A collection of artefacts, including glass remains from the World Trade Centre and fragments from the two planes that crashed into the twin towers, will go on display at 30 sites across the state later this month to commemorate the 10th anniversary of the 9/11 terror attacks.
Governor Mr Andrew Cuomo, the New York State Museum and the National September 11 Memorial & Museum had yesterday announced the locations for the 30 ‘New York Remembers’ exhibitions that will give “New Yorkers a place to remember the victims of September 11 and honour the countless heroes who came from all corners of the state to help in the clean-up and recovery efforts’’.
The exhibitions will feature never-before-seen historical artefacts from collections of the State Museum and National September 11 Memorial & Museum. Each location will open during the week of August 29 and continue until the end of September.
The artefacts will include the trailer used by families visiting Ground Zero that includes photographs and messages, damaged emergency vehicles, aluminium and glass from the buildings and airplane fragments including landing gear and engine parts.
“Every community across New York felt the impact of the senseless acts of terrorism that claimed thousands of lives just one decade ago,” Mr Cuomo said in a statement.
“These exhibitions will give New Yorkers in towns, villages and cities all across the State a gathering place to once again stand as one community to make sure we never forget those who lost their lives on September 11 and to embrace the spirit of unity that brought us together on that day of devastating tragedy.”
The exhibitions would be held in 30 locations including Buffalo, Syracuse, Hudson, Lake Placid, Rochester and Albany.
With more than 2,000 artefacts, the New York State Museum is the nation’s largest repository of objects recovered from the World Trade Centre site after September 11.
In the 10 months that followed the attacks, the FBI and New York Police Department recovered over 50,000 pieces of personal property including rescue artefacts and building pieces.
Forty-nine pieces, including fuselage, interior and engine parts of the two airplanes that crashed into the towers were transferred to the State Museum by the FBI.