Croton-on-Hudson  

Sundial: 769
State/Province:  New York Country:  USA
Dial Type:  Horizontal Dial Condition:  Excellent
  Latitude and Longitude: 41° 12.686' N  73° 54.285' W
Location:
  • Croton Landing near Croton-on-Hudson
    From Route 9 in Croton-on-Hudson take Municipal Place west, drive 1/3 mile to Eliott Drive, turn right following Eliott Drive 3/4 mile northwest to Croton Landing parking lot. The sundial is 1/2 mile further along the river's edge walking path
 
Description:
  • A 13-1/2 foot tall monumental horizontal dial memorial to the victims and responders of the 9/11/2001 World Trade Center terrorist attack. The memorial sundial gnomon is created from an 11000-pound, 14-foot long twisted steel beam once part of the North Tower of the World Trade Center. The gnomon is held at an angle of 41 deg 12 minutes by a 16-ton boulder with inset channel to cradle the twisted steel.

    Because of the twist and bend in the beam, the gnomon base is rotated 12 degrees off true north and the launch angle in the gneiss boulder is one degree greater than the latitude. The offset alignment allows the upper end of the gnomon to point accurately to the north celestial pole, casting shadows indicating the local solar time. During construction, in the last minutes before marking the boulder for cutting, the 9-degree bend in the gnomon beam was translated into a 12-degree difference in mounting angle due to the steep incline (latitude angle) of the gnomon.

    There are nine hour lines from 8am, just as the first doomed aircraft departed until 4pm in the afternoon after the day?s attacks had ended. The hours are marked with 10-inch diameter bronze plaques from 8am to 4pm along a great circle of granite stone 32 feet in diameter. The plaques commemorate the crashes into The World Trade Center, the Pentagon and the Pennsylvania crash of UA flight 93. Other plaques memorialize first responders, rescue dogs, second responders, and hope for the future, while Old Glory flies on the noon hour marker. The hour marker scenes were drawn by James Rhodes and etched into the bronze plaques.

    The sundial is set in a 32-foot diameter circle framed by granite paving stones. Benches for quite contemplation are just beyond. The memorial design now includes a life-size bronze statue of a woman reaching, but not quite touching the steel beam with arms outstretched. This statue was sculpted by artist Lauren Davis and the dial designer and architect is James Rhodes The full architectural and sculptural composition is titled, "Reaching Through The Shadow."
 
General Information:Inscription:
  • Owner: Jointly owned by the Town of Cortlandt and the Villages of Buchanan and Croton-on-Hudson. The Buchanan*Cortlandt*Croton-on-Hudson (BCC) 9-11 Remembrance Memorial Foundation oversees fundraising for the Memorial.
  • When the memorial is completed with sundial and statute, an inscription plaque will be included. The plaque will contain the Equation of Time, with explanation how to determine Eastern Standard or Daylight Time using the sundial?s shadow time.
  • Designer: Collaboration between James W. Rhodes, FAIA, Architect, Preservation Design, and Lauren Davis, Sculptor.
  • Builder: Janet M Mainiero, AICP Project Director. See references below for list of contributors.
  • Construction Date: Dedicated September 11, 2012
 
References: Web Links:
  • The following contributed to the construction of this memorial:
    Janet M. Mainiero, AICP, Project Director
    Picco Construction, Standfordville, NY
    A & J Cianciulli, Inc., Yonkers, NY
    Badey & Watson Surveying and Engineering, Cold Spring, NY
    Special Breaks, Southington, CT
    Santella Welding, Putnam Valley, NY
    W.D. Excavation and Contracting, Inc., Croton-on-Hudson, NY
    Rocco A. Mastronardi, P.E., Engineer
    and assistance from the Village of Croton-on-H

Attachments Available:

Last Revised: 2021-11-08 20:09