World Trade Center (1973–2001) facts for kids
Quick facts for kids World Trade Center |
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The original buildings in March 2001. The tower on the left, with an antenna, was 1 WTC. The tower on the right was 2 WTC. All seven buildings of the WTC complex are partly visible. The red building to the left of the Twin Towers was the original 7 World Trade Center. The East River is in the background.
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| Record height | |||||||||||||||||||
| Tallest in the world from 1971 to 1973 | |||||||||||||||||||
| Preceded by | Empire State Building | ||||||||||||||||||
| Surpassed by | Willis Tower | ||||||||||||||||||
| General information | |||||||||||||||||||
| Status | Destroyed | ||||||||||||||||||
| Location | Lower Manhattan, New York City | ||||||||||||||||||
| Coordinates | 40°42′42″N 74°00′45″W / 40.71167°N 74.01250°W | ||||||||||||||||||
| Groundbreaking | August 5, 1966 | ||||||||||||||||||
| Construction started |
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| Completed |
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| Opening | April 4, 1973 | ||||||||||||||||||
| Destroyed | September 11, 2001 | ||||||||||||||||||
| Owner | Port Authority of New York and New Jersey | ||||||||||||||||||
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| Design and construction | |||||||||||||||||||
| Architect |
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| Developer | Port Authority of New York and New Jersey | ||||||||||||||||||
| Engineer | Worthington, Skilling, Helle & Jackson, Leslie E. Robertson Associates | ||||||||||||||||||
| Main contractor | Tishman Realty & Construction Company | ||||||||||||||||||
| References | |||||||||||||||||||
| I. World Trade Center at Emporis |
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The original World Trade Center (WTC) was a group of buildings in Lower Manhattan, New York, United States. This complex was sadly destroyed during the September 11, 2001 attacks. Today, a new group of buildings stands mostly finished on the same spot.
The most famous buildings in the original World Trade Center were the Twin Towers. The North Tower was the tallest building in the world when it was first built. Even taller buildings were built later. The Twin Towers each had 110 floors. At the time they were destroyed, they were the two tallest buildings in New York. The Twin Towers and 7 World Trade Center were destroyed in the September 11, 2001 attacks. Other buildings nearby were so badly damaged they had to be torn down.
Minoru Yamasaki designed the original World Trade Center in the early 1960s. He used a special design for the two 110-story towers. To get permission for the project, the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey agreed to take over a train line. This train line became known as the Port Authority Trans-Hudson (PATH).
Contents
Building the World Trade Center
Work on the World Trade Center began on August 5, 1966. The North Tower, also called World Trade Center 1, was finished in December 1970. The South Tower, World Trade Center 2, was completed in July 1971. Building the World Trade Center involved digging up a lot of dirt and rock. This material was then used to create new land for Battery Park City on the west side of Lower Manhattan.
What Buildings Were in the WTC Complex?
The World Trade Center complex included seven main buildings:
- 1 World Trade Center (North Tower)
- 2 World Trade Center (South Tower)
- 3 World Trade Center (Marriott Vista Hotel)
- 4 World Trade Center
- 5 World Trade Center
- 6 World Trade Center (US Customs House)
- 7 World Trade Center
Tragic Events at the WTC
The 1993 Bombing
The first major attack on the World Trade Center happened on February 26, 1993, at 12:17 PM. A truck full of 680 kilograms (about 1,500 pounds) of explosives blew up. It was planted by a person named Ramzi Yousef in the underground parking garage of 1 WTC. The explosion made a huge hole, 30 meters (100 feet) deep, through five underground levels. Six people died, and 1,042 others were hurt while trying to escape. Many people inside the tower had to walk down dark stairwells. Some took two hours or more to reach safety. A reflecting pool was later built with the names of those who died in this bombing.
The September 11, 2001 Attacks
On September 11, 2001, terrorists took control of two airplanes. The first plane, American Airlines Flight 11, crashed into 1 WTC (the North Tower). It hit between the 93rd and 99th floors. This caused the deaths of 1,344 people. Seventeen minutes later, a second plane, United Airlines Flight 175, crashed into 2 WTC (the South Tower). It hit between the 77th and 85th floors. Fewer than 700 people died in this second crash.
Later that day, at 5:20 PM, 7 World Trade Center also began to fall apart. The Vista Hotel was destroyed when the Twin Towers collapsed. The three other buildings in the WTC plaza were badly damaged by falling pieces and were later torn down.
Remembering the Victims
The National September 11 Memorial & Museum is a special place built at the World Trade Center site. It remembers the people who died in the 9/11 attacks (2,977 people) and the 1993 bombing (six people). A non-profit group runs this memorial and museum. Their job is to raise money and manage the site. The National September 11 Memorial opened on September 11, 2011. The museum opened in May 2014.
Images for kids
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Radio Row in 1936, with the Cortlandt Street station in the background
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The outside structure of the Twin Towers (1979 picture)
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World Trade Center being built in May 1971
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Seen in 1980 from the Statue of Liberty.
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Lobby of the North Tower, looking south along the east side of the building, August 19, 2000
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South Tower lobby inside, looking at the elevators and red carpet from the balcony, October 1988
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The five-acre Austin J. Tobin Plaza, looking west toward the Marriott Hotel which was in 3 World Trade Center
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Visitors on the viewing platform on the South Tower's roof, looking north toward Midtown Manhattan in 1984
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Windows on the World restaurant inside, November 4, 1999
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The World Financial Center and Battery Park City, next to the World Trade Center, were built on new land.
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Looking up at the World Trade Center from Austin J. Tobin Plaza, 1995
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World Trade Center, 1999.
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Seen from the Hudson River, April 2001.
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The World Trade Center, as seen from a nearby street in 2000
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The World Trade Center, as seen from Liberty Island in 1995
See also
In Spanish: World Trade Center (1973-2001) para niños
