October 28: The Statue of Liberty Dedicated (1886)
Prayer Idea
Pray for people who love their own liberty to support liberty for others.
History Note
Édouard René Lefèbvre de Laboulaye was the chairman of a French abolitionist society. After the American Civil War, he had the idea for a monument in America to celebrate freedom and democracy. De Laboulaye believed that the outcome of the Civil War proved that democracy was an effective form of government. He suggested his idea to artist Frédéric-Auguste Bartholdi at a dinner party in 1865.
In 1870 Bartholdi began to sketch ideas. He visited America several times. The first time he sailed into New York Harbor, he saw Bedloe’s Island and decided that he wanted to place a statue there.
Bartholdi oversaw construction of the statue’s pieces in France. Sheets of copper were hammered into shape. The sheets—about 3/32-inch thick, or about as thick as two copper pennies—were assembled onto a frame designed by Gustave Eiffel, later designer of the tower in Paris that bears his name. Many people believe that Bartholdi sculpted the statue’s face to look like his mother, Charlotte.
When Bartholdi’s team completed the hand and torch, De Laboulaye brought them to the Centennial Exposition in Philadelphia in 1876. The hand and torch then went on display at Madison Square Garden in New York City. Americans raised money to build a pedestal on which the statue would stand.
In 1878 Bartholdi completed the head and shoulders. They went on display at an exposition in Paris. The full statue of Liberty Enlightening the World was finished in 1884. That year workers in America laid the cornerstone for the pedestal on Bedloe’s Island. In 1885 workers in France took the statue apart and put the parts into crates so they could travel to America. The ship almost sank in a storm on the way, but the parts arrived safely in June.
In 1886 Americans completed the pedestal. Bartholdi oversaw the assembly of the statue. When the statue was dedicated, it was the tallest structure in New York City. People began to call it the Statue of Liberty or Lady Liberty. Lady Liberty holds a tablet which represents a book of law. Bartholdi used Roman numerals to inscribe the date of America’s independence on the tablet: July IV, MDCCLXXVI (July 4, 1776).
On October 28, 1886, President Grover Cleveland was in New York City to dedicate the Statue of Liberty. One million people attended ceremonies throughout the city. Firemen, soldiers, and veterans marched in a parade down Broadway with 100 brass bands. Cleveland and other prominent men gave speeches.
Meanwhile, Bartholdi waited in the statue’s crown to drop the French flag that had been placed there to hide her face. When Bartholdi dropped the flag, ships in the harbor blew steam whistles. Brass bands played. Cannons roared. Bartholdi’s dream had come true. A few days before the ceremony, he said:
The dream of my life is accomplished; I see the symbol of unity and friendship between two nations—two great republics.
The Statue of Liberty, made of copper, originally had a copper color. However, copper naturally oxidizes to form a green patina. This is why the statue is now green.
Learn More
Learn more about Frédéric-Auguste Bartholdi and his vision for the Statue of Liberty.
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