NEW YORK (RNN) - In only 3 1/2 months since it opened, more than 1 million people have paid their respects at the 9/11 memorial in lower Manhattan.
It's a milestone officials didn't expect to hit until late January, fearing the colder weather would discourage visitors.
"People who come have said terrific things on social media, they're going back to their homes and driving people to come. The city itself is a very special place to visit and now when people come here, it's a place that people feel is a must on their itinerary," said Joe Daniels, president of the Sept 11 Memorial and Museum.
[SLIDESHOW: 9/11 Memorial]
The memorial, dedicated on the 10th anniversary of the 9/11 attacks, finally gives families of the victims a public place to grieve their loss, for many at the site where their loved ones died.
It opened to the public for the first time Sept 12.
"Certainly on the anniversary itself, the most special part [was] to have families come and find the names of their loved ones. It's just as important for the public at large to be here, to set foot on ground they haven't been able to access in 10 years," he said.
"They've seen such terrible images in the media through the years, but to now be here to see a place that's been transformed, it's healing."
The memorial is comprised of two 1-acre-sized reflecting pools, which lie in the shadow of where the Twin Towers once stood. The largest manmade waterfalls in North America cascade into the pools below.
Bronze panels surrounding the pools display the names of the nearly 3,000 victims of the Sept. 11 attacks and the 1993 World Trade Center Attack.
"My favorite part is, on almost any given day, you'll hear different languages, people visiting from different countries. It reinforces the most positive legacy of 9/11, people coming together," Daniels said.
In addition to the architectural memorial, there's also a living, breathing memorial of sorts - the Survivor Tree.
The tree was planted on the World Trade Center Complex in the 1970s.
In Oct. 2001, workers found the pear tree in the still smoldering debris of the fallen towers, with charred branches and a scorched trunk. It was lovingly nursed back to health, planted at the memorial in 2010 and now stands as a sign of resilience.
The 9/11 Memorial Museum is still under construction and is slated to open September 2012.
"Our single biggest challenge is that 9/11 as a historical event is not finished. There are still implications such as the war in Afghanistan. We need to see that those [unfolding events] are included in the museum," Daniels said.
"If I had one wish, it would be that all the 300 plus million Americans see [the memorial]. It's a special and sacred place that every American needs to visit."
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