Inside the Fence – New Exhibit at the Tribute Center

Of the over 400,000 national and international visitors to the Tribute Center, some will only view our galleries once, while others return multiple times. For those visitors we offer changing exhibits that reveal additional stories. Following the success of our first exhibit, Coming Together: Kids Respond to 9/11 with Hope for the Future, our second exhibit opened in January, 2008 and will remain until June. We hope you will visit this touching exhibit in Gallery 5 on the lower level.The new exhibition, Inside the Fence is a tribute to the dedicated people in transportation, sanitation and construction trades who played a major role in the recovery at the World Trade Center site. Additionally, the exhibit provides a glimpse into current projects in development in construction, sanitation and transit that are based upon increased awareness and innovative technologies developed after the attacks. Artfully designed, Inside the Fence recounts the stories of transit workers who safely evacuated thousands of Lower Manhattan passengers, provided manpower and vital equipment at the site for months, transported other first responders round the clock, and helped rebuild damaged subway lines in record time. It features accounts of Sanitation workers who brought lights, fuel and heavy equipment to the site and who cleared streets so that utility workers, police and firefighters could have easier access. It highlights the reflections of construction workers who had helped build the World Trade Center and were stunned that, 30 years later, they were now carrying its pieces away. Inside the Fence portrays the cooperation of various entities as they approached their heartbreaking and unprecedented tasks. It features photographs by Sam Hollenshead, presented courtesy of the NY Transit Museum, as well as personal photo albums and journals from people who worked at the WTC recovery effort. Six oral histories detail the daunting challenges and unique collaborations during the nine months of recovery. Some of the voices and stories you will hear in the exhibit are: “For those of us who were down here, it’s a special feeling we have for each other, a camaraderie that few people understand. We developed a bond that won’t ever be broken…Its something you can’t forget, and don’t want to forget. Whether we like it or not, this is a part of history.” Anthony Palmeri, Sanitation Worker (retired) Department of Sanitation, City of New York “I started thinking what can I do psychologically to keep theses customers calm? So I went to each car and I told everyone, ‘Please stay in your car, you are in the best car.” Renee Banks, Train Operator, Metropolitan Transit Authority “Me and an ironworker were down in a hole, he put his arm around me and said, ‘Manny, I put this building up and now we’re here picking up the pieces,’ He hugged me and we both cried.” - Manuel Rodriguez, Teamster, High Rise Foreman, Local 282 Inside the Fence will be in the galleries through late June and will available as an online exhibit. It will be followed by “Getting Back to Business” an exhibit that will feature the experiences of businesses, large and small, and how they helped each other to heal and rebuild.