Statue of liberty

The Statue of Liberty is located in New York Harbor.  It was a gift of international friendship from the people of France. The Statue of Liberty is one of the most universal symbols of political freedom and democracy.  The Statue of Liberty was dedicated on October 28,1886 and was designed a National Monument on October 15, 1924.  The Statue of Liberty was restored in time for her spectacular centennial on Independence Day, July 4,1986.

The Statue of Liberty was designed by a French sculptor Frederic Bartholdi, and was given by the France to the United States commemoraten the centennial of U.S. independence.  Bartholdi's intention for the Statue of Liberty was to honor the idea of liberty.

On Washington's Birthday, Feb.22, 1877, congress appoved the use of a site on Bedloe's Island suggested by Bartholdi. The 12 acre island where the Statue of Liberty is built had been owned in the 17th century by Isaac Bedloe.  It was called Bedloe's until Aug.3, 1956, when president Eisenhower changed the name to Liberty island.  The statue was finished on May 21,1884, and presented to the U.S. minister of  France on July 4,1884, by Ferdinand de Lesseps.

The statue arrived dismantled, in 214 packing cases, from Rouen, Frace in June 1885.  The last rivet of the statue was driven October 28,1886.