9/11 Living Memorial: The British Memorial Garden

A Peaceful Oasis in Manhattan

This week's Living Memorial Feature focuses on the British Memorial Garden in New York, which honors the 67 British victims of the 9/11 terrorist attacks. The idea for the garden at Hanover Square Park in the heart of Lower Manhattan was conceived by Camilla G. Hellman, president of the British Memorial Garden Trust, Inc.

Camilla was in New York on 9/11 and experienced the loss of a personal friend. She felt it was important for families visiting Ground Zero to also have a chance to visit a peaceful place in Lower Manhattan that evokes a sense of enclosure. Camilla immediately thought of a British garden. "I wanted something that had a permanent legacy," she said. "I wanted to do something that would mean something to everybody." The garden is also dedicated to celebrating the strong historic ties of friendship and unity between the United States and the United Kingdom, Hellman said.

A gift to the people and city of New York from the Anglo-American community and friends, the garden was funded by donations from individuals, corporations and foundations. Ground was broken on the $6.75 million project in 2005 and the garden opened to the public in the summer of 2007. The British Memorial Garden was designed by Isabel and Julian Bannerman, leading British landscape architects who are best known for their work for Prince Charles, the Prince of Wales. All of the garden's elements come from the United Kingdom, including stone from Scotland and Wales and benches of English stone manufactured in Northern Ireland. The British Memorial Garden Trust presents free concerts and other events in the garden to promote British heritage, including an Annual 9/11 Memorial Concert. Read the Living Memorial Feature here.

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