World Trade Center
Made possible by:
George Pataki, NY State Governor
New York State Office of General Services
Port Authority of New York and New Jersey
New York State Department of Correctional Services
Office of the State Comptroller, New York
New York State Police
Division of Military and Naval Affairs
New York Army National Guard
New York City Fire Department
New York City Police Department
New York City Department of Sanitation at the Fresh Kills Landfill
New York City Office of Emergency Management
The New-York Historical Society
The Museum of the City of New York
The New Jersey Historical Society
The Smithsonian National Museum of American History
Phillips and Jordan Inc.
AmeriCare
The Salvation Army
Aon Corporation
Christina Steel Inc.
Gould Erectors
Iron Workers Local No. 12
One who was not present can only imagine the vision of the tragedy that occurred on September 11, 2001. It was a day like any other day, and then something hit, two planes crashed into the World Trade Center towers- the two most powerful commercial buildings in the City of New York. In just minutes, thousands of people lost their lives; and thousands of other lives changed for the worse. People were faced with ultimate fear and consequence that was not deserved. For over 1 year, firefighters and search and rescue teams dug through endless piles of debris to uncover the missing pieces, including the missing lives of many loved ones. Today on May 16, 2010 , 9 years later, I find myself walking through the World Trade Center exhibit at the New York State Museum.
The World Trade Center Exhibit focuses on the tragedy that occurred, and the consequences it had on the lives of the people, the city, and the country, surrounding it. It helps any individual understand the true pain that it caused so many. It also helps visitors visualize and understand the REAL amount of damage that was done in such little time. This exhibit to me, was more of a memorial and a "jaw-dropping" experience than a historical record. It focuses less on the history behind the particular reasons why the terrorist attack occurred or the historical significance of the attack, and more on its immediate impact, including people's reactions
While visiting the exhibit, I was thinking about why it is a memorial exhibit rather than a historical one. In my opinion, it is represented this way because the attack happened too recently. . I believe this is the case, because it may be too soon to really treat the personal suffering, the artifacts such as personal belongings that are recognizable would not be used in this exhibit. Along with artifacts, in terms of the historical understanding of the event it may just be too soon to create a correct historical analysis. The only reference that they use to mention terrorists were the covers of particular newspapers around the country. This was more to show the response of the United States as an entity rather than the terrorists themselves.
The artifacts that were chosen were less personal and were more focused on what was inside of the building. Over the years, generations will pass and more artifacts will be donated to be used for a more historical exhibit on the 9-11 attacks. The photos I have chosen are to help you understand what the exhibit entailed.
The land fill was the most important part of the aftermath, and was the reason for many things that were uncovered. The Fresh Kills Landfill was where they uncovered many artifacts including keys, subway turnstiles, aluminum signs, campaign pins, plaques, and ammunition that was stored in the building. The exhibit also shows the attire that the workers wore while searching through the rubble. This was to show the intensity of the bad fumes and the pollution that the rubble caused.
Along with the artifacts that were found, the exhibit contains several beams that were left from the buildings themselves. These give you an understanding of how large the building was and how much mass came tumbling down in so little time causing thousands of deaths.
Left and Right:
Beams from the structures themselves
Fire Truck from Engine 6 that was burned during the attack
Made possible by:
New York State Office of General Services
Port Authority of New York and New Jersey
New York State Department of Correctional Services
Office of the State Comptroller, New York
New York State Police
Division of Military and Naval Affairs
New York Army National Guard
New York City Fire Department
New York City Police Department
New York City Department of Sanitation at the Fresh Kills Landfill
New York City Office of Emergency Management
The New-York Historical Society
The Museum of the City of New York
The New Jersey Historical Society
The Smithsonian National Museum of American History
Phillips and Jordan Inc.
AmeriCare
The Salvation Army
Aon Corporation
Christina Steel Inc.
Gould Erectors
Iron Workers Local No. 12
One who was not present can only imagine the vision of the tragedy that occurred on September 11, 2001. It was a day like any other day, and then something hit, two planes crashed into the World Trade Center towers- the two most powerful commercial buildings in the City of New York. In just minutes, thousands of people lost their lives; and thousands of other lives changed for the worse. People were faced with ultimate fear and consequence that was not deserved. For over 1 year, firefighters and search and rescue teams dug through endless piles of debris to uncover the missing pieces, including the missing lives of many loved ones. Today on May 16, 2010 , 9 years later, I find myself walking through the World Trade Center exhibit at the New York State Museum.
The World Trade Center Exhibit focuses on the tragedy that occurred, and the consequences it had on the lives of the people, the city, and the country, surrounding it. It helps any individual understand the true pain that it caused so many. It also helps visitors visualize and understand the REAL amount of damage that was done in such little time. This exhibit to me, was more of a memorial and a "jaw-dropping" experience than a historical record. It focuses less on the history behind the particular reasons why the terrorist attack occurred or the historical significance of the attack, and more on its immediate impact, including people's reactions
While visiting the exhibit, I was thinking about why it is a memorial exhibit rather than a historical one. In my opinion, it is represented this way because the attack happened too recently. . I believe this is the case, because it may be too soon to really treat the personal suffering, the artifacts such as personal belongings that are recognizable would not be used in this exhibit. Along with artifacts, in terms of the historical understanding of the event it may just be too soon to create a correct historical analysis. The only reference that they use to mention terrorists were the covers of particular newspapers around the country. This was more to show the response of the United States as an entity rather than the terrorists themselves.
The artifacts that were chosen were less personal and were more focused on what was inside of the building. Over the years, generations will pass and more artifacts will be donated to be used for a more historical exhibit on the 9-11 attacks. The photos I have chosen are to help you understand what the exhibit entailed.
Parts from the Airplane Debris from the wing of one of the aircrafts
After the terrorist attack, the debris was moved to the Fresh Kills Landfill to be sorted through. This was to provide a clean atmosphere for what they now call, "ground zero." The landfill was searched through for over 300 days. Eventually, they stopped searching and made the final count of what was found in the rubble.
The land fill was the most important part of the aftermath, and was the reason for many things that were uncovered. The Fresh Kills Landfill was where they uncovered many artifacts including keys, subway turnstiles, aluminum signs, campaign pins, plaques, and ammunition that was stored in the building. The exhibit also shows the attire that the workers wore while searching through the rubble. This was to show the intensity of the bad fumes and the pollution that the rubble caused.
Along with the artifacts that were found, the exhibit contains several beams that were left from the buildings themselves. These give you an understanding of how large the building was and how much mass came tumbling down in so little time causing thousands of deaths.
Left and Right:
Beams from the structures themselves
Subway turnstile from the WTC
Portions of signs from the complex
Guns weapons that were stored in the WTC
Along with the artifacts and the videos of testimonies by one firefighter, there are also memorial artifacts that were made by people all over the country expressing their sadness, and their feeling of grief. Children wrote and drew their thoughts down on paper expressing their feelings about the tragedies.
The photos below are of artifacts that were in the memorial section of the exhibit at the end. There were cranes that people made in honor of people who died; the poster on the left is from Cleveland, and is signed by people showing their support for New York City.
This exhibit was moving and evoked a great amount of emotion. It brings the visitor face to face with terror and how such damage can happen so fast, and how many lives it can change. It may be years until the museum is able to exhibit this tragedy on a more historical basis. Right now it is purely to honor and commemorate the people that died and the people who were lucky enough to survive the terrible tragedy that shook the entire nation.
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