The Statue of Liberty arrives in New York Harbor.
The Statue of Liberty, officially named Liberty Enlightening the World, was a gift from France to the United States, symbolizing the two nations’ friendship and shared democratic ideals. The project was initiated in the 1860s by French political thinker Édouard René de Laboulaye, who envisioned the monument as a celebration of American independence and the abolition of slavery. Designed by sculptor Frédéric Auguste Bartholdi, the statue’s framework was engineered by none other than Gustave Eiffel, the man behind the Eiffel Tower. Construction began in France in the early 1870s, and the completed statue was disassembled, shipped across the Atlantic in 1885, and reassembled on Bedloe’s Island (now Liberty Island) in New York Harbor.

The pedestal, built in the United States with funds raised primarily through donations and benefit events, was completed in 1886. On October 28 of that year, President Grover Cleveland presided over the statue’s dedication ceremony. Standing at 305 feet (including pedestal and foundation), the statue quickly became a powerful symbol of freedom and hope, particularly for immigrants arriving at Ellis Island in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Over time, the Statue of Liberty has grown into an enduring global icon representing not just American ideals, but universal aspirations for liberty, democracy, and human rights.