And Jesus Wept

Dedicated April 19, 1998

Most Reverend Eusebius J. Beltran
Archbishop of Oklahoma City

Reverend Louis J. Lamb
Pastor of Saint Joseph Old Cathedral

Design: David Meyer and Meyer Architects
Construction: Nashert Constructors, Inc.

On April 19, 1995 at 9:02 a.m., a bomb exploded just a few hundred feet east of here. In that instant and the ensuing calamity, 168 people were known to be killed. Devastation covered this area. The parish house which stood on this corner was demolished and Saint Joseph Cathedral was severely damaged.

The fence was originally installed to protect the sacred Murrah Grounds just before the first anniversary in April 1996. It immediately became the place where thousands of people left behind their messages and mementos of sorrow, tribute, and hope. The Oklahoma City National Memorial Archives now has a sizable collection of objects from the Fence. Not originally a part of the design, Family Members, Survivors, and Rescue Workers asked that is be incorporated because of the significant meaning it took on during the time of the Memorial development.

Children were a significant part of the worldwide response in April 1995, responding with words of encouragement and messages of home - for Rescue Workers specifically - and Oklahomans in general. Thousands of ceramic tiles were sent to Oklahoma in 1995. A sampling of those tiles is now a permanent part of the Oklahoma City National Memorial.

The south wall of the Journal Record Building directly faced the blast's impact and was heavily damaged by the April 19, 1995 bombing. Parts of the south wall were separated from the floor beams, and the arched section of the building's roof was lifted up by the blast and fell to the ground.

The jagged brick edge across the top of the wall shows where the roof broke away from the building.

Structural repairs were made and a new roof installed. However, the south face with its broken bricks and mangled fire escape was left very much as it looked following the bombing. The black brick window openings and dark glass windows help leave the sense of void created by the blown out glass following the bombing. The fresh angular mortar joints you see were repaired during the building's rehabilitation, but provide a look at all locations where portions of the wall were lifted up by the explosion, then settled back without collapsing.

The Oklahoma City National Memorial Trust chose not to repaint this historic south wall. Rather, structural repairs were made and a protective sealant applied to help retain the look of the wall after the April 1995 bombing.

A Rescue Worker originally painted the message on this wall during search and recovery efforts in April 1995. The building on which it is painted was a functioning office building when the bomb exploded across the street. Ceilings collapsed, walls fell in and glass shards flew throughout the building. Hundreds of people were injured, many critically. Fortunately, no one was killed inside this building.

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