Last week, we visited the brand new September 11 Memorial Walkway of Southern Illinois, located in Belleville right in front of Engine House #4.

There is a 343 foot walkway, representing the 343 firefighters that died in the attacks. Placed along both sides of the walkway are signs that detail the timeline of the attacks, down to the minute they occurred.

The heart of the memorial is a pair of concrete pillars, which represent the twin towers, set on a pentagon, which represents the Pentagon Building in Washington D.C. Supported by the pillars is a twisted beam that was part of the World Trade Center, and which Belleville acquired in 2012.

This is just phase one of the memorial. They are also planning on adding an area off of the walkway to represent the field in Shanksville, PA, where Flight 93 crashed, as well as some seating near the parking lot.

This is a beautiful memorial. We first saw the beam a few years ago when we were visiting the fire station, and we watched with interest as they created the walkway. There is something special about walking through it, though, and taking time to read all the signs and remember.