Discover interesting facts about the 9/11 Memorial & Museum

Unlike most museums, the majority of this one is underground. There is an entrance ramp that will take you 70 feet to the bottom, opening into a massive empty hall, which was formerly a part of the North Tower. The intentional emptiness is meant to evoke a sense of absence and loss of the victims of the attack.

United Airlines Flight 93 was one of the 4 planes hijacked as part of the 9/11 attacks. Tragedy struck as the plane crashed into Somerset County, killing all 44 individuals on board including the hijackers. A memorial was constructed in honor of the victims on a field in Stoystown, Pennsylvania. Parts of the flight are preserved in the 9/11 Museum.

A commendable part of the museum is the ‘Reflecting on 9/11’ section of the gallery, where visitors can go into a video booth and record their memories of 9/11. Each person’s story is stored and eventually becomes a part of the museum’s oral history collection. Some of these are even used for media presentations, often shown to the public.

Before the museum was built, a large globe sculpture known as the Sphere or Sphere at Plaza Fountain was located between the twin towers. Sadly, it was damaged during the collapse of the World Trade Center and was eventually moved to Battery Park City nearby. It is the world’s largest monumental bronze sculpture designed by the German artist Fritz Koenig.

Visitors can now gain deeper insights into the tragedy through daily talks and discussions that take place at the museum. Every day at around noon, a staff member at the museum gives a detailed talk about one specific artifact. Additionally, at 4:00 PM every Tuesday, survivors or family members of victims, share their experiences with the public as a part of an initiative called “We Were There.”

Every Monday from 3:30 PM to 5:00 PM, the 9/11 Memorial & Museum is free to enter. Keep in mind that this happens on a first-come-first-served basis so you may end up waiting a while. You can also download a free audio guide in case you can’t physically make it to the museum. Other than this, a regular admission ticket costs $30 for adults.

One of the larger artifacts at the 9/11 Memorial & Museum is the fire truck from the FDNY Ladder Company 3. The truck was badly damaged on September 11th and is now on display at the museum. It was so large that it had to be lowered using a crane into the museum. It was also placed there as a tribute to the 12 firemen from the same company who died on the day of the attack.

The National September 11 Memorial and Museum are only two of many tributes to the victims of 9/11 throughout the country and the world. Steel from the collapse of the World Trade Center has been widely distributed to other memorial sites across the country by The Port Authority of New York and New Jersey.