The Statue of Liberty at 125 Years

Lady Liberty
Designed by the French sculptor Frédéric Bartholdi, "Liberty Enlightening the World," known popularly as the Statue of Liberty, was dedicated on October 28, 1886, but parts of it were shown prior to the final construction at various places and times in order to attract interest in the project and help to raise money for its completion. Pictured here, the statue's completed head was exhibited at the Paris World's Fair in 1878; the arm, bearing a torch, was displayed in Philadelphia in 1876 for the city's Centennial Exhibition, and moved to Madison Square Park in New York City for several years afterwards.

Portrait of the Artist
In creating the statue, the sculptor Bartholdi had hoped to present the United States with a commemorative gift on its centennial in 1876. After years of conversations about the statue, Bartholdi took his first trip to the United States in 1871. He hoped to select a location where the Statue of Liberty would be built, and later wrote Laboulaye excitedly that his choice—Bedloe island—was federal territory, a "land common to all the states," as he described the heavily trafficked island in New York harbor.

Liberty in the Workshop
Bartholdi was inspired in part by law professor and politician Édouard René de Laboulaye, who remarked that any monument raised to American independence should be a joint effort between French and American people. Though Laboulaye did not intend his after-dinner conversation to be taken as a formal proposal, he would become a strong ally of Bartholdi and crucial in rallying public support for the monument's construction, the beginnings of which are pictured here in Bartholdi's workshop, circa 1883.

Construction Challenges
Political difficulties in France during the 1870s posed a challenge to raising the necessary funds to complete the other pieces of the statue. In France, the government authorized a lottery that drew 250,000 francs for the project in addition to donated copper. As construction progressed and funds were raised, construction began in Paris on the final statue. In 1881, Bartholdi approached Gustave Eiffel about designing the steel skeleton that would support the statue, and the torch was shipped back from New York to be reunited with the rest of the sculpture as it rose above the Paris skyline. Pictured above, the statue of liberty nears completion, circa 1883.

An American Base of Support
In America, the Panic of 1873 plunged the country into an economic depression that would continue for the next several years. After repeated attempts to allocate government funds for constructing the statue's pedestal had been vetoed by congress, Joseph Pulitzer announced he would print the names of every contributor in his New York World and raised $102,000 within five months. As the pedestal's construction progressed through the early 1880s, the Statue was disassembled in Paris and loaded aboard over 100 shipping containers to be taken overseas to New York. The pieces arrived in the U.S. on June 19th, 1885, and were assembled in time for an unveiling on 1886. Pictured here, the copper face awaits attachment to the main statue in 1885.

The New Colossus
The Statue of Liberty quickly became a symbol of freedom to immigrants and refugees, pictured, after its dedication in 1886. The statue's location on Bedloe Island (renamed Liberty Island by an act of congress in 1956), in close proximity to the immigration port of Ellis Island, sealed its iconic status, as the statue was ofthe the first thing that many would see as they approached America

Liberty Leading the People
As early as World War I, the federal government had latched on to the Statue of Liberty's symbolic qualities, using its image to suggest a preservation of freedom through supporting America's war effort. The statue appeared on recruitment posters, war bond advertisements, and even advertisements for stamps.

Passing the Torch
In 1938, the statue was closed from May until December for renovations that removed rust from the structure, added reinforced concrete steps to the base and installed copper sheathing to prevent damage from rainwater. As part of the renovation, workers removed spikes from the crown, above.

American Bicentennial
In 1972, President Nixon dedicated the American Museum of Immigration, opened in the base of the Statue of Liberty, though shortcomings in funding its endowment closed the museum by 1991, when it was replaced by the current museum on Ellis Island. A new lighting system was installed prior to the American Bicentennial in 1976, when New York Harbor hosted Operation Sail which featured ships from around the world and a fireworks display around the statue.

Second Rennovation
President Ronald Reagan announced the creation of the Statue of Liberty-Ellis Island Centennial Commission to raise funds needed for restorations, the result of a study that found the right arm had been improperly attached and that the statue swayed substantially in strong winds. The torch, which had experienced leaks since 1916, was replaced with an exact replica of Bartholdi's design.

Reopening
Nancy Reagan visited the statue on Independence day weekend in 1986 to reopen it to the public. The new and improved statue featured updated lighting that highlighted the pedestal and statue, a renovated entrance, and an elevator installed to allow handicapped visitors to access the observation deck in the pedestal.

September 11th
The September 11 attacks on the World Trade Center prompted the closing of the Statue of Liberty to visitors, due to security concerns; not only was access to the statue closed, but the island was also temporarily off limits to tourists. Access to Liberty Island was allowed by the end of 2001, but the pedestal and statue still remained closed, the pedestal reopening in 2004 and the full statue in 2009.

Closure
The last day to visit the Statue of Liberty before it closes for a year will be October 28, 2011, marking exactly 125 years after the dedication of the statue by President Grover Cleveland, though Liberty Island itself will remain open for the duration of the renovations. The statue will get an upgrade in its technological and electrical systems, and additional fire-resistant updates in its elevators and stairwells. The renovation costs will reach $27.25 million, according to Interior Secretary Ken Salazar, and the statue is scheduled to open once more to the public in October 2012.