While all this designing and building in France was happening, there was a lot of work going on in the US to prepare for the project. As the actual statue was being built in France, people in New York were working to get the space ready to build the monument on.
Fundraising efforts, including contests, benefits and exhibitions were held in the US to raise money for the construction of the pedestal that Liberty would be placed upon.
It fell to American Architect Richard Morris Hunt to find a place to build the pedestal and begin designing it. In fact, this name was only given to the island in It was used as a harbor defense system to help protect New York City from the British. The fort was made of stone walls in a star-like pattern — long of which has begun flailing apart and seemed useless. In the eyes of an architect, however, this symbol seemed like the perfect place to start building a home worth of Lady Liberty.
Originally, Hunt wanted to model the pedestal after the Lighthouse of Alexandria — one of the 7 Wonders of the World. But a lighthouse is different from a statue of a woman and the pedestal needed to reflect the actual structure and not what Hunt wished or hoped for. He was inspired to create a pedestal that would not steal the show itself but highlight the beauty and wonder of Liberty.
In the end he designed a pedestal that reached feet high and an even higher budget. Costs demanded that Hunt reduce the size of the pedestal. He settled on an foot tall structure with a granite facade to hide the concrete and steel that supports the colossal woman.
It took three years to complete the pedestal itself. Construction took place from October, to April, The foundation took 10 months to build before construction of the actual pedestal itself began. The story goes that in the project ran out of money. As anyone in construction can attest to, money can make or break a project. For the pedestal, Public interest had died. It took Joseph Pulitzer, publisher of The New York World and namesake of the Pulitzer Prize, taking an interest and writing about it in his paper to kickstart another round of interest and support.
Construction picked up again and they were able to finish it in time for the arrival of the Liberty into New York City.
After the pedestal was complete and the wooden crates arrived, it took four months for crews to rebuild the statue. In total, the height of the statue and pedestal reached just over feet — or 93 meters. On October 28, , President Grover Cleveland officially opened and dedicated the statue in front of thousands of New Yorkers and spectators. In , a federal immigration station was opened on Ellis Island, right near the Statue of Liberty.
Between opening day and closing in , they say that over 12 million immigrants were processed through that station. During — — the peak years of the Ellis Island Immigration Station — between 5, and 10, people were processed every single day.
Because the boats that passed through to Ellis Island would go past the statue, Liberty became a symbol of arriving in the United States, the start of a new life and the hope of personal freedom and liberty to live as they chose to. The poem was written by Emma Lazarus as a fundraising effort to fund the statue which makes these words even more meaningful:. The US Lighthouse Board used the statue as a navigational aid for sailors up until Fort Wood was still an operational army post so the U.
War Department took over control of the statue and island. In , the statue officially became a national monument and the National Parks Service of the USA took over control in In , Ellis island — the old location of the immigration station — became an official part of the Statue of Liberty National Monument. The iconic green colour of the Statue of Liberty is not the original colour. It is fed by the Hudson River. The Statue of Liberty first opened in In recent decades, the statue has closed a few times for needed restoration work and for security reasons, with the last major closure taking place in due to Hurricane Sandy.
The statue was re-opened on July 4, Today, access to the torch, via a narrow foot ladder, is restricted to National Park Service staff. In , about 4. Liberty Cruise NYC can make sure you get the best views of the Statue of Liberty, perfect for selfies and family photos! This replica was given to France by the U. It faces west, toward New York City.
Where Is the Third Statue of Liberty? There is a small replica of the Statue of Liberty in Tokyo, Japan. Counting the base, the Statue of Liberty is feet tall. There are steps from the lobby to the top of the pedestal.
The Statue of Liberty faces southeast. It reads: "Not like the brazen giant of Greek fame, With conquering limbs astride from land to land; Here at our sea-washed, sunset gates shall stand A mighty woman with a torch, whose flame Is the imprisoned lightning, and her name Mother of Exiles. Live Help is Online. Also in , construction on the pedestal began in the United States.
Unfortunately, the pedestal for the Statue was not yet complete and the entire structure was not reassembled on Bedloe's Island until Once the pedestal was completed in , the Statue was reassembled with surprising speed by a fearless construction crew - many of whom were new immigrants. The first piece of the Statue to be reconstructed was Alexandre-Gustave Eiffel's iron framework. The rest of the Statue's elements followed without the use of scaffolding - all construction materials were hoisted up by steam driven cranes and derricks.
This technique was the process of molding light-weight copper sheets by hammering them onto the Statue's hallowed wooden framework. The last section to be completed was the Statue of Liberty's face which remained veiled until the Statue's dedication. Although Fort Wood remained on Bedloe's Island, it was not an obstacle in the design, construction, or reassembly of the Statue of Liberty.
Instead, the star-shaped structure became a part of the Statue's base - the pedestal sits within its walls. Construction workers who assembled the Statue on Bedloe's Island. Many of these workers were new immigrants.
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