After 130 years, you've still got it, Lady Liberty.
Surrounded by thousands of visitors, the Statue of Liberty was unveiled for the first time to New Yorkers on Oct. 28, 1886, in dramatic fashion.
The long-anticipated gift from France had her face covered in a giant French flag during a dedication ceremony, as scores of people crowded the statue. Then, with a pull of a rope, the statue’s designer, Frederic-Auguste Bartholdi, who stood in the statue’s torch, made the grand reveal.
This engraving, based on a drawing by Charles Graham, shows New York Harbor and the Statue of Liberty lit up by fireworks to celebrate her unveiling on Oct. 28, 1886. (Library of Congress)
Since then, the statue has become an icon of freedom — and while immigrants no longer pass through neighboring Ellis Island, millions of visitors are still drawn to Lady Liberty each year.
The 151-foot statue (which sits atop a 154-foot pedestal) is on pace to exceed more than 4.3 million visitors this year, according to Statue Cruises, the boat line that takes passengers to Liberty and Ellis Islands — 2016 may beat its record high of 4.4 million people.
And while she's more than a century old, the Statute of Liberty is still evolving. Plans for a new, expansive Statue of Liberty museum on Liberty Island are under way, with hopes of adding deeper meaning for visitors to one of our most famous New Yorkers.
Happy birthday to you, Lady Liberty.
