Your Complete Guide of Everything You Need to Know When Visiting the Empty Sky Memorial
Overview of the memorial’s significance
The Empty Sky Memorial holds profound significance as a powerful tribute to the 746 New Jersey residents who lost their lives on September 11, 2001. Located in Liberty State Park, the memorial serves multiple crucial purposes:
Remembrance and Healing – Allows families, friends, and community members to honor their loved ones. Creates a permanent site for reflection and grief processing.
Historical Documentation – Preserves the stories of New Jersey victims. Documents the state’s direct connection to the 9/11 tragedy. Serves as a historical marker for future generations to understand the impact of that day
The Beautiful Symbolic Design: Twin reflecting walls represent the absence left by the World Trade Center towers. Positioned to frame the New York City skyline, creating a direct visual connection.
Context of its location in Liberty State Park
The Empty Sky Memorial’s location in Liberty State Park is profoundly meaningful. Positioned with an unobstructed view of the Manhattan skyline, the memorial sits where New Jersey residents once witnessed the 9/11 attacks.
This site, historically connected to Ellis Island and the Statue of Liberty, represents themes of freedom and resilience.
The park’s expansive landscape provides a contemplative space that allows visitors to reflect on loss while maintaining a direct visual connection to the former World Trade Center site.
Its strategic placement offers both a personal and collective remembrance, symbolizing the deep connection between New Jersey and New York during one of the most traumatic moments in modern American history.
The memorial’s positioning creates a powerful narrative of memory, community, and hope, transforming a tragic landscape into a space of healing and understanding.
Visitor Information
The memorial is located inside Liberty State Park. The official address is 1 Audrey Zapp Dr, Jersey City, NJ 07305.
The memorial is easily reached by multiple transportation methods. Visitors can access the site by car, with ample parking available in Liberty State Park.
For those using public transportation, the park is conveniently served by NJ Transit buses and the light rail system, with the Liberty State Park station providing direct access.
The memorial is free to visit and open to the public during the park’s standard hours.
It is wheelchair accessible, with smooth pathways leading to and around the memorial. The site is designed to be pedestrian-friendly, allowing visitors to walk between and around the twin steel walls, experiencing the memorial from various angles.
Key accessibility features include:
- No entrance fee
- Parking lot within Liberty State Park
Public transit connections - Wheelchair and stroller-friendly paths
- Open during daylight hours
- No guided tour requirements (self-guided experience)
What visitors can expect when visiting
Emotional impact of the memorial
Guided tours or additional interpretive information
Historical Background
The September 11, 2001 attacks, often referred to as 9/11, were a series of coordinated terrorist attacks carried out by the al-Qaeda extremist organization on the United States. Nineteen terrorists hijacked four commercial airliners, deliberately crashing them into strategic targets in a horrific and unprecedented act of violence.
At 8:46 am, American Airlines Flight 11 was intentionally crashed into the North Tower of the World Trade Center in New York City. Seventeen minutes later, United Airlines Flight 175 struck the South Tower. Both towers collapsed within two hours, causing a massive loss of life and unimaginable destruction.
These devastating events led to the deaths of nearly 3,000 innocent people from over 90 countries, including hundreds of first responders who selflessly risked their lives to save others. The attacks left a lasting impact on the United States and the world, with long-term consequences on military policy, politics, and foreign relations.
The tragic events of September 11, 2001, had a profound and lasting impact on the residents of New Jersey, particularly those in the town of Middletown. With 37 residents losing their lives in the attacks, Middletown had the highest number of casualties per capita outside of New York City, making it the second hardest-hit city.
The victims from Middletown, like many other New Jersey residents, were commuters who traveled daily to their jobs in Manhattan, often using trains, buses, or ferries.
Motivation behind creating the memorial
The motivation behind creating the Empty Sky Memorial at Liberty State Park was multifaceted, with its primary purpose being to honor and remember the 746 New Jersey residents who lost their lives in the tragic events of September 11, 2001.
In essence, the motivation behind creating the Empty Sky Memorial was to create a lasting tribute to the victims of 9/11, providing a space for remembrance, reflection, and unity that will continue to resonate with visitors for generations to come.
Memorial Design and Architecture
The Empty Sky Memorial was designed by architects Michael Arad and Jessica Laudadio Levin, and was dedicated on September 10, 2011.
The memorial consists of two 210-foot-long parallel stainless steel walls forming a narrow pathway. The walls are positioned at an angle that creates a symbolic “empty sky” opening.
The walls are constructed of highly polished, weathering stainless steel that reflects light and surrounding landscapes and the surface was left intentionally smooth to reflect the sky.
The total length of each wall is 210 feet and the height gradually rises from ground level to 36 feet. Each wall weighs approximately 56 tons.
The monument is situated within Liberty State Park’s expansive green space surrounded by beautiful native plantings. Granite walkways lead to and around the memorial.
See amazing photos of Liberty State Park and The Empty Sky Memorial.
Names and Remembrance
How victims’ names are displayed
At the Empty Sky Memorial, the victims’ names are etched into the two 210-foot long stainless steel walls that form the memorial. These twin walls are positioned to align with the approximate location of the World Trade Center towers and create a symbolic “empty sky” between them.
The names of the 746 New Jersey residents who were killed on September 11, 2001, are cut through the stainless steel walls, allowing light to pass through the letters. This design is intentional and deeply meaningful:
Illumination Technique
Names are precision-cut into the steel walls
Sunlight passes through the letters, creating a luminous effect
At different times of day, the names appear to “glow” or be illuminated
This symbolizes how these individuals continue to shine and be remembered
Arrangement of Names
Names are not randomly placed
They are grouped by employer or location where the person was working
Some names are clustered to represent families or colleagues who died together
This grouping helps tell a collective story of loss
Memorial Design Significance
The cut-through names represent absence and presence simultaneously
Light passing through symbolizes memory and hope
The scale of the walls (210 feet long) emphasizes the magnitude of loss
Positioned to frame the New York City skyline, creating a direct visual connection to the site of the attacks
The memorial’s approach to displaying names is both architecturally innovative and emotionally powerful, ensuring that each individual is remembered while also representing the collective tragedy.
Total number of New Jersey residents commemorated
At the Empty Sky Memorial, 746 New Jersey residents were killed on September 11, 2001. This number represents individuals from across the state who lost their lives during the terrorist attacks, primarily those working in the World Trade Center or who were passengers on the hijacked flights.
World Trade Center Victims
Many were financial professionals, traders, and corporate employees
Large numbers came from key New Jersey commuter towns like Hoboken, Jersey City, Weehawken, and towns in Bergen, Essex, and Hudson Counties
Many worked for companies like Cantor Fitzgerald, which lost a significant number of employees
Flight Victims
Includes passengers from United Flight 93 (which crashed in Pennsylvania) and the flights that hit the World Trade Center
Some were New Jersey residents traveling for business or personal reasons
Several families from New Jersey lost multiple members in the attacks
Demographic Diversity
Victims represented various ages, professions, and backgrounds
Included first responders, corporate executives, administrative staff, and young professionals
Reflected New Jersey’s diverse population and its close economic ties to New York City
The memorial dies an amazing job ensuring that each of these 746 individuals is remembered, not just as a number, but as a person with a life, a story, and connections to their community.
I couldn’t find a list of names that are etched into the Liberty State Park Memorial. But here is a complete list of nearly 3000 unfortunate souls that perished that fateful day courtesy of the 9/11 Memorial and Museum.
Educational Value for Younger Generations Events
The Empty Sky Memorial serves as a crucial educational tool for younger generations, helping them understand and connect with the events of September 11, 2001.
The memorial helps younger generations understand the human impact of the terrorist attacks. The “empty sky” concept helps explain the profound loss and absence created by the attacks.
Remembering Where You Were
My Personal Experience
I think one poignant memory we all have is New Jersey residents is that we know exactly where we were when this terrible tragedy happened.
I live in Monroe New Jersey and I live approximately 50 miles from Manhattan by car and around 40 miles as the crow flies (on a straight line).
Not long after the planes hit the towers, I drove Sout down Bucklew Avenue heading into an adjacent town Monroe, about 4 miles where there is a clearing looking east towards the city.
Although I could not see the Manhattan skyline from their, I did see the devastation of smoke. It was quite scary from 40 miles away.
I don’t think I have ever really felt quite like what went through my entire body that day. It was unfathomable, so close to home, so sad, so horrific, and scary, that it’s very hard to put words to it other than what I just said.
I could never imagine what it would be like very close to the scene.
The Skyline View
Many New Jersey residents, particularly those in towns like Hoboken, Jersey City, and along the Hudson River, had a direct, devastating view of the Twin Towers falling.
People recall watching in shock from their apartment windows, rooftops, or commuter train platforms as the smoke billowed and the skyline dramatically transformed.
The proximity meant that for many, it wasn’t just a television event, but a visceral, immediate experience of horror unfolding right across the river.
The Commuter Connection
New Jersey has one of the highest percentages of commuters who worked in the World Trade Center.
Many lost colleagues, friends, and family members who were in the towers that morning.
Countless residents remember exactly where they were when they started receiving frantic phone calls—in their kitchens, at work, or during their own morning commute—learning about the attacks and desperately trying to contact loved ones working in Manhattan.
First Responder Mobilization
New Jersey’s proximity to New York City meant that numerous first responders—firefighters, police officers, and emergency medical personnel—immediately mobilized to help.
Many remember the urgent scramble of local emergency services rushing to assist, with firehouses and police stations becoming impromptu gathering points of solidarity and preparation.
The sense of community and immediate desire to help was profound, with many residents feeling a deep, personal connection to the unfolding tragedy.
Conclusion
If you’re planning to visit Liberty State Park, make sure you take the time to visit this amazing Memorial. It is important that we always remember what happened that day so we can always honor the victims.
The hardest part to comprehend is that there were many innocent lives lost on that day.
Come pay tribute to the victims and help us all and promoting unity and resilience.
One of the greatest things about the American people is that although the attacks tested our strength and resolve, we always persevere as a strong united country as we learn from situations out of our control as well as our own mistakes.
See our comprehensive guide of other cool things to do at Libery State Park.
If you’re coming to visit the Memorial remember that Liberty State Park is also an idyllic destination for picnics, offering stunning views of the Manhattan skyline and the Hudson River. So make sure to keep that in mind so you can pack a beautiful basket of afternoon culinary delights!
