Ms. Warden’s high school Economics and Participation in Government students had a full day visiting many iconic sites in Lower Manhattan on May 16 with the amazing and amusing assistance of Mrs. Casalino, their chief navigator, and Mr. Dudzic, Ms. Grober, and Karina Jones. The students’ first stop was the historic Trinity Church where Alexander Hamilton, our nation’s first Treasury Secretary, is buried, along with his beloved wife, a local Hudson Valley native, Eliza Schuyler Hamilton. Not only was Hamilton responsible for setting up our nation’s finances, our second and current Constitution might not have succeeded without his Federalist newspaper articles urging powerful New York State to finally support it.
Their second stop wasat The Charging Bull, a giant bronze sculpture meant to symbolize the stock market going up, as well as the American entrepreneurial spirit.
Students’ third stop was at The Fearless Girl and the New York Stock Exchange on Wall Street. The Fearless Girl faces the New York Stock Exchange and is meant to encourage women to go into business and succeed on an equal level with men. The NYSE traces its origins to the Buttonwood Tree Agreement signed by 24 stockbrokers on May 17, 1792. The NYSE significantly contributes to New York State’s economy, representing approximately 19 percent of total state tax collections.
The group’s fourth stop was at Federal Hall, the site where George Washington was inaugurated for the first time, as The Capitol hadn’t been built yet.
Students’ fifth stop was to the 911 Memorial Museum. These students were not even born when 911 happened but live in a country that has been changed by this tragic, catastrophic event. A few examples: as a result of 911, The Homeland Security Administration was created, the NYSE is no longer open to the public, and airline passengers must go through TSA screening. Almost 3,000 people died during the immediate event, but many people are still suffering and dying in the aftermath of 911 due to the toxic materials released and they still need our help. One of the group shots at the 911 Museum is in front of the “Wall of Blue Tiles.” Each tile is a unique shade of blue, symbolizing both the beauty and loss of that day. The wall is accompanied by a quote from Virgil: “No day shall erase you from the memory of time.” By visiting the museum we can all make sure that Virgil’s quote is made true.
The classes also took a group shot in front of one of the two waterfall pools. The two waterfall pools mark the footprints of the original Twin Towers. Every year on the evening of September 11, New York City commemorates the event by shining two four-mile-high blue beams meant to represent the Towers. Surrounding the fountains are the names of victims who died at the Towers but which are hollow so friends and family can place flowers in remembrance.
The sixth stop was The Oculus, a new shopping center and transportation hub built to replace the World Trade Center Path station that was destroyed on 911. The Oculus’ roof is meant to resemble a dove leaving a child’s hands. Every year, on the anniversary of the 911 attacks, the sun shines directly through the skylight and illuminates the main hall. The group stopped there for treats on the way to Battery Park City, their final stop, where they could recover from the emotional intensity of the 911 Memorial Museum experience. Battery Park City was built in part from landfill from the building of the original Twin Towers. It is along the Hudson River and offers a nice promenade and cool view of the Statue of Liberty.
