9/11/01 - 9/11/11

Located across from the World Trade Center site, 7 World Trade Center had been destroyed by flying debris and uncontrollable fires after the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001. A new 52-story office tower designed by David Childs of SOM officially opened on May 23, 2006.

• World Trade Center Building 7 in 2001 After the Collapse
• The New World Trade Center Building 7 in 2006
• About 7 WTC

In June 2006, the Freedom Tower cornerstone was temporarily removed as excavators prepared the land for the footings to support the building. The process involved burying explosives as deep as 85 feet and then detonating the charges. The loose rock was excavated and lifted out by crane to expose the bedrock underneath. The use of explosives helped speed up the construction process and continued for two months. By November 2006, the construction crews were ready to pour some 400 cubic yards of concrete for the foundation.

• Rebuilding the WTC from the Ground Up

On December 19, 2006, several 30-foot, 25-ton steel beams were erected at Ground Zero, marking the first vertical construction of the planned Freedom Tower. Approximately 805 tons of steel were produced in Luxembourg to create the first 27 enormous beams for Freedom Tower. The public was invited to sign the beams before they were installed.

• First Steel Columns for the Freedom Tower Raised

After many revisions, World Trade Center officials unveiled final designs and construction plans for Tower 2, 3, and 4 by architects Norman Foster, Richard Rogers, and Fumihiko Maki. Located on Greenwich Street along the eastern edge of the World Trade Center site, the three planned towers were designed for environmental efficiency and optimum security.

• World Trade Center Tower 2
• World Trade Center Tower 3
• World Trade Center Tower 4

The Vesey Street stairway was an escape route for hundreds of people fleeing flames after the terrorist attack on September 11, 2001. After surviving the collapse of the towers, the stairs remained the only above-ground remnant of the World Trade Center. Many people felt that the stairs should be preserved as a testament to the survivors who used them. The "Survivors' Stairway" was placed on a bedrock foundation in July 2008. On December 11, 2008, the stairway was moved to its final location at the site of the September 11 Memorial Museum.

• Save the Survivors' Stairway
• World Trade Center Photo: 2008

A sagging economy diminished the need for office space. Construction progressed in fits and starts through 2009. Nevertheless, the new World Trade Center began to take shape. The concrete and steel core of 1 World Trade Center (Freedom Tower) rose, and Tower 4 was well underway. In August 2009, a final symbolic beam from the Ground Zero debris was returned to the World Trade Center site where it could become part of the Memorial Museum Pavilion. By the summer of 2010, all of the steel supports were installed and most of the concrete was poured. In August, the first of the planned 400 new trees were planted on the cobblestone plaza surrounding the two memorial pools.

• Plans for the National 9/11 Memorial Plaza

In September 2010, nearly nine years after the terrorist attacks in New York City, a 70-foot steel column from a destroyed World Trade Center building was returned to Ground Zero and installed on the site of the National 9/11 Memorial Museum.

• Plans for the 9/11 Museum Pavilion

Many people criticized plans to build a Muslim community center near Ground Zero, the site of the 2001 terrorist attacks. Supporters praised the plans, saying that the modernist building would serve a wide range of community needs. However, the proposed project was costly and it was uncertain whether developers would ever raise enough funds.

• Park51 Renderings Unveiled

For many Americans, the killing of lead terrorist Osama Bin Lauden brought a sense of closure, and progress at Ground Zero inspired new confidence in the future. When President Obama visited the site on May 5, 2011, Freedom Tower had risen more than halfway to its final height. Now known as One World Trade Center, the tower dominated the World Trade Center skyscape.

• World Trade Center Site After Osama Bin Laden's Death

Ten years after the terrorist attacks, New York put the finishing touches on the National 9/11 Memorial (Reflecting Absence). While other parts of the World Trade Center complex are still under construction, the completed memorial plaza and pools represent a promise of renewal. The National 9/11 Memorial opens for families of 9/11 victims on September 11, 2011 and for the public on September 12.

• The Making of the National 9/11 Memorial
• Tenth Anniversary Memorial Ceremony at the World Trade Center Site