It's a sad day for Americans as what some would argue as being the most important museum in the country has closed their doors forever. Yesterday, August 17, was the final day of operation for the 9/11 Tribute Museum in New York City.

According to NBC New York, the decision was brought on after a sharp drop in visitors since the COVID-19 pandemic. The loss of revenue caused quite a large amount of financial hardship, which forced the executives with the museum to make the gut wrenching decision to shut their doors for good.

"We're millions of dollars in debt with our lease, and to try and make that up on top of our annual operating cost is almost impossible without visitors or some intervention from our government," said Jennifer Adams-Webb, CEO and co-founder of the museum.

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It was cited that annual admissions dropped substantially to 26,000 last year, compared to 150,000 in 2019. The museum had welcomed more than five million visitors through its doors in the time since it opened.

The small and intimate museum has been located on Greenwich Street since it's opening in 2006. It was opened originally by the widows and families of FDNY members who died in the attacks, as a support mechanism for all the victim's families. It's not far from the National September 11 Memorial Museum that sits next to the memorial pools at the site where the former Twin Towers stood.

What was once inside the building will be relocated to the New York State Museum in Albany, with the group coordinating with donors to ensure that the exhibits and artifacts are handled properly and respectfully.

Although there will be no physical location for visiting, the museum still does plan to continue their online presence so those who have stories related to the 9/11 attacks still have a space to tell their stories. They will also continue to provide educational resources and support for the 9/11 community.

NEVER FORGET: Images from 9/11 and the days after

See 20 Ways America Has Changed Since 9/11

For those of us who lived through 9/11, the day’s events will forever be emblazoned on our consciousnesses, a terrible tragedy we can’t, and won’t, forget. Now, two decades on, Stacker reflects back on the events of 9/11 and many of the ways the world has changed since then. Using information from news reports, government sources, and research centers, this is a list of 20 aspects of American life that were forever altered by the events of that day. From language to air travel to our handling of immigration and foreign policy, read on to see just how much life in the United States was affected by 9/11.