September 11, 2001 and Fallen Firefighters Memorial, Wilmington
Carolina Bronze Sculpture, Seagrove, NC, casting, Builder
The centerpiece of the Wilmington Firefighters Memorial is a six-foot tall bronze firefighter atop a pile of rubble positioned as if trying to lift or hold up a steel beam that was salvaged from the wreckage of the World Trade Center. The firefighter’s helmet is numbered 343 in honor of the New York firefighters who died in the September 11, 2001 terrorist attack. The centerpiece is ringed by seven empty sets of helmets, pairs of gloves and boots cast in bronze to honor the men who died in the line of duty since the Wilmington Fire Department was formed in the middle 1800’s. Each sculpture stands on a granite block with a slanted front which holds an oval plaque dedicated to each individual firefighter who had perished. The memorial site is shaped with poured concrete to resemble the brim of a firefighter’s helmet. Brick pavers fill the inside of this area surrounding the center piece.
City of Wilmington, Fire Station #2
September 11, 2013
34.282730 , -77.890360
Lacy, Justin. “Firefighters Memorial Honors City’s Fallen With Piece of 9/11,” Star News Online, November 2, 2013, www.starnewsonline.com, (accessed November 17, 2023) Link
Wagner, Adam. “Memorial Dedicated to Fallen Firefighters,” Star News Online, September 12, 2013, www.starnewsonline.com, (accessed November 17, 2023) Link
“WFD Fallen Firefighters Memorial,” City of Wilmington, (accessed November 17, 2023) Link
“WFD Fallen Firefighters Memorial,” Wilmington Firefighters Foundation, wilmingtonfirefightersfoundation.org, (accessed November 17, 2023) Link
Yes
Bronze, concrete, brick
Wilmington Firefighters Foundation
$250,000+
Ed Walker initially sculpted a 6-inch model of the memorial’s centerpiece fireman before sculpting a 2-foot version, which was laser-scanned to create a highly detailed three-dimensional map. a computerized shaping machine was then used to cut out a life-size replica. Walker added detailing in clay on top of the replica and then a mold created for casting at Carolina Bronze Foundry.
The memorial is located at Wilmington Fire Station 2 at Empire Park, 3403 Park Avenue, Wilmington, NC.
Garden spots, benches and shade trees surround the memorial site.
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