Photo of the Week: Oklahoma City National Memorial & Museum
Monday, 26 April 2010 18:46

Photo of the Week

The Oklahoma City National Memorial & Museum in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, offers a breathtaking glimpse of the hope and resilience this community and this nation showed in the face of unspeakable tragedy. The 1995 bombing of the Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building in Oklahoma remains the costliest act of domestic terrorism on American soil.

Commemorating the 15th anniversary of the bombing, the Memorial Museum tells the story of April 19, 1995, and those of the days, weeks, months and years that have passed through the voices, images, interviews and artifacts of survivors, family members and rescue workers. The museum is presented as a timeline; visitors begin their journey on April 19, 1995, and, as the story unfolds, are witnesses to good triumphing over evil and the hope and resilience of a community and a nation that would not be defeated in the face of terrorism.

The Outdoor Symbolic Memorial site includes the footprint of the Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building, on which 168 chairs now stand to honor the individuals who were killed. Two monumental “Gates of Time” reflect the moments before and after the 9:02 a.m. blast and act as bookends framing the memorial site on the east and west ends. A shallow reflecting pool runs the length of the Outdoor Symbolic Memorial.

The Oklahoma City National Memorial & Museum was created to honor those who were killed, those who survived and those changed forever by the 1995 bombing of the Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building in Oklahoma City. The memorial and the museum are dedicated to educating visitors about the impact of violence, informing people about events surrounding the bombing and inspiring hope and healing through lessons learned by those affected.

The Oklahoma City National Memorial is open 24 hours a day, 365 days a year. National Park Service rangers are at the memorial from 9 a.m.-5:30 p.m. Cell phone tours are available. The museum is open Monday through Saturday from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m.; Sunday from 1-6 p.m.; closed on select holidays. There is an admission fee to visit the museum.

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