World Trade Center Site from Church Street with Steel Beams from the Twin Towers Resembling a Cross, New York City (Black and White)

I took this photo of the World Trade Center site from Church Street in October 2004. It was my first trip to New York City, and I saved the last day of my trip to visit the the huge hole in the ground that used to be the World Trade Center before that horrible and tragic day, September 11, 2001. I was tired and not in very good shape, but I had to walk the entire circumferenc of the WTC site, starting at Church Street, turning left at Versey Street, another left at West Street, and finally Liberty Street which took me back to Church Street. It was a long and tearful walk.

 

To the right in this photo are two steel beams found in the ruins of one of the Twin Towers, which construction workers let remain there at the site, because as you see, they were found under the rubble to resemble the Christian Cross.

 

MORE ABOUT THE STEEL CROSS

 

Following the attacks, a massive operation was launched to clear the site and attempt to find any survivors amongst the rubble. On September 13 one of the workers at the site, claimed by Frank Silecchia to be himself, discovered a 20-foot cross of two steel beams amongst the debris of 6 World Trade Center. Those with access to the site used the cross as a shrine of sorts, leaving messages on it or praying before it.

 

After a few weeks within the cleanup site the cross was an impediment to nearby work, so Silecchia and others working on the project received an expedited approval from the office of New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani to erect it on a pedestal on a portion of the former plaza on Church Street near Liberty. It was moved by crane on October 3 and installed on October 4, where it continued as a shrine and tourist attraction. The cross has remained during reconstruction, but in the 2004 and 2005 filings of its site plan, the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey indicated that "additional remnants" of the original World Trade Center might require removal and storage during construction of the World Trade Center Transportation Hub. St. Peter's Church, which faces the World Trade Center site, was proposed as a temporary spot for relocation during construction of the new PATH station and office tower at the site. The cross was eventually moved to St. Peter's on October 5, 2006. (Source: Wikipedia)

 

WORLD FINANCIAL CENTER

 

The two buildings in this photo are #3 (with the pyramid top) and #2 World Financial Center (with the dome top), two of the thirty tallest skyscrapers in New York City. They are located on West Street between Liberty Street and Vesey Street. #3 WFC on the right is the tallest of the four buildings in the World Financial Center complex.

 

Three World Financial Center was severely damaged by the falling debris when the World Trade Center towers collapsed on September 11, 2001. The building's southeast corner took heavy structural damage, though the effects were not enough to create a threat of collapse. The building had to be closed for repairs from September 11, 2001 until May 2002 as a result of damage sustained in the terrorist attacks. Two World Financial Center was aslo severely damaged by the falling debris when the towers collapsed and was also closed for repair until May 2002.

 

Source: Wikipedia

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