New on View: Soccer Jersey belonging to FDNY firefighter lost on 9/11

New on View: Soccer Jersey belonging to FDNY firefighter lost on 9/11

FDNY firefighter Sergio Villanueva smiles in an old photo. A separate image shows a soccer jersey owned by Villanueva on display on a gray surface at the Museum.
Home jersey for Argentina's national soccer team that belonged to firefighter Sergio Villanueva. Gift of the Villanueva family, in loving memory of Sergio Gabriel Villanueva.

The afternoon of Sept. 9, 2001, with minutes left in the match, FDNY Soccer Club Player Sergio Villanueva charged down the field and shot the ball past the goalie, winning the game 1-0. Villanueva, an Argentinian native, loved soccer. It would be the last game he would play.   

Two days later he would respond to the World Trade Center with his firehouse Ladder 132 and would be one of the 343 firefighters lost on 9/11.

Recently, the 9/11 Memorial Museum placed Villanueva’s jersey for Argentina’s national soccer team on view in the museum’s memorial exhibition. The jersey was donated by his fiancée, Tanya Villanueva Tepper. Describing her finance’s passion for soccer she said, “He was an absolute madman. He just loved it. Loved watching. Loved playing.”

Villanueva Tepper remembers that on the days that the Argentina national soccer team would play, Sergio wore the jersey and she would have to put on a hat adorned with dangling bells. When the team scored, they ran around their Queens apartment screaming “goal!”

In addition to playing for the FDNY Soccer Club, he often organized pick-up games in Flushing Meadows Park, and played at Chelsea Piers.

After his death the FDNY team retired his No. 10 jersey. Villanueva’s friends, retired NYPD Det. Jonathan Kanovsky and FDNY Soccer Club Coach Joe Bossi, and his family created the Firefighter Sergio Villanueva Soccer Foundation. The organization emphasizes community service and promoting international goodwill through soccer. Since it’s 2001 founding, it has awarded more $150,000 in scholarships to young players.

By Jenny Pachucki, 9/11 Memorial Content Strategist 

Final Large Ground Zero Artifacts Moved from JFK Hangar

Final Large Ground Zero Artifacts Moved from JFK Hangar

Frank Siller, chairman and CEO of the Stephen Siller Tunnel to Towers Foundation addresses a crowd during a ceremony marking the removal of the final 9/11 artifacts from a Hangar 17 at John F. Kennedy International Airport.
Frank Siller, chairman and CEO of the Stephen Siller Tunnel to Towers Foundation addressing a crowd during the ceremony at JFK. Photo Credit: Port Authority of New York & New Jersey.

The three largest remaining 9/11 artifacts stored at Kennedy International Airport’s Hangar 17 have been ceremoniously removed and sent to an advocacy group for a future exhibition, the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey said Wednesday.

For nearly fifteen years, Hangar 17 served as the repository for more than 2,500 artifacts collected from ground zero and is set to close at the end of the summer. Many artifacts from Hangar 17 are on display at the 9/11 Memorial Museum, including the steel tridents from the North Tower and the FDNY Ladder Company 3 firetruck.

The last three major artifacts removed Tuesday during a solemn ceremony included a 40,000-pound parking structure column, a 35,000-pound elevator motor and a 40,000-pound antenna connector. They were placed on flatbed trucks adorned with American flags and transported to the Stephen Siller Tunnel to Towers Foundation, which says they will be stored for future exhibition.

The Tunnel to Towers Foundation was established by foundation chairman and CEO Frank Siller in honor of his brother Stephen Siller, a firefighter who died on Sept. 11.

“It’s important for our country not to forget what happened on that day and we have taken on that responsibility,” Siller said during the emotional service. “These [are] sacred, sacred artifacts, and that’s how we will treat them.”

The hangar will close in the coming weeks and is expected to be demolished, Port officials said.

 By 9/11 Memorial Staff

JFK Hangar Which Housed 9/11 Relics to Close

JFK Hangar Which Housed 9/11 Relics to Close

A view inside Hangar 17 at John F. Kennedy International Airport shows damaged FDNY fire trucks and other relics from the 9/11 attacks.
Over 2,500 9/11 artifacts were housed in Hangar 17 at JFK Airport. Photo by Amy Dreher.

From the mangled first responder’s emergency vehicles to shafts of broken metal, some 2,500 relics from 9/11 have been held in Hangar 17 at John F Kennedy International Airport.

Now, Hangar 17 is slated to close permanently at the end of the summer once the last of the final few relics--including concrete sections from the parking garage, a mangled elevator motor and a section of the North Tower antenna--are cleared out.

The artifacts that were once housed there have been adopted and put on display by more than 1,400 groups and foundations both within the United States and internationally, according to a recent LA Times article.

“Because it was such a unifying event, I think that a lot of smaller towns, emergency services and schools really want to create a continuing knowledge about what happened and find a way of connecting it to US history,” Amy Passiak, the archivist supervising the dissemination project.

For Passiak, who has served on the project since 2010, the goal has been to keep the memory of 9/11 alive. Photographs of some of the artifacts in Hangar 17 are featured in the book Memory Remains: 9/11 Artifacts at Hangar 17 by Spanish installation artist Francesc Torres.

Items previously housed in the hangar include the steel tridents from the façade of the North Tower and a mangled fire truck crushed from the fall of rubble on 9/11. Today, both are on display in the 9/11 Memorial Museum.

By Madeline Lipton, 9/11 Memorial Communications Intern

New Acquisition: Frank Dammers Painting

New Acquisition: Frank Dammers Painting

The painting “Freedom New York” by artist Frank Dammers is seen mounted on a wall. The painting depicts lower Manhattan, including Pier 17, the Brooklyn Bridge and One World Trade Center.
Freedom New York by Frank Dammers. Gift of Frank Dammers Fine Art Foundation.

The 9/11 Memorial Museum has recently acquired a Frank Dammers painting titled “Freedom New York.” Created in 2005, it evokes the New York City skyline as seen from across the East River in Brooklyn, with the new World Trade Center complex depicted before its actual construction had begun.

“The Museum collection has been enriched by the recent gift of ‘Freedom New York.’ When Frank Dammers initiated this painting, ground zero was still a depressing, colorless cavity in lower Manhattan,” 9/11 Memorial Museum Chief Curator Jan Ramirez said.  “But Dammers vaulted over that somber mood by daring to envision the return of an enlivened downtown, with a stunning, restored skyline.”

The painting celebrates the city's resilience and embraces a vision of the city risen in defiance of the 2001 terrorist attacks.    

Dammers began painting in response to a series of life altering traumatic events. the artist began to explore the theme of 9/11 in his artwork in 2004 after he met a group of 9/11 survivors, and a first responder who lost some of his colleagues while on vacation. He identified with the emotional struggle that comes with rebuilding one’s life after a traumatic experience and became inspired to explore these deeply personal feelings through his art, with a positive emphasis on the attainability of overcoming hardship. 

Dammers style is reminiscent of Piet Mondrian and Paul Klee in its geometric abstraction and bold palette. “He organizes his areas of color to the point that they form an image that is as true to the strictures of actual perception as to the unbridled imagination of the artist and his fervor for viewing reality in a positive and constructive manner,” Dutch art critic Wim van der Beek said on Dammer’s website.

By 9/11 Memorial Staff

New on View: Artifacts Tell Stories of 9/11 Victims

New on View: Artifacts Tell Stories of 9/11 Victims

Three people install artifacts during off-hours at the 9/11 Memorial Museum. A wall featuring images of victims of the attacks towers over two women to the left.
An artifact installation takes place during off hours at the 9/11 Memorial Museum. Photo by Jin Lee.

A new rotation of artifacts on view in the 9/11 Memorial Museum illustrate the lives of some of those killed on Sept. 11. The personal belongings and items provide a window into the interests and experiences of each individual they represent.

Gift of Gloria CalderónA native of Puerto Rico, U.S. Army Sgt. 1st Class Jose Calderon-Olmedo was working as a supply sergeant at the Pentagon on Sept. 11. Throughout his 19 years of service in the Army, he was stationed around the world, including tours in Germany, South Korea, and in the Persian Gulf during Operation Desert Storm in 1991. Commemorating his connection to both Puerto Rico and the United States, Calderon-Olmedo’s bandana and cap are now on view in the memorial exhibition.Gift of the Chowdhury family in memory of Shakila Yasmin & Nurul Miah

Shakila Yasmin loved the songs of poet Rabindranath Tagore, a Nobel laureate from her native Bangladesh. She transcribed his lyrics in Bengali in her journal, which is now on view. A song by Tagore appears on the left-hand page, while at right is one by Indian singer Manna Dey. Both Yasmin and her husband, Nurul H. Miah, worked for Marsh & McLennan.

Also on view is a varsity letter and Hermes pin belonging to John Perry. A lifelong runner, Perry competed on the varsity track and field team at Seaford High School on Long Island and ran three marathons as an adult. After joining the New York City Police Department in 1993, he participated in the NYPD Runners’ Club. On Sept. 11, Officer Perry was off-duty and getting his retirement paperwork together at police headquarters and ran to the World Trade Center to assist.

Artifacts of a total of 21 victims are part of this rotation. The 9/11 Memorial Museum regularly rotates personal artifacts.

By 9/11 Memorial Staff

The Lens: Capturing Life and Events at the 9/11 Memorial and Museum

The Lens: Capturing Life and Events at the 9/11 Memorial and Museum

Visitors pass by the Survivors' Stairs as they enter the Museum.
9/11 Memorial Museum visitors pass the Survivor Stairs. Photo by Jin Lee.

The Lens: Capturing Life and Events at the 9/11 Memorial and Museum is a photography series devoted to documenting moments big and small that unfold at the 9/11 Memorial and Museum.

The View: Visitors to the 9/11 Memorial Museum pass the Survivors Stairs as they make their descent to bedrock. On the morning of Sept. 11, these stairs were used by hundreds of people from the World Trade Center complex as a vital route to safety. One of the museum’s largest artifacts, the Survivor Stairs symbolize not only the experiences of 9/11 survivors but also the first responders who aided in one of the most successful high-rise evacuations in American history.By 9/11 Memorial Staff

The Lens: Capturing Life and Events at the 9/11 Memorial and Museum

The Lens: Capturing Life and Events at the 9/11 Memorial and Museum

Steel cross beams known as the Cross at Ground Zero are seen among other artifacts at the 9/11 Memorial Museum.
Steel cross beams known as the Cross at Ground Zero installed in the 9/11 Memorial Museum. Photo: Jin Lee.

The Lens: Capturing Life and Events at the 9/11 Memorial and Museum is a photography series devoted to documenting moments big and small that unfold at the 9/11 Memorial and Museum.

The View: An intersecting steel column and crossbeam known as the Cross at Ground Zero on display in the historical exhibition at the 9/11 Memorial Museum.  Volunteer Local 331 construction worker Frank Silecchia found the 17-foot-tall column in the debris at ground zero on September 13, 2001.The cross served as a unifying inspirational symbol to workers at the site during the rescue and recovery period. On July 23, 2011 the cross returned to the World Trade Center site to be lowered into the 9/11 Memorial Museum.

By Jenny Pachucki, 9/11 Memorial Content Strategist 

 

From the Collection: Symbols Forged From WTC Steel

From the Collection: Symbols Forged From WTC Steel

Crosses and Stars of David are seen forged in World Trade Center steel.
World Trade Center symbol steel beam. Photo: Amy Dreher.

Ground zero was not just another construction site, it was sacred ground. The steel beams in the debris pile and other remnants of the collapsed Twin Towers took on a special significance. During their down time, some recovery workers created symbols and shapes out of the fragments of steel, including crosses and Stars of David. These pieces were donated and are on display in the 9/11 Memorial Museum.Steel Maltese-style cross, gift of Luis Mendes. Photo: Matt Flynn.

For some, it was important to keep a physical reminder of the historical event. “I wanted to be able to fabricate a tangible reminder . . .for years to come, you’re gonna see it, and you’re gonna remember ‘This came from the Trade Center,’” said Local 79 Ironworker Rafe Greco.

Workers struggled to come to terms with the horrific events, many aware that families were counting on them to help recover remains of their loved ones.

 “What I had done for the families, me and my crew, when we had a little slack time we would cut out some crosses . . . and when they came down, we would give those crosses to the families. And they loved it, they really appreciated it. And it made us feel good,” said Ironworker William Quinlan.

By Jenny Pachucki, 9/11 Memorial Content Strategist 

New on View: A Firefighter’s Appalachian Trail Guidebook

New on View: A Firefighter’s Appalachian Trail Guidebook

An Appalachian trail guidebook belonging to Bruce Van Hine is displayed on a white surface. The book includes a cover image of a waterfall.
Appalachian Trail Guidebook belonging to Bruce Van Hine, FDNY Squad 41. Gift of the Van Hine Family.

As the summer season nears its peak many will hike the Appalachian Trail, a footpath which extends 2,180 miles along the Appalachian Mountain range between Georgia and Maine. A worn guidebook to the trail once belonging to New York City firefighter R. Bruce Van Hine is now on view in the memorial exhibition, In Memoriam, at the 9/11 Memorial Museum.

Van Hine, who died on 9/11, responded to the World Trade Center with FDNY Squad 41. His helmet was recovered near the South Tower where he is believed to have been when it collapsed.

An avid outdoorsman, Van Hine spent years day-hiking segments of the tri-state portion of the Appalachian Trail. In addition to a trail guidebook, Van Hine, a religious man, often carried Bibles with him. He left them for fellow hikers in shelters located along the trail.

Bruce Van Hine hiking the Appalachian Trail, September 2002. Gift of the Van Hine Family. Bruce Van Hine on the Appalachian Trail. September 2001. Gift of the Van Hine Family.

 Van Hine was also deeply devoted to his wife Ann and their two daughters.

When his wife, Ann Clarke Van Hine, came to the Museum offices to donate his treasured trail guide, she told curators, "One of the things that he always wanted to do was sleep on the trail. And he did that two weeks before September 11."

By Jenny Pachucki, Content Strategist, 9/11 Memorial 

New on View: Youngest 9/11 Victim’s Stuffed Peter Rabbit

New on View: Youngest 9/11 Victim’s Stuffed Peter Rabbit

A Peter Rabbit stuffed animal that belonged to the youngest 9/11 victim, Christine Lee Hanson, is displayed on a white surface at the Museum.
A Peter Rabbit stuffed animal that belonged to the youngest 9/11 victim, Christine Lee Hanson. (Photo: Jin Lee)

At two and a half years old, Christine Lee Hanson was the youngest of the eight children who were killed on 9/11, all passengers aboard the aircraft commandeered by terrorists. Christine’s life will be remembered through the display of her beloved Peter Rabbit, which will be installed in the 9/11 Museum’s Memorial Exhibition Thursday, June 11, after closing. 

On September 11, 2001, Christine and her parents, Peter and Sue Kim Hanson, left their residence in Groton, Mass. and boarded United Flight 175 at Logan Airport. The family was flying to Los Angeles to visit Sue Kim’s relatives, followed by a trip to Disneyland. The hijacked plane never reached its destination. Two other children died on the same flight when it crashed into the South Tower of the World Trade Center. 

Christine Lee Hanson (Gift of Lee and Eunice Hanson)

Christine was a bright, busy toddler who loved taking trips to the playground and helping her father in the garden. An attentive caretaker of her toys, she favored a stuffed Peter Rabbit character from the classic Beatrix Potter series. It was given to her by her grandmother, Eunice Hanson, in acknowledgement of Christine’s birth in the Chinese Year of the Rabbit. Peter Rabbit replaced Christine’s previously best-loved plaything: a red Teletubby acquired in infancy that “went everywhere with her,” Eunice Hanson recalls.

In 2014, both of these cherished keepsakes were entrusted to the 9/11 Memorial Museum by her grandparents, Eunice and Lee Hanson. Two Winnie the Pooh stickers that Christine placed on Peter Rabbit’s torso are still attached. “She put stickers on everything she liked; I suppose it was her mark of approval,” Eunice Hanson said.

Included in the Hanson’s gift to the Museum was a photograph of Christine celebrating her first birthday, with the word Peace incised on the picture frame. “The Peace frame containing Christine’s picture, taken in a traditional Korean outfit, is most poignant,” said Eunice Hanson. “That one word describes Christine’s parents, who were loving people and believed in kindness. I could ask volumes of questions why this happened to them, given who they were.”

By Jan Seidler Ramirez, Chief Curator and Vice President of Collections

Subscribe to artifacts