NEW YORK — As the Twin Towers of the World Trade Center crumbled during the tragedy of 9/11 and other surrounding buildings suffered heavy damage from the falling debris, one very small structure remained standing — both physically and spiritually — in the middle of the chaos.
St. Paul's Church is located at Broadway just north of Fulton Street in downtown Manhattan, across the street from ground zero.
The 238-year-old Georgian classic-revival style building made of Manhattan mica-schist with brownstone quoins not only survived the attack on the World Trade Center unscathed, but it became the center of hope, refuge and faith in the months that followed. It became a sanctuary for thousands of volunteers, policemen, firemen and others who frequently made stops at the church, some after searching for bodies in what became known as "the pile" to pray as well as to seek comfort and strength.
The church served as a shelter for nine months for rescuers who not only prayed and grieved but ate and slept there as well.
In the weeks following the attack, well-wishers created a make-shift memorial along the iron gates that surrounded St. Paul's by leaving thousands of pictures, notes, cards, patches from different fire departments worldwide and flowers dedicated to those who lost their lives.
Others posted pictures on the gates of loved ones lost in the tragedy, hoping that by some miracle someone might see one of the faces.
Many of those personal items were saved and today are still on display inside the chapel.
In May, the church opened a new public exhibit remembering 9/11 called, "Unwavering Spirit: Hope and Healing at Ground Zero."
Banners made by schoolchildren from around the nation hang from the chapel's rafters. Pictures of lost loved ones are displayed in a small, reverent corner of the church where people can pray. One of the pictures shows a woman participating in the nationwide Olympic torch run prior to the 2002 Games in Salt Lake City.
In another display case are hundreds of patches from fire departments across the nation. And another display from Japan includes thousands of small paper cranes, a symbol of peace and healing, made by schoolchildren.
This year, St. Paul's hosted a series of events to remember 9/11. It began Friday with a memorial service for the victims of the terrorist attack that killed 192 people in Madrid, Spain, earlier this year. Then the chapel was open Friday through Saturday morning for an all-night silent vigil.
A service of remembrance was held yesterday followed by the ringing of the Bell of Hope in the church yard.
St. Paul's is the oldest public building still in continuous use in Manhattan and the city's lone remaining Colonial church. Today St. Paul's is part of the Parish of Trinity Church.
Completed in 1766, it was known primarily before Sept. 11 as the place where George Washington prayed on April 30, 1789, the day he was inaugurated as president .
The boxed pew Washington worshipped in and the chair in which he sat are preserved today inside the chapel.
Unlike what most traditional chapels look like today, the bottom level of St. Paul's included personal boxes. Families could rent a box to be designated as their place to sit each service by donating 10 percent to 15 percent of their total income annually. The idea of the boxed-in pews was primarily to avoid cold drafts and keep families warm.
In addition to surviving the attack on the World Trade Center, St. Paul's also survived the Great Fire of lower Manhattan in 1776 that left a quarter of area's buildings in rubble.
Outside, the courtyard of St. Paul's includes a small cemetery. Many of the headstones date back more than 200 years, and some are so old that the writing on them is no longer legible.
One of the most recent additions to the courtyard is the Bell of Hope. The bell was donated to the church and New York City by the Archbishop of Canterbury George Carey and the Lord Mayor of the City of London, the Right Honorable Michael Oliver, on the first anniversary of 9/11. The bell was cast by the Whitechapel Foundry, the same company that cast the Liberty Bell.
Much of St. Paul's survival on Sept. 11, was attributed to a single sycamore tree in the courtyard. The tree sheltered the church from the falling debris of the Twin Towers.
On Aug. 9, the church announced plans to preserve the stump and root system left from that tree and to turn it into a memorial.
Its tale of survival earned St. Paul's the title, "The Little Church that Stood," which later became the title of a children's book about the church.
Since 9/11, more than one million people have sought out St. Paul's from all over the world as a kind of pilgrimage while visiting ground zero. At last count, the chapel was averaging 1,920 visitors per day, according to St. Paul's official Web site.
Admission into the church is free, although a small donation is suggested at the door. The church is open daily.
Although both the church and ground zero have become big tourist attractions, it is rare to find any New Yorkers actually visiting where the Twin Towers once stood. Memories of what happened that day still make it hard for some locals to go back to the sight.
Some New Yorkers hold animosity towards tourists who flock to ground zero and have their pictures taken next to it as if it were like an amusement park.
E-mail: preavy@desnews.com