Since the earliest days of recorded human history, people have constructed buildings not just to provide shelter but to send a message. The earliest texts of Judaism speak of the patriarchs building to mark a place or event, while the Mayan leaders of South America built ziggurats not only to sacrifice their enemies but also to demonstrate their power to others. The Arc de Triomphe in France is just that, an arch to mark France's triumph over both its enemies and itself during the French Revolution and the Napoleonic Wars. It should come as no surprise that in the dark days following the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001, New York City began searching for some way to demonstrate its recovery and resolve. The obvious way to do just that was to rebuild what had been destroyed. Since there was no way to bring back the lives of those lost, the most straightforward path was to rebuild the Twin Towers that had fallen, but there was more to be done than to just rebuild the lost Twin Towers; the new building was to be bigger, taller, and better than before, as everyone hoped the country would somehow be. In the decade that followed, the first of a new millennium, the Freedom Tower experienced many of the same ups and downs that the nation did. Plans to rebuild it were met with the same level of controversy as those to fight the war on terror. Likewise, its popularity ebbed and flowed with the fickle hearts of a people grown weary with fighting an enemy overseas and a poor economy at home. Political parties rose into and fell out of power, changing again and again the environment in which the builders were trying to work. At some points, it seemed that the project would never end.

Fortunately, the building itself finally knew victory and opened to the public, much as it seems the United States has made some inroads in the war against terror. At the same time, there is much left to do on both fronts, as the owners of One World Trade Center continue to try to rent out the space they have created, and those fighting terrorism at home and abroad continue to try to weed out the last vestiges of those who wish the nation ill. Ultimately, the final outcome on both fronts remains unknown, though much of the same spirit of patriotism and determination drives the leaders of the nation and the Center on to a much hoped for victory. Those who continue to wait wish them Godspeed, as they look on from a distance and close up at the flag flying at the top of the trade center and over the hills of Afghanistan.

The Freedom Tower: The History of New York City's One World Trade Center looks at the construction history of the Twin Towers' replacement. You will learn about the Freedom Tower like never before, in no time at all.