A few years after 9/11, my son and I were visiting New York City and came upon this statue near 8th and 44th. we guessed it had been created to commemorate September 11 2001, but in fact the statue had been commissioned over a decade earlier for a firefighters' memorial in Missouri. By September 2001 it had been completed and, by coincidence, had arrived in New York on September 9th en route from Italy. Immediately after the events of the 11th, the Missouri firefighters and the manufacturer of the statue donated it to New York.
The statue moved last year to a permanent home on East 43rd Street, between Fifth and Madison. New York City now has a National September 11 Memorial, and a 9/11 Memorial Museum that will open along with other memorials at Ground Zero. But there is something uniquely moving about the sight of this single statue, just kneeling mutely in a street.
As the date rolls around to another September 11th, today's a great day to celebrate New York as a top destination and a wonderful place to visit with kids of every age. Photo © Teresa Plowright.
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