They appear to have been taken by an as yet unidentified construction worker who helped to clear up the wreckage of the World Trade Center towers and surrounding area.
The CDs were in poor condition but the data was ultimately retrievable.
The archivists have uploaded the photos to Flickr.
The digital albums include images of Ground Zero itself taken both at ground level and from above, construction staff at work and the damaged interiors of the blocks surrounding the towers.
