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title: Library of Congress Gets Oral Histories of 9/11 Responders
description: Rescue workers provided interviews and photos for the collection
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# Library of Congress Receives Oral Histories of 9/11 Responders

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<!-- video src="https://cdn.jwplayer.com/manifests/GK8qvYHW.m3u8" -->
## Video: 9/11: A Family of Firefighters

[Watch (HLS stream): 9/11: A Family of Firefighters](https://cdn.jwplayer.com/manifests/GK8qvYHW.m3u8) (5:19)

![9/11: A Family of Firefighters](https://cdn.jwplayer.com/v2/media/GK8qvYHW/poster.jpg?width=720)

_Published 2011-09-06. After fire chief Jim Riches lost his son Jimmy -- also a firefighter -- on 9/11, his three other sons would follow in their brother's footsteps and join the FDNY (Photographs and Video by Marco Grob)_


by 

[Daniel White](https://time.com/author/daniel-white/)


## Daniel White


Dec 18, 2015 5:33 PM UTC

by 

[Daniel White](https://time.com/author/daniel-white/)


## Daniel White


Dec 18, 2015 5:33 PM UTC

Some 200 accounts provided by emergency responders to the Sept. 11, 2001 terrorist attacks will be available in the Library of Congress.

The American Folklife Center will be home to the “Remembering 9/11 Oral History Project,” the Library of Congress said Friday. Included in the collection are the oral histories—some more than an hour long—and more than 1,000 photographs, manuscripts, logbooks and indexes involving the teams of rescue workers who responded to the terrorist attack on the World Trade Center. Dr. Benjamin Luft donated the collection. Luft, as a physician at the Stony Brook University School of Medicine, treated many of those responding to the tragedy and believes his gift will resonate with visitors.

“It comes at a time of great anxiety considering the recent repeated terrorist attacks on our soil and elsewhere in the world,” Luft in a statement. “These stories are the responders’ gift to our nation, now and for generations to come. Listening to them, with their descriptions of courage, love, sacrifice and survival, inspires us and informs us on how we need to be unified and care for one another during this time of unease.”

The American Folklife Center is also home to personal narratives about Sept. 11 that were gathered from around the country and donated to the Library of Congress under the StoryCorps project.


## Transcript

My son Jimmy was a police officer for eight years, before he switched over to the fire department. And it made me happy, you know, there was a, you know, he was following in my footsteps. And, made me very proud. My brother Jimmy, my older brother, we grew up together. 18 months apart, like I said. Two years apart in school. Basically, did everything together. Jimmy was 12 years older than me. I grew up, you know, being dragged on to his basketball games and. Follow him around, and, playing around with us, it was a great time growing up. Jimmy was 13 years older than me. I was the baby brother.

He loved his Mets, his Jets, and most of all he loved to have a good time. He, uh, he was the life of the party , uh, every night of the week. He was my godfather and He was also my confirmation sponsor. He looked out for me like a father. He was older than me, like that, you know. So, he , uh, really took care of his younger brothers. On, uh, September 11th, I was a police officer, at the time. On September 11th , uh, woke up that morning. I knew my Son, Jimmy was working. He was working right around the corner from the World Trade Center, at the time. I said, oh boy, he's gonna be right in the Heart of the biggest, fire New York City has ever seen.

I know my brother had been on a rotation period in lower Manhattan, so I thought about it, but I figured it was good that he was there, cuz he would be able to help people. I was in college and, somebody told me to turn on the news. I turned it on and. At first, I didn't realize, you know, how many people had been lost. Myself and a couple guys, I work with, we got our gear together and we headed down to the Trade Center. I said, I'm gonna go down there. As I came over the [ COUGH ], the Brooklyn Bridge, the second tower collapsed. I guess it was about , right after lunch when I, my mother answered the phone and.

She was crying, and [ UNKNOWN ] just wanted to get home to her. I was trying to call home and I couldn't get through right away and when I finally did, I remember , uh, my mom right away said , uh, we might have lost Jimmy and, I just broke down. It was the worst. Thing , I can hear is blindsided, couldn't believe, what I heard on the phone. It's like a nightmare. From nine- 11, zero one, till, May 30th, I spent my entire time down there leading the search for recovery and picking up the bodies. That was my, mission was to stay down there and help. Others, you know, find him, and they bring the bodies home of all the people who've died.

It was, March 25th, which was my 29th birthday. On March 25th, 2002, we recovered my son's body. We found the, the helmet, my son's helmet was crushed. And, he had the 114 on it, and he had his , um, name on it. So he knew, he'd be in there by with that, that whole crew of us got down there on our hands and knees and we dug, u know with our hands. When we found my brother, we were actually all there [ INAUDIBLE ] , when my dad brought us down there. And, we were all actually able to, carry him out. Everybody at the site they lined up along the ramp and we went down, and everybody was very respectful.

You could feel the love there , like, from a lot of the guys [ UNKNOWN ] cops, Port Authority cops, everyone. They used, great care and they put him in a Stokes basket and they covered the body with the American flag. We helped carry Jimmy's body, you know, out of the pit down there which was like If you had to say, if it was anything, it was like Dante's inferno down there. It was like hell. And we brought him up the ramp. And, got him out of that horrible place. The people, to bring my brother out, from down there. He would've, wanted it no other way as his brothers would carry him out. So, it was, it was very hard to do, but I'm glad , uh.

That we got to do it. It was very emotional for all of us. It was, I guess, the day that we hoped would come, but never wanted to come. It was nice to find him and feel like he was back with us and, we knew where he was. I always wanted to be a fireman as a kid, cos, my, you know, I saw my dad. My dad was always happy going to work. And then my brother died, and I thought about it. Do I really wanna do this? You know? Then, you know, you're becoming a, a man, and you're not sure anymore. But, I followed him through life and everything else. And I knew this was, I wouldn't be happy doing anything else.

So, I knew I had to, follow in his footsteps. After nine- 11, I knew that's what I wanted to do. I wanted to [ COUGH ], be on the fire department then. You know, honor Jimmy, I know he would want me to be. Seeing how well the firemen on , uh, I think after September 11th, solidified it for me, just the way they cared for each other. And, took care of each other and decided to , uh, follow in my brother and my father's footsteps and , uh, join the fire department and , uh, 9 years later , I still haven't had a bad day at work , so it's, I guess I made the right decision. He died on nine- 11 running into a building, helping other people.

And, his three other brothers, they all followed in my footsteps but his footsteps. I mean he was their hero , before 9 / 11. They're now working New York City Fire Department. All in Brooklyn. He led the way. They followed him and everyday, they know he's looking over them.

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