Accession Number: C.2016.117.1
Dimensions: 36 in X 60 in
Dimensions (Metric): 91.44 cm X 152.4 cm
Credit Line: In grateful recognition of Chubb and Shirley B. Dreifus in memory of her husband Spiros Kopelakis
Description
American flag with attached halyard. The flag is slightly dirty and the halyard is separated into four pieces.
Historical Notes
On the afternoon of September 11, 2001, FDNY Firefighter Dan McWilliams spotted a flag on a yacht—the Star of America owned by Spiros Kopelakis and Shirley Dreifus—docked at a marina near the World Trade Center site. McWilliams, along with FDNY Firefighters Billy Eisengrein and George Johnson, raised the flag on a 20-foot pile of debris on the site near West Street. The flag raising lifted the spirits of rescue workers. Several photographers captured the moment, and the images have often been compared to the World War II photograph of U.S. Marines raising an American flag at Iwo Jima.