Lady Liberty

Lady Liberty overlooks the harbor at Liberty Island and represents to many the ideas of freedom, hope, and opportunity for a better life. The Statue of Liberty is now 122 years old, and was a gift to the people of the United States from the people of France. The Statue, which was completed in 1886, commemorated the 100th anniversary of The Declaration of Independence. Sculptor Frederic Auguste Bartholdi, Alexandre Gustav Eiffel (of Eiffel tower notoriety) and Eugène Viollet-le-Duc (who selected the type of copper used in the statue's construction) designed and built the statue. The pedestal construction was finished in April of 1886. The Statue, built in France in July, 1884, arrived in New York Harbor in June of 1885 aboard the French frigate "Isere" in 350 separate parts packed into 214 crates. Lady Liberty was re-assembled in four months on her new pedestal. The Statue of Liberty was dedicated on October 28th 1886, witnessed by thousands in attendance. President Grover Cleveland performed the honor of unveiling Lady Liberty.

Lady Liberty's raised right foot is a symbol of Liberty and Freedom moving forward, as her left foot tramples the broken shackles at her feet, symbolizing the United States' desire to be free of oppression and tyranny. The seven spikes on her crown symbolize the Seven Seas and seven continents. Her torch represents enlightenment and the tablet she holds symbolizes knowledge and displays the date of the birth of The United States of America on July 4, 1776.

One noticeably reacts with tears and chills when reading the inscription, and understanding what it has meant to millions of immigrants over the years:

"Give me your tired, your poor,
Your huddled masses yearning to breathe free,
The wretched refuse of your teeming shore.
Send these, the homeless, tempest-tossed to me,
I lift my lamp beside the golden door!"