Statue of Liberty - symbol of American liberty

The Statue of Liberty is situated at the entrance of New York Harbor and stands as one of the most important symbols of American liberty. It's been over a hundred years since when Statue of Liberty is an important part of American culture. You will be surprised to know that Lady Liberty was actually a gift from the French as a sign of recognition of the friendship established during the American Revolution.

History of its creation: During the American Revolution, probably America could not have won its freedom from the British without the help of the French. France provided arms, ships, money and men to the American colonies. It was an alliance of respect and friendship that the French would not forget. Almost 100 years later, in 1865, after the end of the American Civil War, several French intellectuals, who were opposed to the oppressive regime of Napoleon III, were at a small dinner party. They discussed their admiration for America's success in establishing a democratic government and abolishing slavery at the end of the civil war. Laboulaye, a scholar, jurist, abolitionist and a leader of the "liberals," noted that there was "a genuine flow of sympathy" between the two nations and he called France and America, "the two sisters."

Laboulaye commented, "Wouldn't it be wonderful if people in France gave the United States a great monument as a lasting memorial to independence and thereby showed that the French government was also dedicated to the idea of human liberty?" Laboulaye's question struck a responsive chord in one of his guests, Frederic-Auguste Bartholdi, a successful, 31-year-old sculptor from Colmar. Year later Bartholdi wrote that Laboulaye's idea "interested me so deeply that it remained fixed in my memory." So was sown the seed of inspiration that would become the Statue of Liberty.

Designer of the great monument: The sculptor, who designed the Statue of Liberty, Frederic-Auguste Bartholdi, was born into a well-to-do family in Colmar, France on August 2, 1834. Bartholdi began his career as a painter, but it was as a sculptor that he was to express his true spirit and gain his greatest fame. In recalling his conversation with Laboulaye, Bartholdi wrote: "'Go to see that country,' said he [Laboulaye] to me. 'Propose to our friends over there to make with us a monument, a common work, in remembrance of the ancient friendship of France and the United States. If ... you find a plan that will excite public enthusiasm, we are convinced that it will be successful on both continents, and we will do a work that will have far-reaching moral effect.'" Bartholdi responded, "I will try to glorify the Republic and Liberty over there, in the hope that someday I will find it again here."

How the work begins: Bartholdi selected Gaget, Gauthier and Company as the foundry where the sculpture was to be constructed. Its craftsmen were experts in the art of repousse, a technique for creating sculptural forms by hammering sheet metal inside molds. The intricate skeleton for the statue was designed by famed engineer Alexandre-Gustave Eiffel, already known for his brilliant iron railroad bridges and later celebrated for the Eiffel Tower.

The 30-foot arm of Liberty traveled to Philadelphia in 1876 as well. For 50 cents, a visitor could climb a steel ladder to the balcony around the torch. A good deal of enthusiasm was generated for the project, since Liberty would be the first statue one could climb inside. When Liberty's gleaming copper head appeared at the fair, she was a sensation. She wasn't sensational enough, however, to solve the never-ending problem of raising the money to complete her construction.

Important Facts:

• Area is about 12 acres.
• Established Statue dedicated October 28, 1886; National Monument established October 15, 1924.

• The Statue of Liberty celebrates her birthday on October 28th in honor of the day she was officially accepted by the president of the United States in 1886.
• Visitors must climb 354 stairs to reach the Statue of Liberty's crown or take an elevator to a lower lookout point.
• The statue is made of copper and is now green in color because of oxidation (a chemical reaction between metal and water) from evaporation of the sea water surrounding it.
• It was on Bedloe Island that the Statue of Liberty was reconstructed in America - the island is now called Liberty Island and is only accessible by ferry.
• The Statue of Liberty weighs 450,000 pounds.

Lady Liberty is the focal point of waves of immigrants, who come to the shores of the United States from all over the world. Their first glimpse of the Statue was one they never forgot, for it meant the end of poverty and oppression and the beginning of new hope. 

(Sources: kidzworld.com, ohranger.com, phoenixmasonry.org) 

(Image source: wikipedia.org/wiki/Statue_of_Liberty#Liberty_centennial, nps.gov/archive/stli/prod02.htm#Statue%20of, endex.com/gf/buildings/liberty/libertyfacts.htm, ohranger.com/statue-liberty/history-statue-liberty, wiki.answers.com/Q/Why_was_the_Statue_of_Liberty_built, phoenixmasonry.org/masonicmuseum/statue_of_liberty.htm, kidzworld.com/article/2512-statue-of-liberty-fun-facts)