Liberty Enlightening the World
The Statue of Liberty (Liberty Enlightening
the World; French: La Liberté éclairant le monde) is a colossal
neoclasical sculpture on liberty Island in New York City, designed by Frederic
Bartholdi and dedicated on October 28, 1886. The statue, a gift to the United
States from the people of France. Bartholdi was inspired by French law
professor and politician Edouard Rene de Laboulaye, who commented in 1865 that
any monument raised to American independence would properly be a joint project
of the French and American peoples. Due to the troubled political situation in France,
work on the statue did not commence until the early 1870s. In 1875, Laboulaye
proposed that the French finance the statue and the Americans provide the
pedestal and the site. Bartholdi completed the head and the torch-bearing arm
before the statue was fully designed, and these pieces were exhibited for
publicity at international expositions. The arm was displayed at the Centennial
Exposition in 1876 and in New York's Madison Square park from 1876 to 1882.
Fundraising proved difficult, especially for the Americans, and by 1885 work on
the pedestal was threatened due to lack of funds. Publisher Joseph Pulitzer of
the World started a drive for donations to complete the project that
attracted more than 120,000 contributors, most of whom gave less than a dollar.
The statue was constructed in France, shipped overseas in crates, and assembled
on the completed pedestal on what was then called Bedloe's Island. The statue's
completion was marked by New York's first ticker-tape parade and a dedication
ceremony presided over by President Grover Cleveland.
The statue was administered by the United States
Lighthouse Board until 1901 and then by the Department of War; since 1933 it has been maintained by the
National Park Service. The statue was closed for renovation for much of 1938.
In the early 1980s, it was found to have deteriorated to such an extent that a
major restoration was required. While the statue was closed from 1984 to 1986,
the torch and a large part of the internal structure were replaced. After the
September 11 attacks in 2001, it was closed for reasons of safety and security;
the pedestal reopened in 2004 and the statue in 2009, with limits on the number
of visitors allowed to ascend to the crown. The statue, including the pedestal
and base, closed beginning on October 29, 2011, for up to a year so that a
secondary staircase and other safety features can be installed; Liberty Island remains open. Public access to the
balcony surrounding the torch has been barred for safety reasons since 1916.
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