King of Prussia Volunteer Fire Company 9/11 Memorial

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King of Prussia Volunteer Fire Company 9/11 Memorial
King of Prussia 9-11 Memorial.jpg
King of Prussia Volunteer Fire Company 9/11 Memorial
King of Prussia Volunteer Fire Company 9/11 Memorial
40°05′29″N75°23′00″W / 40.09125°N 75.38340°W / 40.09125; -75.38340
Location King of Prussia, Pennsylvania
DesignerCharles Edwin McDonald Jr.
MaterialBrick, concrete, granite, and stainless steel
Opening dateSeptember 11, 2011
Dedicated toVictims of the September 11 attacks

The King of Prussia Volunteer Fire Company 9/11 Memorial is a memorial in King of Prussia CDP, Pennsylvania, [1] that honors the lives lost in the September 11 attacks in 2001. The memorial is located adjacent to the King of Prussia Volunteer Fire Company station on Allendale Road across from the King of Prussia mall. The 9/11 Memorial consists of a monument, a gazebo, a patio, and an entrance path and stairs that commemorates the attacks on the World Trade Center and The Pentagon along with the crash of United Airlines Flight 93. Among the features of the memorial are two steel beams that came from the actual World Trade Center. The memorial was dedicated on the tenth anniversary of the attacks on September 11, 2011.

Contents

Location

The King of Prussia Volunteer Fire Company 9/11 Memorial is located in King of Prussia in Montgomery County, Pennsylvania, adjacent to the King of Prussia Volunteer Fire Company station on Allendale Road, across from the King of Prussia mall. The memorial is close to U.S. Route 202, Interstate 76, U.S. Route 422, and the Pennsylvania Turnpike. [2]

Description

The 9/11 Monument, featuring two steel beams from the World Trade Center King of Prussia 9-11 Memorial steel beams World Trade Center.jpg
The 9/11 Monument, featuring two steel beams from the World Trade Center

The King of Prussia Volunteer Fire Company 9/11 Memorial is the largest memorial commemorating the September 11 attacks in Montgomery County and consists of four features: the 9/11 Monument, the World Trade Center Patio, the William C. Daywalt Sr. Memorial Gazebo, and the Entrance Pathway and Stairs. [2] [3] The World Trade Center Patio shows the layout of the site of the World Trade Center in New York City, displaying the seven buildings, the central plaza, and the four streets that surround the site. The patio is accurately oriented north–south as it actually was and is in 1/52nd scale. The 9/11 Monument is designed to commemorate the four events that happened during the attacks. The concrete base and walkway around the monument is circular shaped to symbolize the circular hole that was left in the ground from the crash of United Airlines Flight 93 in Shanksville, Pennsylvania. Within the circular base is a pyramidal pentagon made of granite that symbolizes The Pentagon in Arlington, Virginia, and the crash of American Airlines Flight 77 into the building; the granite pentagon is in 1/104th scale. From the top of the pentagon rises two stainless steel tops representing the two towers of the World Trade Center, which are in 1/52nd scale. On top of the stainless steel tops sits two steel beams from the World Trade Center that were recovered from Ground Zero, oriented to represent the elevator cores in the two buildings. The steel beams are about 33 by 12 by 60 inches (84 cm × 30 cm × 152 cm) and weigh about 650 pounds (290 kg); the studs in the steel are 0.75 inches (1.9 cm) in diameter and 3 inches (7.6 cm) long with heads that are 1.25 inches (3.2 cm) in diameter. The circular base has a radius of 33 feet (10 m) and a circumference of 208 feet (63 m). The length of the circumference of the circle symbolizes the 1 square acre footprint of each tower of the World Trade Center, with a square acre being 208 feet (63 m) on each side. The circular base has an area of 3,430 square feet (319 m2), which dedicates 10 square feet (0.93 m2) for each of the 343 firefighters killed in the World Trade Center attack. The tops of the World Trade Center towers have 40 lights that represents the passengers and crew killed in the crash of United Airlines Flight 93, with 20 lights in each tower oriented in a circle. [3]

The World Trade Center Patio and the William C. Daywalt Sr. Memorial Gazebo King of Prussia 9-11 Memorial patio and gazebo.jpg
The World Trade Center Patio and the William C. Daywalt Sr. Memorial Gazebo

If one stands at the center of the World Trade Center Patio and looks directly at the center of the 9/11 Monument, the line of sight will show where American Airlines Flight 11 crashed into the far side of the North Tower of the World Trade Center and where United Airlines Flight 175 crashed into the near side of the South Tower of the World Trade Center. If one stands at the center of the William C. Daywalt Sr. Memorial Gazebo and looks directly at the center of the 9/11 Monument, the line of sight will show where American Airlines Flight 77 crashed into the far side of the Pentagon and also traces the flight bearing of United Airlines Flight 93 before it crashed in Shanksville, Pennsylvania. [3]

History

In April 2011, the King of Prussia Volunteer Fire Company received two pieces of steel from the World Trade Center to incorporate into the memorial. Construction of the 9/11 Memorial was originally planned to begin in July 2011, but was moved up a month after the death of Osama bin Laden on May 2, 2011. [4] The memorial was designed by Charles Edwin McDonald Jr. and was constructed by Joseph J. White Jr. [5] The 9/11 Memorial was dedicated by the King of Prussia Volunteer Fire Company on September 11, 2011, which marked the tenth anniversary of the attacks. The dedication ceremony was attended by the general public along with various local, state, and federal officials. [2] The ceremony featured the unveiling of a custom-made motorcycle from Orange County Choppers commemorating the 10th anniversary of the September 11 attacks. [6]

Every year, the King of Prussia Volunteer Fire Company hosts the 9/11 Memorial Run, a 5K run and 1 mile walk to remember the attacks and raise funds to support the memorial. [7]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">American Airlines Flight 77</span> Domestic passenger flight hijacked as part of September 11 attacks; crashed into the Pentagon

American Airlines Flight 77 was a scheduled domestic transcontinental passenger flight from Dulles International Airport in Northern Virginia to Los Angeles International Airport in California. The Boeing 757-223 aircraft serving the flight was hijacked by five al-Qaeda terrorists on the morning of September 11, 2001, as part of the September 11 attacks. The hijacked airliner was deliberately crashed into the Pentagon in Arlington County, Virginia, killing all 64 aboard and another 125 in the building.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Memorials and services for the September 11 attacks</span> List of September 11 attack memorials and services

The first memorials to the victims of the September 11 attacks in 2001 began to take shape online, as hundreds of webmasters posted their own thoughts, links to the Red Cross and other rescue agencies, photos, and eyewitness accounts. Numerous online September 11 memorials began appearing a few hours after the attacks, although many of these memorials were only temporary. Around the world, U.S. embassies and consulates became makeshift memorials as people came out to pay their respects.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">United Airlines Flight 175</span> 9/11 hijacked passenger flight

United Airlines Flight 175 was a domestic passenger flight from Logan International Airport in Boston to Los Angeles International Airport in California that was hijacked by five al-Qaeda terrorists on the morning of September 11, 2001, as part of the September 11 attacks. The aircraft involved, a Boeing 767-200 carrying 65 passengers and crew, was deliberately crashed into the South Tower of the World Trade Center in New York City, killing everyone aboard and causing the deaths of more than 600 people in the South Tower's upper levels in addition to an unknown number of civilians and emergency personnel on floors beneath the impact zone. Flight 175's hijacking not only led to it being the second-deadliest of the four suicide attacks carried out on the day in terms of plane and ground fatalities, but also secured its place as second-deadliest plane crash in aviation history, surpassed only by American Airlines Flight 11.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">United Airlines Flight 93</span> 9/11 hijacked passenger flight

United Airlines Flight 93 was a domestic scheduled passenger flight that was hijacked by four al-Qaeda terrorists on the morning of September 11, 2001, as part of the September 11 attacks. The hijackers planned to crash the plane into a federal government building in the national capital of Washington, D.C. The mission became a partial failure when the passengers fought back, forcing the terrorists to crash the plane in Somerset County, Pennsylvania, preventing them from reaching al-Qaeda's intended target, but killing everyone on-board the flight. The airliner involved, a Boeing 757-222 with 44 passengers and crew, was flying United Airlines' daily scheduled morning flight from Newark International Airport in New Jersey to San Francisco International Airport in California, making it the only plane hijacked that day not to be a Los Angeles-bound flight.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Shanksville, Pennsylvania</span> Borough in Pennsylvania, United States

Shanksville is a borough in Somerset County, Pennsylvania, United States. It has a population of 197 as of the 2020 U.S. census. It is part of the Somerset, Pennsylvania Micropolitan Statistical Area and is located 78 miles (126 km) southeast of Pittsburgh and 226 miles (364 km) west of Philadelphia.

The September 11 attacks of 2001, in addition to being a unique act of terrorism, constituted a media event on a scale not seen since the advent of civilian global satellite links. Instant worldwide reaction and debate were made possible by round-the-clock television news organizations and by the internet. As a result, most of the events listed below were known by a large portion of the world's population as they occurred.

This is a list of aviation-related events from 2001.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">9/11 conspiracy theories</span> Conspiracy theories regarding the September 11 attacks

There are various conspiracy theories that attribute the preparation and execution of the September 11 attacks against the United States to parties other than, or in addition to, al-Qaeda. These include the theory that high-level government officials had advance knowledge of the attacks. Government investigations and independent reviews have rejected these theories. Proponents of these theories assert that there are inconsistencies in the commonly accepted version, or that there exists evidence that was ignored, concealed, or overlooked.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Flight 93 National Memorial</span> 9/11 memorial in Shanksville, Pennsylvania

The Flight 93 National Memorial is a memorial built to commemorate the crash of United Airlines Flight 93, which was one of four aircraft hijacked during the September 11 attacks in 2001. The memorial is located in Somerset County, Pennsylvania, with the vast majority in Stonycreek Township, and with a small portion in Shade Township. It is 78 miles (126 km) southeast of Pittsburgh and 226 miles (364 km) west of Philadelphia.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Pentagon Memorial</span> Permanent memorial to victims of 9/11

The Pentagon Memorial, formally the National 9/11 Pentagon Memorial, located just southwest of the Pentagon in Arlington County, Virginia, across the Potomac River from Washington, D.C., is a permanent outdoor memorial to the 184 people who died as victims in the building and on American Airlines Flight 77 during the September 11 attacks.

Take Back The Memorial is an organization which advocates keeping the memorial site of the World Trade Center in New York City focused on the memory of the victims who died there in the attacks of September 11, 2001. In 2005, the group was part of a successful effort to cancel the International Freedom Center as part of the World Trade Center Memorial.

<i>Loose Change</i> 2005–2009 series of films by Dylan Avery

Loose Change is a series of films released between 2005 and 2009 that argue in favor of certain conspiracy theories relating to the September 11 attacks. The films were written and directed by Dylan Avery and produced by Korey Rowe, Jason Bermas, and Matthew Brown.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">September 11 attacks</span> 2001 Islamist terror attacks in the United States

The September 11 attacks, commonly known as 9/11, were four coordinated Islamist suicide terrorist attacks carried out by al-Qaeda against the United States in 2001. That morning, 19 terrorists hijacked four commercial airliners scheduled to travel from the New England and Mid-Atlantic regions of the East Coast to California. The hijackers crashed the first two planes into the Twin Towers of the World Trade Center in New York City, two of the world's five tallest buildings at the time, and aimed the next two flights toward targets in or near Washington, D.C., in an attack on the nation's capital. The third team succeeded in striking the Pentagon, the headquarters of the U.S. Department of Defense in Arlington County, Virginia, while the fourth plane went down in rural Pennsylvania during a passenger revolt. The attacks killed nearly 3,000 people and instigated the multi-decade global war on terror.

The following list contains dates beyond October 2001 involving the September 11 attacks.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">American Airlines Flight 11</span> Domestic passenger flight hijacked as part of September 11 attacks; crashed into North Tower of WTC

American Airlines Flight 11 was a domestic passenger flight that was hijacked by five al-Qaeda terrorists on the morning of September 11, 2001, as part of the September 11 attacks. The hijacked airliner was deliberately crashed into the North Tower of the World Trade Center complex in New York City, killing everyone aboard the flight and resulting in the deaths of more than one thousand people in the top 18 stories of the skyscraper in addition to causing the demise of numerous others below the trapped floors, making it not only the deadliest of the four suicide attacks executed that morning in terms of both plane and ground fatalities, but also the single deadliest act of terrorism in human history and the deadliest plane crash of all time. The aircraft involved, a Boeing 767-223ER with 92 passengers and crew, was flying American Airlines' daily scheduled morning transcontinental service from Logan International Airport in Boston to Los Angeles International Airport in California.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Shanksville Volunteer Fire Department</span> Pennslvania volunteer fire department

The Shanksville Volunteer Fire Department is a volunteer fire department in Shanksville, Pennsylvania. The department provides fire protection and emergency medical services to the boroughs of Shanksville and Indian Lake as well as to Stonycreek Township. The response area is approximately 62 square miles (160 km2) with an estimated 2,500 residents. Additionally the department is responsible for a 15-mile (24 km) stretch of the Pennsylvania Turnpike.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Casualties of the September 11 attacks</span> September 11 enumeration

The September 11 attacks of 2001 caused the deaths of 2,996 people, including 2,977 victims and 19 hijackers who committed murder–suicide. Thousands more were injured, and long-term health effects have arisen as a consequence of the attacks. New York City took the brunt of the death toll when the Twin Towers of the World Trade Center complex in Lower Manhattan were attacked, with an estimated 1,600 victims from the North Tower and around a thousand from the South Tower. Two hundred miles southwest in Arlington County, Virginia, another 125 were killed in the Pentagon. The remaining 265 fatalities included the ninety-two passengers and crew of American Airlines Flight 11, the sixty-five aboard United Airlines Flight 175, the sixty-four on American Airlines Flight 77 and the forty-four who boarded United Airlines Flight 93. The attack on the World Trade Center's North Tower single-handedly made 9/11 the deadliest act of terrorism in human history.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Korean Air Flight 085</span> Suspected hijacked flight on September 11, 2001

On September 11, 2001, Korean Air Flight 085 was en-route to Ted Stevens International Airport in Anchorage, Alaska, when information about the September 11 attacks was relayed to the crew. The pilot in command's ACARS message reply included the letters "HJK", a prompt interpreted as a distress signal indicating that the flight had been hijacked. When ordered to squawk 7500, the pilot complied, despite miscommunication that implied he would disregard the instruction.

The following outline is provided as an overview of and topical guide to the September 11 attacks and their consequences:

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Beverly Hills 9/11 Memorial Garden</span> Memorial in Beverly Hills, California

The Beverly Hills 9/11 Memorial Garden is a memorial space in honor of the victims of the September 11 attacks in Beverly Hills, California at the corner of North Rexford Drive and South Santa Monica Boulevard/Burton Way. Dedicated on September 11, 2011, exactly ten years after the attack, it is centered on a 30-foot bent steel beam salvaged from the wreckage of the World Trade Center. It was entirely funded by private donors. It forms part of the grounds of the Beverly Hills Fire Department.

References

  1. "2010 CENSUS - CENSUS BLOCK MAP: King of Prussia CDP, PA" (PDF). U.S. Census Bureau . Retrieved 2019-09-01.
  2. 1 2 3 "King of Prussia 9/11 Memorial". VisitPA.com. Retrieved February 1, 2017.
  3. 1 2 3 The KPVFC 9/11 Memorial brochure. King of Prussia Volunteer Fire Company.
  4. DeHuff, Jenny (May 5, 2011). "KOP firefighters move ahead with 9-11 memorial". King of Prussia Courier. Retrieved February 6, 2017.
  5. "9/11 Memorial". King of Prussia Volunteer Fire Company. Retrieved February 1, 2017.
  6. DeHuff, Jenny (September 10, 2011). "TEN YEARS LATER: Reality TV star to unveil 9/11 commemorative chopper". The Times Herald. Norristown, PA. Retrieved February 6, 2017.
  7. "9/11 Memorial Run". King of Prussia Volunteer Fire Company. Retrieved February 7, 2017.