Sept. 11 Memorial Grows on UC s Campus

A living memorial to the victims of the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks stands tall on the University of Cincinnati’s MainStreet corridor that blends learning and living through the heart of campus.

The memorial, designed in collaboration with the UC Division of Student Affairs and Services, the Office of the President, Office of the Architect and George Hargreaves Associates – the designer of the award-winning Master Plan that won the university international acclaim for the transformation of an urban campus – is located on the west side of McMicken Commons.

Leonard Thomas, UC project manager for landscape design and construction, says the memorial first took shape in spring 2002, when two Princeton American Elm trees, symbolizing the Twin Towers of the World Trade Center, were planted on McMicken Commons.
 
The memorial was completed in 2003 with the addition of a polished granite wall 75 feet long, 18 inches wide and 18 inches tall, which also serves as a sitting bench where students, faculty and staff can reflect while gazing at the living memorial.

“We wanted the memorial to be located in a prominent location on UC’s campus, with a design that was to be timeless. It has truly turned out to be a stopping point for reflection along MainStreet,” says Thomas, who adds that the trees symbolizing the Twin Towers have the potential to grow to between 60-to-80 feet tall. The memorial also features night lighting.

Mitchel D. Livingston, UC Vice President for Student Affairs and Services, says the creation of the campus landmark evolved from a 2001 memorial ceremony planned by UC’s Just Community initiative. The 2001 ceremony was held on the CCM Plaza shortly after the attacks and drew more than 300 people.

Livingston adds that the granite seat-wall resembles the Vietnam Memorial in Washington, D.C. The wall holds this inscription developed by Livingston and the Division of Student Affairs and Services: “We resolve to seek knowledge that leads to greater understanding among peoples of the world – In memory of those who died on Sept. 11, 2001.”

Two of the victims of the Sept. 11 attacks were UC graduates. Cathy Salter, a 1986 graduate of the McMicken College of Arts and Sciences, was an employee for Aon Corp. She worked on the 92nd floor of the World Trade Center’s second tower. Lieutenant Colonel David Scales, a 1979 graduate of the College-Conservatory of Music, was working at the Pentagon on Sept. 11.