"Statue of Liberty Dedication, October 28, 1886: The 140th Anniversary Explained"

The Statue of Liberty was formally dedicated on October 28, 1886, and the 140th anniversary falls on a Wednesday this year. This explainer covers how the statue was conceived, built and paid for, and what happened on the day itself. It is written a week ahead, and we have found no announced anniversary programme, so we describe none.

What was dedicated on October 28, 1886?

HISTORY describes the statue as a gift of friendship from the people of France to the people of the United States. The idea is credited to Edouard de Laboulaye, who wanted a monument to the Franco-American alliance during the American Revolution.

The French sculptor Frederic Auguste Bartholdi designed the statue. According to Wikipedia, Gustave Eiffel designed the iron framework with structural engineer Maurice Koechlin, and the components were built at Levallois-Perret near Paris. The copper figure stands 151 feet 1 inch (46 m) to the torch, and about 305 feet 1 inch (93 m) from the ground to the torch once the pedestal is included.

How the statue was built and paid for

Wikipedia gives a clear timeline of the project.

• 1865: Laboulaye proposes the idea. Wikipedia notes that the National Park Service calls the famous dinner-conversation story a legend.
• 1875: The project and its fundraising body, the Franco-American Union, are announced.
• 1876: Bartholdi's arm and torch are shown at the Philadelphia Centennial Exposition and later in Madison Square Park.
• 1882: The statue is complete up to the waist.
• 1884: The cornerstone for the pedestal is laid. Congress and the New York governor fail to fund the work.
• June 17, 1885: The French steamer Isere arrives in New York with the disassembled statue.
• April 1886: The pedestal is finished.

A shared bill

France raised about $250,000 for the statue, while the United States raised up to $300,000 for the pedestal, according to Wikipedia. The pedestal, designed by Richard Morris Hunt, was cut from a proposed 114 feet to 89 feet (27 m) because of money problems.

The newspaper campaign

Joseph Pulitzer's New York World launched a drive for $100,000 in 1885. On August 11, 1885, the paper reported $102,000 from 120,000 donors, and about 80 percent of the total came in sums under one dollar. It is a useful reminder that a national monument was partly built from small gifts.

What happened on dedication day

Wikipedia describes a morning parade in New York City, with spectator estimates ranging from several hundred thousand to a million. A nautical parade began at 12:45 p.m., and President Cleveland crossed the harbor by yacht to Bedloe's Island.

The speakers were Ferdinand de Lesseps, Senator William M. Evarts, Cleveland and Chauncey M. Depew. A French flag covered the statue's face. It was meant to drop at the end of Evarts's speech, but Bartholdi let it fall early, cutting the speech short. Only dignitaries were allowed on the island. A fireworks display was postponed to November 1 because of poor weather.

What changed after 1886

Several later milestones shape how the statue is seen today.

• 1903: Emma Lazarus's sonnet "The New Colossus" is engraved on a plaque affixed to the base. HISTORY notes it welcomed immigrants with the line "Give me your tired, your poor". It was added 17 years after the dedication.
• 1916: The torch is altered, with much of the original copper replaced by stained glass. Public access to the torch has been barred since 1916.
• October 15, 1924: President Calvin Coolidge declares the statue a national monument.
• 1984: It is designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site (reference 307).
• 1986: The torch is replaced, and the current flame is covered in 24-karat gold.

Why the anniversary matters

The dedication is a case study in symbolic diplomacy. A monument born of a French political idea became a shared project that needed money from both countries. It also became a symbol of welcome only gradually, since the Lazarus plaque came later.

For Indian readers, the statue is a familiar image in discussions of immigration and the US-India relationship, though that link comes from later history and not from the 1886 ceremony itself.

Practical details to check

• Anniversary count: 2026 minus 1886 is 140 years.
• Programmes: the National Park Service and the Statue of Liberty-Ellis Island Foundation publish visitor information. We did not open them, so check them for any events on October 28.
• Torch access: visitors cannot climb to the torch, which has been closed since 1916.

Frequently asked questions

Who dedicated the Statue of Liberty?

President Grover Cleveland presided over the dedication on October 28, 1886.

Who designed it?

Frederic Auguste Bartholdi designed the statue, and Gustave Eiffel designed its iron framework.

Was the poem on the statue in 1886?

No. Wikipedia says Emma Lazarus's sonnet was engraved on a plaque in 1903.

Was there a fireworks display?

It was postponed to November 1 because of poor weather, according to Wikipedia.

Conclusion

The Statue of Liberty took two countries, a newspaper campaign and about two decades to complete. For the wider October 28 picture, see our October 28 overview. For another October milestone in world affairs, read about United Nations Day.