“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.”
Emma Lazarus
The Statue of Liberty was originally the idea of Edouard de Laboulaye, a French politician and a known authority of the Constitution of the United States. His idea was to present to the United States a statue representing liberty on her centennial year, 1876. Laboulaye's idea was in 1865, the architect Auguste Bartholdi, was chosen in 1870, but it took many years to raise the money to for transporting and building a massive pedestal for the statue to sit on. Finally, Lady Liberty was dedicated until October 28, 1886, ten years after the centennial she was meant to be ready for.
She will always stand as a classic American icon, representing America as a welcoming country.
For more history about the Statue of Liberty, read the Statue of Liberty - Ellis Island Foundation's website.
