
the 40th floor and had little
difficulty getting out of the building. What made
all this tragic for her was that 9/11 happens to be her birthday. In addition,
her brother was an NYPD cop that day and went down to the WTC area to help in
the rescue effort and rescue his sister. Because of
this he still suffers from the effects of
exposure.
I
spent 5 hours in the museum yesterday. It was one
of the most incredible museum experiences I’ve ever had. The people
who helped put this museum together deserve a great deal of credit with how they
put exhibits together.
Many of these people are survivors or family members
of the victims of the terrorist attack. The museum
features large and small.
There is a large piece of the antenna that was on top
of the North Tower.
There are also vehicles that are present that were
damaged by the attack.
These vehicles were once part of the NYPD, the FDNY,
or the Port Authority.
There are also pieces of the structure of the two
towers. This includes beams from the buildings…bent out of shape when the planes
hit…and a slurry wall which was built when the towers were built in the
1970s. This wall was designed to keep water from the Hudson River from leaking
into the building.
Despite the heavy damage done to the buildings by the
attack, the wall held…and is still in existence.
And
then there was the small:
Items such as ID cards of victims, MANY, MANY
pictures of victims, jewelry from the victims that was recovered.
Momentos.
All of these items were difficult to view…but
important to view to get a good sense of what was lost on that day. There are
also recordings:
Recordings of the victims calling loved ones or
friends,
recordings of family members, and recordings of the
rescuers.
There were also exhibits that described the chronology of the events of
911/01. EVERYTHING is included here including what happened at the Trade Center,
how our leaders reacted to what happened, and the attacks at the Pentagon and on
United 93.
An
extensive museum…and a very emotional experience. Several
times, I found myself wanting to leave. Why?
Out of great sadness for the losses of that
day. At times it was difficult to view a lot of what was going on. And
renewal:
There are exhibits showing what has happened since
9/11 including what happened to the terrorists and also about the renewal of
what’s been called “Ground Zero”. We watched a short great movie about ground
zero and where it is today.
I
STRONGLY advise ANYONE in the NYC area or ANYWHERE that they visit this museum
when they can.
I consider the area to be hallowed
ground: Not much different then the USS Arizona in Hawaii, some Civil War
battlefield or Omaha Beach in Normandy France. These are
all areas where Americans died for their country and for our
freedom.
Steve Karger May 17, 2014
WHS
Thanks for your description of the museum, Steve. My friend's son died there at 22, just attending a conference held at Windows on the World. The only day we'd been to the towers and obviously the wrong one. I've since met a girl about the age whose father died there when she was a child. It seems to never go away but I look forward to going there myself. Nancey
ReplyDeleteExcellent article, although some relatives of victims had some objections as to what should be put above ground zero as well as complaining about having a gift shop which they claim "profits on the tragedy."
ReplyDelete