Boots
- Description
- Red Wings brand pair of size 9 men's Gore-Tex boots. The boots are well worn in the soles with smooth tread and the leather is dry and cracked around the joint of the boot foot. Dust and dirt have collected on the boots, but the boots are not shedding debris.
- Historical Notes
- This is one of the last pairs of boots worn at Ground Zero by construction manager Brian Lyons, who worked on the rescue, recovery, and reconstruction of the World Trade Center site.
Curator's Comment
During the nine-month recovery period at Ground Zero, Brian Lyons wore many pairs of work boots. He frequently discarded and exchanged the boots as they wore out quickly under the site’s unusually harsh conditions. As a construction manager, Lyons was especially conscientious about following protocols that directed workers to rinse dust and debris from their footwear whenever they left the site to avoid spreading potential contaminants. He wore these boots as the recovery period neared completion, including to the ceremony that formally acknowledged that milestone. Lyons’s boots bear evidence of the many miles he had become accustomed to walking on the site to communicate with those reporting to him and with others toiling at Ground Zero.
On 9/11, Lyons witnessed the collapse of the Twin Towers from a building in Midtown. His thoughts immediately focused on the safety of his brother, FDNY Firefighter Michael J. Lyons of Squad 41. Lyons gained access to the site that afternoon along with other members from his brother's squad. During his first weeks at Ground Zero, Lyons drew on his construction management background to serve as a liaison between firefighters and contractors who were removing debris. Eventually, he secured a job with Tully Construction Company, working 20-hour shifts, all the while trying to find his brother.
On St. Patrick’s Day 2002, a firefighter’s forcible entry tool, known as a Halligan and traceable to FDNY Squad 41, was found. Lyons, aware that his brother was the squad’s "irons man," assigned to carry a Halligan tool and an ax on 9/11, concluded that it was his brother’s. Ultimately, while additional tools and three bodies of Squad 41 members were found, no physical trace of Michael Lyons was recovered.
Lyons continued to work on the site for 10 years as a construction supervisor during the rebuilding of the area.
On 9/11, Lyons witnessed the collapse of the Twin Towers from a building in Midtown. His thoughts immediately focused on the safety of his brother, FDNY Firefighter Michael J. Lyons of Squad 41. Lyons gained access to the site that afternoon along with other members from his brother's squad. During his first weeks at Ground Zero, Lyons drew on his construction management background to serve as a liaison between firefighters and contractors who were removing debris. Eventually, he secured a job with Tully Construction Company, working 20-hour shifts, all the while trying to find his brother.
On St. Patrick’s Day 2002, a firefighter’s forcible entry tool, known as a Halligan and traceable to FDNY Squad 41, was found. Lyons, aware that his brother was the squad’s "irons man," assigned to carry a Halligan tool and an ax on 9/11, concluded that it was his brother’s. Ultimately, while additional tools and three bodies of Squad 41 members were found, no physical trace of Michael Lyons was recovered.
Lyons continued to work on the site for 10 years as a construction supervisor during the rebuilding of the area.
- Accession Number: C.2012.93.1
- Dimensions: 10 in X 5 in X 13 in
- Dimensions (Metric): 25.4 cm X 12.7 cm X 33.02 cm
- Source: Brian Lyons
- Credit Line: Gift of devotion from the Lyons family
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