The island that the statue now stands on was previously occupied by Fort Wood, a U.S. military fortification. By the late 1880s, the fort was becoming obsolete, and part of the land was given over to the statue. Above, a view of the Statue of Liberty, standing above workers in Fort Wood, circa 1918.

On October 28, 1886, the statue of "Liberty Enlightening the World" was officially unveiled. The day's wet and foggy weather did not stop some one million New Yorkers from turning out to cheer for The Statue of Liberty. Parades on land and sea honored the Statue while flags and music filled the air and the official dedication took place beneath the colossus "glistening with rain." When it was time for Bartholdi to release the tricolor French flag that veiled Liberty's face, a roar of guns, whistles, and applause sounded.

Designed by sculptor Frederic-Auguste Bartholdi and officially titled Liberty Enlightening the World, the Statue of Liberty has symbolized freedom and democracy to the nation and to the world for well over a century. On average, 12,000 people descend on Liberty Island daily with numbers climbing as high as 25,000 visitors during the summer.