Tribute WTC Visitor Center

Courtesy of Curtis Quinn
Construction workers, iron workers, contractors, firefighters and police officers all take part in a ceremony which moved a steel beam recovered from the WTC into Tribute WTC Visitor Center.

Courtesy of Curtis Quinn
Construction under way for the Tribute WTC Visitor Center

More about the Building of the Tribute Center

Created from a former deli that is a part
of the recovery story

The Tribute Center is located in the former Liberty Deli at 120 Liberty Street, directly across from Ground Zero. In the aftermath of 9/11, the deli became a station where meals were served to rescuers often by celebrities who came to volunteer and give the tired workers a boost. Later, the deli became a distribution point for equipment like gloves, socks, respirators, eye drops and tools.

Building the project

The Tribute Center was conceived of in early 2003 by Jennifer Adams and Lee Ielpi of the September 11th Families' Association, "Until the WTC Memorial and Museum is built, visitors from around the world seek a place to pay tribute to the lives lost and to seek deeper understanding of September 11th." - Jen Adams

An advisory board and planning committees from the 9/11 community, (survivors, residents, recovery workers, volunteers and family members), were involved in every step to insure the authenticity of the content.

Multiple Points of View

From the start, Tribute aimed to present many diverse points of view in order to give visitors a sense of the broad impact of the tragedy. In addition to describing the terrible human toll, it was important to tell the story of residents displaced for months, businesses shut down and the extraordinarily powerful stories of people's resilience and the generosity of spirit that filled the city after 9/11.

The Stories

The telling of these stories began with the development of the Walking Tour program. Now, more than 150 volunteers, all from the 9/11 community, guide visitors around the site, each sharing his or her own unique experience. The stories told inside Tribute Center are also based on personal experiences. Exhibit film and text are based on over 300 oral histories collected over two years. All of the information is transmitted in first-person voice, by those who experienced 9/11.

The Photographs and Artifacts

Thousands of photographs were collected from professional photographers, neighborhood residents, recovery workers and families of victims, to create the feeling of a "family album". Artifacts were loaned by 9/11 community members and the New York State Museum.

Architecture and Design — BKSK Architects
Films — Monadnock Media, Inc.