BGuthrie Photos: PA -- Shanksville -- Flight 93 National Memorial

PA -- Shanksville -- Flight 93 National Memorial:

Bruce Guthrie Photos Home Page: [Click here] to go to Bruce Guthrie Photos home page.

Recognize anyone? If you recognize specific folks (or other stuff) and I haven't labeled them, please identify them for the world. Click the little pencil icon

underneath the file name (just above the picture). Spammers need not apply.

Copyrights: All pictures were taken by amateur photographer Bruce Guthrie (me!) who retains copyright on them. Free for non-commercial use with attribution. See the [Creative Commons] definition of what this means. "Photos (c) Bruce Guthrie" is fine for attribution. (Commercial use folks including AI scrapers can of course contact me.) Feel free to use in publications and pages with attribution but you don't have permission to sell the photos themselves. A free copy of any printed publication using any photographs is requested. Descriptive text, if any, is from a mixture of sources, quite frequently from signs at the location or from official web sites; copyrights, if any, are retained by their original owners.

Accessing as Spider: The system has identified your IP as being a spider.
IP Address: 3.14.15.94 -- Domain: Amazon Technologies
I love well-behaved spiders! They are, in fact, how most people find my site. Unfortunately, my network has a limited bandwidth and pictures take up bandwidth. Spiders ask for lots and lots of pages and chew up lots and lots of bandwidth which slows things down considerably for regular folk. To counter this, you'll see all the text on the page but the images are being suppressed. Also, some system options like merges are being blocked for you.
Note: Permission is NOT granted for spiders, robots, etc to use the site for AI-generation purposes. I'm sure you're thrilled by your ability to make revenue from my work but there's nothing in that for my human users or for me.
If you are in fact human, please email me at guthrie.bruce@gmail.com and I can check if your designation was made in error. Given your number of hits, that's unlikely but what the hell.

Help? The Medium (Email) links are for screen viewing and emailing. You'll want bigger sizes for printing. [Click here for additional help]

[1] F93_130817_001_STITCH.JPG

[2] F93_130817_003_STITCH.JPG

[3]

F93_130817_004_STITCH.JPG

[4] F93_130817_010_STITCH.JPG

[5] F93_130817_013_STITCH.JPG

[6]

F93_130817_014_STITCH.JPG

[7] F93_130817_018_STITCH.JPG

[8] F93_130817_020_STITCH.JPG

[9]

F93_130817_022_STITCH.JPG

[10] F93_130817_026.JPG	[11] F93_130817_029.JPG	[12] F93_130817_039.JPG	[13] F93_130817_053.JPG	[14] F93_130817_057.JPG
[15] F93_130817_059.JPG	[16] F93_130817_062.JPG	[17] F93_130817_067.JPG	[18] F93_130817_070.JPG	[19] F93_130817_075.JPG
[20] F93_130817_083.JPG	[21] F93_130817_092.JPG	[22] F93_130817_104.JPG	[23] F93_130817_110.JPG	[24] F93_130817_115.JPG
[25] F93_130817_120.JPG	[26] F93_130817_126.JPG	[27] F93_130817_134.JPG	[28] F93_130817_136.JPG	[29] F93_130817_148.JPG
[30] F93_130817_154.JPG	[31] F93_130817_157.JPG	[32] F93_130817_161.JPG	[33] F93_130817_168.JPG	[34] F93_130817_171.JPG
[35] F93_130817_174.JPG	[36] F93_130817_176.JPG	[37] F93_130817_180.JPG	[38] F93_130817_188.JPG	[39] F93_130817_192.JPG
[40] F93_130817_195.JPG	[41] F93_130817_199.JPG	[42] F93_130817_203.JPG	[43] F93_130817_205.JPG	[44] F93_130817_207.JPG
[45] F93_130817_211.JPG	[46] F93_130817_214.JPG	[47] F93_130817_217.JPG	[48] F93_130817_219.JPG	[49] F93_130817_224.JPG
[50] F93_130817_228.JPG	[51] F93_130817_238.JPG	[52] F93_130817_255.JPG	[53] F93_130817_262.JPG	[54] F93_130817_265.JPG
[55] F93_130817_271.JPG	[56] F93_130817_273.JPG	[57] F93_130817_276.JPG	[58] F93_130817_279.JPG	[59] F93_130817_282.JPG
[60] F93_130817_285.JPG	[61] F93_130817_287.JPG	[62] F93_130817_295.JPG	[63] F93_130817_297.JPG	[64] F93_130817_311.JPG
[65] F93_130817_316.JPG	[66] F93_130817_320.JPG	[67] F93_130817_322.JPG	[68] F93_130817_324.JPG	[69] F93_130817_330.JPG
[70] F93_130817_332.JPG	[71] F93_130817_335.JPG	[72] F93_130817_343.JPG	[73] F93_130817_352.JPG	[74] F93_130817_353.JPG
[75] F93_130817_356.JPG	[76] F93_130817_363.JPG	[77] F93_130817_371.JPG	[78] F93_130817_375.JPG	[79] F93_130817_378.JPG
[80] F93_130817_384.JPG	[81] F93_130817_391.JPG	[82] F93_130817_400.JPG	[83] F93_130817_402.JPG	[84] F93_130817_405.JPG
[85] F93_130817_410.JPG	[86] F93_130817_412.JPG	[87] F93_130817_422.JPG	[88] F93_130817_425.JPG	[89] F93_130817_430.JPG
[90] F93_130817_433.JPG	[91] F93_130817_435.JPG	[92] F93_130817_442.JPG	[93] F93_130817_449.JPG	[94] F93_130817_452.JPG
[95] F93_130817_467.JPG	[96] F93_130817_490.JPG	[97] F93_130817_494.JPG	[98] F93_130817_503.JPG	[99] F93_130817_504.JPG
[100] F93_130817_515.JPG	[101] F93_130817_525.JPG	[102] F93_130817_528.JPG	[103] F93_130817_538.JPG	[104] F93_130817_549.JPG
[105] F93_130817_566.JPG	[106] F93_130817_569.JPG	[107] F93_130817_574.JPG	[108] F93_130817_596.JPG	[109] F93_130817_608.JPG
[110] F93_130817_626.JPG	[111] F93_130817_635.JPG

Specific picture descriptions: Photos above with "i" icons next to the bracketed sequence numbers (e.g. "[1] ") are described as follows:
1. F93_130817_004_STITCH.JPG: The mound in the middle of the photo was there during the crash. It was top soil from a surface mining operation that never got put back. Investigators took photos of the crater from atop the mound so it was incorporated in the memorial's design.
2. F93_130817_014_STITCH.JPG: When I had come in years past, you stood on the hill on the left to see the site. The hill on the right had mining equipment on top of it. The park service ended up buying the equipment and selling it for scrap.
3. F93_130817_022_STITCH.JPG: The crash site is to the left of the wall. The right side shows the hill you used to stand on. The new visitor center will go atop the hill to the right of the memorial.
4. F93_130817_029.JPG: September 11, 2001 The distant Laurel Mountains are outlined against a cloudless, blue sky. The weather is mild, but few people are outdoors. Many sit stunned and horrified in front of their televisions, watching the World Trade Center and the Pentagon burn. America is under attack. Terrorists are using hijacked planes as missiles to destroy symbols of power. People in this area feel safe, relieved to be far from any terrorist target. Shortly after 10:00am, a large aircraft just clears the mountain ridge before you, traveling far too slow. Its engines roar as it passes over the cluster of homes in Lambertsville in front of you, wings rocking from side to side. It flies nearly overhead and disappears over the rise behind you.
5. F93_130817_053.JPG: Visitor Shelter and Arrival Court: This area serves as a gateway to the story of Flight 93 and to the Memorial Plaza. Interpretive panels in the arrival court provide ways to explore the Flight 93 story. Within the Visitor Shelter is the Leave Your Message wall. Park Rangers and volunteers are present to answer questions and deliver programs. Memorial Plaza: The long sloping black wall marks the northern edge of the larger crash site and debris field. The field and woods beyond is the final resting place of the passengers and crew. Benches offer places of rest and contemplation. Visitors can leave tributes in small niches in the wall. Hemlock Grove and Impact Site: At the edge of the field is what remains of a hemlock grove damaged by the crash of Flight 93. A gap is visible where the damaged trees were removed. At the base of the grove is a boulder which marks the general location of the impact site. The FBI excavated the site and the crater was later filled in at the direction of the coroner. Wall of Names and Flight Path: The Wall of Names, forty inscribed white marble panels, honors the passengers and crew. Visitors are encouraged to explore the subtle details of the Wall of Names. The black granite walkway marks a portion of the flight path. At the wooden Ceremonial Gate, visitors can look down the flight path to the impact site.
6. F93_130817_067.JPG: America Attacked On the morning of September 11, 2001, al-Qaeda terrorists hijack four commercial U.S. airliners that are departing from East Coast airports. The terrorists fly two jet airliners into the World Trade Center's Twin Towers in New York City and a third aircraft into the Pentagon in Arlington, Virginia. A fourth aircraft, United Airlines Flight 93, crashes into an open field near rural Shanksville, Pennsylvania, killing all on board. The four aircraft strikes kill nearly 3,000 people, the deadliest attack on American soil by any foreign nation or terrorist group. Aboard Flight 93: Alerted to the events at the World Trade Center and the Pentagon, the forty unarmed passengers and crew of Flight 93 take quick and determined action. Their revolt prevents Flight 93 from reaching the terrorists' intended target. Evidence later reveals that the target is most likely the U.S. Capitol, where the Senate and House of Representatives are in session. Flight 93 crashes less than 20 minutes flying-time from Washington, D.C.
7. F93_130817_070.JPG: MAYDAY! The day begins with a cloudless, bright blue sky over the mid-Atlantic states. Seven crew members assigned to Flight 93 prepare for the early morning nonstop flight from Newark, New Jersey, to San Francisco, California. Thirty-three passengers are traveling for ordinary reasons. Four other passengers plan to hijack the aircraft. The terrorists began planning their attack as early as 1999. Still, some factors are beyond their control. Three of four hijacked planes depart on schedule; however, Flight 93 is delayed more than 25 minutes due to heavy morning traffic. America under Attack: Just four minutes after Flight 93 takes off, hijacked American Airlines Flight 11 strikes the North Tower of the World Trade Center in New York City. At 9:03 am, a second hijacked plane, a second hijacked plane, United Airlines Flight 175, hits the South Tower. After 46 minutes of routine flight, at about 9:28 am, the terrorists on board Flight 93 take over the cockpit. Air traffic controllers in Cleveland, Ohio, hear the pilot or first officer shouting, "Mayday! Get out of here!" The hijackers gain control and turn the aircraft on a course directed toward Washington, D.C. At 9:42 am the Federal Aviation Administration orders all aircraft across the nation to land at the nearest airport. An estimated 4,500 aircraft land without incident. This is the first time such and order is given in U.S. aviation history.
8. F93_130817_083.JPG: "We're going to do something!" Aboard Flight 93, one terrorist claims to have a bomb strapped to his waist. The crew and Passengers are forced to the back of the plane and ordered to be quiet. Using Airfones from the seat backs in the rear of the plane and cellphones, passengers and crew call their families, friends, and authorities to report the hijacking. They soon learn the shocking news that Flight 93 is part of a larger attack, including the news that a third plane, hijacked American Airlines Flight 77, crashed into the Pentagon at 9:37 am. This realization leads to a vote and a collective decision to fight back. Fighting Back: In little more than 30 minutes, these ordinary airline passengers and crew members, strangers to one another, develop a plan and put it into action. They rush forward from the back of the plane toward the hijackers and the cockpit. The cockpit voice recorder captures their struggle: shouts, screams, calls to action, and sounds of breaking glassware. As the passengers and crew attempt to regain control, a terrorist shouts, "Pull it down!" In the plane's final moments, it rolls upside down and at 10:03 am, plows into an empty field at a speed of 563 miles per hour. Upon impact, the 7,000 gallons of jet fuel on board explode, creating a ball of fire that rises high above the trees. People nearby report that, in the bright sunlight, the black cloud glitters with bits of metal debris.
9. F93_130817_092.JPG: The Crew and Passengers of Flight 93: Captain Jason M. Dahl: Littleton, CO First Officer LeRoy Homer: Marlton, NJ Lorraine G. Bay, Flight Attendant, East Windsor, NJ Sandra Waugh Bradshaw, Flight Attendant, Greensboro, NC Wanda Anita Green, Flight Attendant: Oakland CA/Linden, NJ CeeCee Ross Lyles, Flight Attendant: Fort Pierce, FL Deborah Jacobs Welsh, Flight Attendant: New York City, NY Christian Adams, Biebelsheim, Rheinland-Pfalz [Germany] Todd M. Beamer: Cranbury, NJ Alan Anthony Beaven: Oakland, CA Mark Bingham: San Francisco, CA Deora Frances Bodley: San Diego, CA Marion R. Britton: Brooklyn, NY William Joseph Cashman: West New York, NJ Georgine Rose Corrigan: Honolulu, HI Patricia Cushing: Bayonne, NJ Joseph DeLuca: Succasunna, NJ Patrick Joseph Driscoll: Manalapan, NJ Edward Porter Felt: Matawan, NJ Jane C. Folger: Bayonne, NJ Colleen L. Fraser; Elizabeth, NJ Andrew (Sonny) Garcia: Portola Valley, CA Jeremy Logan Glick: Hewitt, NJ Kristin Osterholm White Gould: New York City, NY Lauren Catuzzi Grandcolas: San Rafael, CA Donald Freeman Greene: Greenwich, CT Linda Gronlund: Greenwood Lake, NY Richard J. Guadagno: Eureka, CA/Trenton, NJ Toshiya Kuge: Osaka, Japan Hilda Marcin: Mount Olive, NJ Waleska Martinez: Jersey City, NJ Nicole Carol Miller: San Jose, CA Louis J. Nacke, II: New Hope, PA Donald Arthur Peterson: Spring Lake, NJ Jean Hoadley Peterson: Spring Lake, NJ Mark David Rothenberg: Scotch Plains, NJ Christine Ann Snyder: Kailua, HI John Talignani: Staten Island, NJ Honor Elizabeth Wainio: Baltimore, MD
10. F93_130817_104.JPG: The Investigation Minutes after the crash, first responders arrive on the scene, along with the Pennsylvania State Police. The September 11 attacks generate the largest investigation in FBI history. The primary goal of the investigation is to recover sufficient evidence to learn who committed the crime, how it was carried out, who financed the operation, and what might happen next. Clues from Flight 93: Investigators quickly realize that of the four crash sites, the Shanksville location will likely yield the most evidence in the least amount of time. Because Flight 93 crashes in an open field, parts of the plane – including the "black boxes," personal effects, and human remains – can be recovered here more easily. Enough remains are recovered to positively identify everyone on board the plane. Evidence recovered includes knives, passports belonging to the terrorists, and handwritten documents in Arabic describing the terrorists' plans for the attack. Excavation of the crater reaches a depth of 40 feet where aircraft debris is no longer found. On September 24, 2001, the FBI closes its field investigation and the Somerset County Coroner later fills the crater and restores the scene to its condition before September 11.
11. F93_130817_110.JPG: Since September 11th The attacks on September 11, 2001, terrorists target prominent symbols of the United States to create fear and a feeling of vulnerability in the American people. News of the attacks is met with disbelief, sorrow, and anger, followed quickly by a renewed since of unity and patriotism that sweeps across the country. American servicemen and women deploy to Afghanistan and throughout the Middle East and along with U.S. intelligence personnel, hunt the terrorists of al-Qaeda. Though Osama bin Laden, the founder of al-Qaeda is killed in 2011, the fight against the terrorists continues. The Flight 93 Memorial: In towns throughout the country, daily routines return, but indelible memories of that day and those lost remain. Memorials are constructed at the site of the World Trade Center and the Pentagon and in cities and small towns across the nation. Here in Shanksville, people from across the United States join together to create a national memorial – a permanent tribute to the extraordinary courage of forty ordinary people. The serene fields, wooded groves and rolling hills that bore witness to such violence are now a lasting testament to the courage of the passengers and crew of Flight 93. Follow this walkway to their final resting place.
12. F93_130817_120.JPG: Cultivating a Living Memorial: Part of the architect's vision for the memorial is that it will be a place of renewal. Reclaiming the land after decades of surface mining has left much of it in open grassland. Today, multiple projects are underway to again introduce trees to this landscape and create living memorial elements. Memorial Groves -- The 40 Memorial Groves, one of the formal elements of the memorial, now line the inner side of the Ring Road. The grove consist of seven species of native Pennsylvania trees: Red Oak, White Oak, Black Oak, Scarlet Oak, Chestnut Oak, Black Gum, and Sugar Maple. Reforestation -- A long-range project to reforest large swaths of the memorial landscape located above the Ring Road. These new woodlands will create new wildlife habitats and serve as a windbreak for the Memorial Groves. * 2012 -- 13,000 seedlings on 20 acres * 2013 -- 15,000 seedlings on 23 acres * 2014 -- 19,500 seedlings on 30 acres Approach Road -- Along the winding Approach Road, from the entrance to the Memorial Plaza, there is a large variety of trees and bushes planted in 2012. These new woodlands will also provide cover for wildlife. The Approach Road experience is also part of the architect's vision for an entire memorial landscape.
13. F93_130817_126.JPG: A Memorial Landscape: Much of the landscape of Flight 93 National Memorial is unchanged from its appearance on September 11, 2001 when hijacked Flight 93 passed over these fields. These 2,200 acres of rural Pennsylvania, now protected by the National Park Service, bear scars of past coal mining, offer vistas of the distant mountain ranges, and are home to many species of birds and other wildlife. But through plantings and carefully planned, but simple construction, the land itself is being transformed into a memorial to the passengers and crew of Flight 93. Completion of the Visitor Center Complex is anticipated for 2015. The memorial offers space for reflection, learning, and healing.
14. F93_130817_228.JPG: The boulder wasn't part of the original design. But so many people kept asking where the crash had actually been that the park service consulted with families and they agreed that a large rock from the property would be a good idea. Notice the stones placed on top. Family members are allowed to visit it through a side gate at any time but no one else is. And on 9/11, the main hemlock gates are opened and the families visit that way.
15. F93_130817_262.JPG: Todd Beamer From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Todd Morgan Beamer (November 24, 1968 – September 11, 2001) was a passenger aboard United Airlines Flight 93 which was hijacked as part of the September 11 attacks in 2001. He was one of the passengers who attempted to foil the hijacking and reclaim the aircraft, which crashed into a field near Shanksville, Pennsylvania. ... Flight 93: After United Airlines Flight 93 was hijacked, Beamer and other passengers communicated with people on the ground via airphones and cell phones, and learned that the World Trade Center and the Pentagon had been attacked using hijacked airplanes. Beamer tried to place a credit card call through a phone located on the back of a plane seat but was routed to a customer-service representative instead, who passed him on to GTE supervisor Lisa Jefferson. Beamer reported that one passenger was killed and, later, that a flight attendant had told him the pilot and co-pilot had been forced from the cockpit and may have been wounded. He was also on the phone when the plane made its turn in a southeasterly direction, a move that had him briefly panicking. According to accounts of cell phone conversations, Beamer, along with Mark Bingham, Tom Burnett and Jeremy Glick formed a plan to take the plane back from the hijackers, and led other passengers in this effort. Later, he told the operator that some of the plane's passengers were planning to "jump on" the hijackers and fly the plane into the ground before the hijackers' plan could be followed through. Beamer also recited 23rd Psalm with Jefferson. According to Jefferson, Beamer's last audible words were "Are you guys ready? Okay, let's roll."
16. F93_130817_265.JPG: Note the words "Flight Attendant" below the name. For some reason, the crew of the plane are identified as such on the memorial. The other names are not identified by job at all.
17. F93_130817_273.JPG: Note the "and unborn child" next to the name. That text doesn't have the black fill-in -- people are encourage to interact with the memorial by touching it which is why the marble is stained here.
18. F93_130817_279.JPG: This is the path that family members use to walk out to the memorial any time they want to. The solid hemlock gates are only open to them on the anniversary itself.
19. F93_130817_285.JPG: It was time for a return visit to the Flight 93 memorial near Shanksville Pennsylvania. I hadn't been back since 2007, well before the memorial started going up. Quite a different experience this time!
20. F93_130817_295.JPG: The farmhouse was here during the crash. It's now on park property but it's not open to the public. There were also four hunting shacks near the site of the crash, one of which had its windows and doors blown in by the crash.
21. F93_130817_297.JPG: The wall indicates the flight path of the plane as it came in
22. F93_130817_335.JPG: Note the memory rocks placed on the border
23. F93_130817_378.JPG: The vertical lines are supposed to be emblematic of the hemlock trees that stood by the crash. About 100 were destroyed by the crash. The angular lines represent tree branches. This part of the memorial is in concrete.
24. F93_130817_410.JPG: The hemlock trees
25. F93_130817_422.JPG: Mark Bingham From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Mark Kendall Bingham (May 22, 1970 – September 11, 2001) was an American public relations executive who founded his own company, the Bingham Group. During the September 11 attacks in 2001 he was a passenger on board United Airlines Flight 93. Bingham is believed to have been one of the passengers who, along with Todd Beamer, Tom Burnett and Jeremy Glick, formed the plan to overtake the plane from the hijackers, and led the effort that resulted in the crash of the plane into a field near Shanksville, and all of the passengers' deaths. Both for his heroic actions on United 93, as well as his athletic physique and masculine lifestyle, Bingham has been widely honored posthumously for having "smashed the gay stereotype mold and really opened the door to many others that came after him." On September 11, 2001: On the morning of September 11, Bingham overslept and nearly missed the flight, on his way to San Francisco to be an usher in his fraternity brother Joseph Salama's wedding. He arrived at the Terminal A at 7:40am, ran to Gate 17, and was the last passenger to board, taking seat 4D, next to passenger Tom Burnett. During the hijacking, he phoned his mother, reporting that his plane had been hijacked and relaying his love for her. Bingham was survived by his parents, stepmother and his boyfriend of six years, Paul Holm, who said that Bingham had risked his life to protect the lives of others before 9/11. He had twice successfully protected Holm from attempted muggings, one at gunpoint. Holm described Bingham as a brave, competitive man, saying, "He hated to lose -- at anything."He was known to proudly display a scar he received after being gored at the Running of the Bulls in Pamplona, Spain.
26. F93_130817_425.JPG: Again, the crew of the plane are identified as such. The flight captain and first officer are the only names that have their titles in black.
27. F93_130817_433.JPG: Note the Asian characters below his name. He was a Japanese passenger and that was his name in Kanji.
28. F93_130817_515.JPG: There are 40 facets in the large hemlock gates, one for each of the people on the plane (excluding the terrorists who aren't included in any of the counts).
29. F93_130817_525.JPG: The monument wall is located where the fencing was during the crime scene investigation so it offers a reminder of that.
30. F93_130817_574.JPG: They're planting a lot of trees around the loop of the memorial drive
31. F93_130817_596.JPG: A Common Field: This land is first settled in the late 1700s. For a century and half, much of the area remains wooded, with cultivated fields and pastures surrounding a few scattered farmhouses and barns. Beginning in the 1950s, mining reshapes the landscape. Huge machines scrape away layers of soil and rock to reveal long, black seams of coal. Enormous trucks travel this road, hauling away coal to steel mills and power plants. Coal mining brings people and jobs. In the mid-1990s, surfacing mining if these lands ends. Although unused mining equipment and industrial buildings litter the area, the rocky land is being reclaimed. Coarse grasses and small trees are planted, mine water is treated to improve its quality, and wildlife is returning. A Field of Honor: On September 11, 2001, the land is transformed again by the actions of the passengers and crew of United Airlines Flight 93. Because of their struggle with terrorists, the airplane crashes just two miles ahead and not as the terrorists' intended target in Washington, DC. At the site of the crash, a memorial and verdant trees, grasses, and wildflowers embrace this land. Millions of people from around the world come to pay their respects.
32. F93_130817_608.JPG: Flight 93 National Memorial: A common field one day, a field of honor forever. September 11, 2001 10:03am: United Airlines Flight 93 crashes into a field two miles ahead of you, shattering the quiet of the Pennsylvania countryside. Those who rush to the scene look on in disbelief at charred trees and a smoldering crater. This community, like countless others across the nation, is shaken by the crash and the unimaginable violence and destruction al-Queda terrorists bring to the World Trade Center and the Pentagon. But as the day unfolds, this ordinary field reveals a compelling story of courage and hope. This memorial is a tribute to the passengers and crew of Flight 93 and a place to explore this inspiring story. You will journey through a landscape that still hints at its mining past, on your way to a simple field that is their final resting place, and a lasting testament to the deeds of 40 extraordinary people.
33. F93_130817_626.JPG: This is located outside of the park. Maybe I'm totally off-base but it sounded like they were encouraging people to do suicide bombings of abortion clinics. I had thought that the message of 9/11 was that religious extremism is bad for everyone but I guess that lesson wasn't shared by everyone.
Wikipedia Description: Flight 93 National Memorial
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Flight 93 National Memorial protects the site of the crash of United Airlines Flight 93, which was hijacked in the September 11, 2001 attacks, in Stonycreek Township, Pennsylvania, about 2 miles north of Shanksville, Pennsylvania and 60 miles southeast of Pittsburgh. A temporary memorial to the 40 victims was established soon after the crash, with a permanent memorial slated to be constructed and completed by 2011. The current design for the memorial is a modified version of the entry Crescent of Embrace by Paul and Milena Murdoch.

The jetliner crashed west of Skyline Road, about 2.5 miles south of U.S. Route 30 (Lincoln Highway), 1.5 miles west of Indian Lake, and about 2 miles north of Shanksville.

Temporary memorial"

The site of the crash is closed to the public except for victims' family members. The temporary memorial is located on a hilltop 500 yards from the crash site. It consists of a 40-foot (to commemorate the 40 passengers) chain-link fence on which visitors can leave flags, hats, rosaries, and other items. Next to the fence are several memorials such as a bronze plaque of names, flags, and a large cross. There is also a guardrail on which visitors may leave messages. There is a small building with a guestbook. The building is staffed by Park Service volunteers, called ambassadors, who answer questions.

Permanent memorial:

Of the four aircraft hijacked on September 11, Flight 93 is the only one that did not reach its intended target, presumed to be the United States Capitol in Washington, D.C.. The passengers had learned about the attacks on the World Trade Center through cellular telephone calls to family. It is believed that at least flight attendants Cee Cee Lyles and Sandra Bradshaw and passengers Todd Beamer, Mark Bingham, Tom Burnett, Andrew Garcia, Jeremy Glick, and Richard Guadagno (and perhaps others) fought the hijackers. The plane crashed into the Pennsylvania field shortly after 10 a.m., killing all on board, but no one on the ground.

On March 7, 2002, Congressman John Murtha (PA-12) introduced a bill in the United States House of Representatives to establish a National Memorial to be developed by a commission, and ultimately administered by the National Park Service. On April 16, 2002, Senator Arlen Specter (PA) introduced a version of the "Flight 93 National Memorial Act" in the Senate. On September 10, 2002 the bill passed both houses of Congress. The final bill specifically excluded the four hijackers from the passengers to be memorialized. When signed by President George W. Bush on September 24, 2002, it became Public Law No. 107-226, and the site was listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

By Sept. 2005, the commission was required to send to the Secretary of the Interior and Congress recommendations for the planning, design, construction, and long-term management of a permanent memorial. The proposed boundaries of the National Memorial extend from Lambertsville Road to U.S. Highway 30. It will be about 2,200 acres, of which about 1,200 will be privately held, but protected through partnership agreements.

Design competition:

Initial design selection:

The commission decided to select the final design for the memorial through a multi-stage design competition funded by grants from the Heinz Foundations and the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation. The competition began on September 11, 2004. More than 1,000 entries were submitted. In February 2005, five finalists were selected for further development and consideration. The 15-member final jury included family members, design and art professionals, and community and national leaders. After three days of review and debate, they announced the winner on September 7, 2005: Crescent of Embrace by a design team led by Paul and Milena Murdoch of Los Angeles.

The design featured a "Tower of Voices," containing 40 wind chimes — one for each passenger and crew member who died. Two stands of red maple trees would line a walkway following the natural bowl shape of the land. Forty groves of red and sugar maples and eastern white oak trees were to be planted behind the crescent. A black slate wall would mark the edge of the crash site, where the victims are buried.

Controversy:

This design drew criticism because it was entitled "Crescent Embrace". The crescent is a symbol of Islam, and the terrorists who hijacked the aircraft were Muslim and conducted the attacks in the name of Islam.

Jury member Tom Burnett Sr., whose son (Tom Burnett) died in the crash, said he made an impassioned speech to his fellow jurors about what he felt the crescent represented. "I explained this goes back centuries as an old-time Islamic symbol," Burnett said. "I told them we'd be a laughing stock if we did this." Representative Tom Tancredo of Colorado has opposed the design's shape "because of the crescent's prominent use as a symbol in Islam."

Mike Rosen of the Rocky Mountain News wrote: "On the anniversaries of 9/11, it's not hard to visualize al-Qaeda celebrating the crescent of maple trees, turning red in the fall, "embracing" the Flight 93 crash site. To them, it would be a memorial to their fallen martyrs. Why invite that? Just come up with a different design that eliminates the double meaning and the dispute."

The design's crescent is also oriented toward Mecca. One blogger conceded that it may have been a coincidence, but said, "But what a coincidence! Memorials are symbols above all and it may be inappropriate to commemorate Flight 93 with a Red Crescent facing Mecca."

The architect asserts that this is coincidental and that there was no intent to refer to Muslim symbols. Several victims' families agreed, including the family of Ed Felt.

The Council on American-Islamic Relations has denounced criticism as Islamophobic.

Others criticized the design as too non-representational. "We don't need giant statues of the guys ramming the drink cart into the door. But pedantic though such a monument might be, future generations would infer the plot. All you get from a Crescent of Embrace is a sorrowful sigh of all-encompassing grief and absolution, as if the lives of all who died on that spot were equal in tragedy. They were not," wrote James Lileks, a journalist and architectural commentator.

Design modifications:

In response to criticism, the designer has agreed to modify the plan. The architect believes that the central elements can be maintained to satisfy criticism. "It's a disappointment there is a misinterpretation and a simplistic distortion of this, but if that is a public concern, then that is something we will look to resolve in a way that keeps the essential qualities," Murdoch, 48, said in a telephone interview to the Associated Press.

The redesigned memorial has the plain shape of a circle (as opposed to a crescent) bisected by the flight's trajectory. "The circle enhances the earlier design by putting more emphasis on the crash site, officials said in the newsletter. A break in the trees will symbolize the path the plane took as it crashed." There is criticism that the redesign does not address any of the issues with the original design.

Construction:

The cost of the permanent memorial is estimated at $57 million, and will be covered by $30 million in private donations, plus federal and state funds. The permanent memorial is planned to be dedicated on September 11, 2011. As of April 2007, only $11 million had been raised, falling short of the fundraising goal.
Bigger photos? To save server space, the full-sized versions of these images have either not been loaded to the server or have been removed from the server. (Only some pages are loaded with full-sized images and those usually get removed after three months.) I still have them though. If you want me to email them to you, please send an email to guthrie.bruce@gmail.com and I can email them to you, or, depending on the number of images, just repost the page again will the full-sized images.
Connection Not Secure messages? Those warnings you get from your browser about this site not having secure connections worry some people. This means this site does not have SSL installed (the link is http:, not https:). That's bad if you're entering credit card numbers, passwords, or other personal information. But this site doesn't collect any personal information so SSL is not necessary. Life's good!
Photo Contact: [Email Bruce Guthrie].