109-526: The Levallois Sporting Club is a multi-sport athletic club located in Levallois-Perret , France. Founded in 1983, it is now organised into 32 sports and counts 14,500 members. It is one of the most important sports club in France and one that links amateurs and professionals. Among the notable members of the club are Teddy Riner , Marie-Claire Restoux and Jean-Philippe Gatien . The Levallois Sporting Club
218-575: A 2000 report, however, deemed this a legend traced to an 1885 fundraising pamphlet, and that the statue was most likely conceived in 1870. In another essay on their website, the Park Service suggested that Laboulaye was minded to honor the Union victory and its consequences, "With the abolition of slavery and the Union's victory in the Civil War in 1865, Laboulaye's wishes of freedom and democracy were turning into
327-613: A 76-foot Giovanni Battista Crespi 's sculpture in repoussé copper covering an iron armature at Lago Maggiore in Italy, and was familiar with the similar construction of the Vercingétorix monument by Aimé Millet ; the restoration of Millet's statue a century later called international attention to the Statue of Liberty's poor state. Copper was chosen over bronze or stone due to its lower cost, weight, and ease of transportation. Any large project
436-409: A changing perspective on the statue as they proceeded toward Manhattan. He gave it bold classical contours and applied simplified modeling, reflecting the huge scale of the project and its solemn purpose. Bartholdi wrote of his technique: The surfaces should be broad and simple, defined by a bold and clear design, accentuated in the important places. The enlargement of the details or their multiplicity
545-413: A classical contrapposto pose that looks stationary when viewed from the front, but dynamic when viewed from the side, signifying a solid footing and a posture more relaxed than that of two feet set side by side, and introducing a sense of tension between standing and moving forward, both physically and mentally. The upright form and outstretched leg may have also helped to stabilize the statue. Bartholdi
654-486: A cleanup of Bedloe's Island in anticipation of the dedication. General Charles Stone claimed on the day of dedication that no man had died during the construction of the statue; this was not true, as Francis Longo, a thirty-nine-year-old Italian laborer, had been killed when an old wall fell on him. When built, the statue was reddish-brown and shiny, but within twenty years it had oxidized to its current green color through reactions with air, water and acidic pollution, forming
763-421: A condition known as Morton's toe or 'Greek foot'. This was an aesthetic staple of ancient Greek art and reflects the classical influences on the statue. Crawford's statue was designed in the early 1850s. It was originally to be crowned with a pileus or " liberty cap ", the cap given to emancipated slaves in ancient Rome. Secretary of War Jefferson Davis , a Southerner who would later serve as President of
872-527: A coppersmith in the southern French town of Montauban . By 1882, the statue was complete up to the waist, an event Bartholdi celebrated by inviting reporters to lunch on a platform built within the statue. Laboulaye died in 1883. He was succeeded as chairman of the French committee by Lesseps. The completed statue was formally presented to Ambassador Morton at a ceremony in Paris on July 4, 1884, and Lesseps announced that
981-468: A disused army base on Bedloe's Island constructed between 1807 and 1811. Since 1823, it had rarely been used, though during the Civil War, it had served as a recruiting station. The fortifications of the structure were in the shape of an eleven-point star. The statue's foundation and pedestal were aligned so that it would face southeast, greeting ships entering the harbor from the Atlantic Ocean. In 1881,
1090-572: A dollar as "the money we saved to go to the circus with." Another dollar was given by a "lonely and very aged woman." Residents of a home for alcoholics in New York's rival city of Brooklyn—the cities would not merge until 1898—donated $ 15; other drinkers helped out through donation boxes in bars and saloons. A kindergarten class in Davenport, Iowa , mailed the World a gift of $ 1.35. As the donations flooded in,
1199-402: A drive to raise $ 30,000 (equivalent to $ 840,000 in 2023) for an exterior lighting system to illuminate the statue at night. He claimed over 80,000 contributors, but failed to reach the goal. The difference was quietly made up by a gift from a wealthy donor—a fact that was not revealed until 1936. An underwater power cable brought electricity from the mainland and floodlights were placed along
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#17331145246381308-631: A foreign country not having French citizenship at birth. An immigrant may have acquired French citizenship since moving to France, but is still considered an immigrant in French statistics. On the other hand, persons born in France with foreign citizenship (the children of immigrants) are not listed as immigrants. Clockwise from the north: Levallois-Perret makes up the whole of the canton of Levallois-Perret . Alstom has its headquarters in Levallois-Perret. Speed Rabbit Pizza also has its headquarters in
1417-585: A glowworm than a beacon." Bartholdi suggested gilding the statue to increase its ability to reflect light, but this proved too expensive. The United States Lighthouse Board took over the Statue of Liberty in 1887 and pledged to install equipment to enhance the torch's effect; in spite of its efforts, the statue remained virtually invisible at night. When Bartholdi returned to the United States in 1893, he made additional suggestions, all of which proved ineffective. He did successfully lobby for improved lighting within
1526-477: A half-clothed Liberty leads an armed mob over the bodies of the fallen. Laboulaye had no sympathy for revolution, and so Bartholdi's figure would be fully dressed in flowing robes. Instead of the impression of violence in the Delacroix work, Bartholdi wished to give the statue a peaceful appearance and chose a torch, representing progress, for the figure to hold. Its second toe on both feet is longer than its big toe,
1635-623: A huge painting of the statue to be shown in New York as part of the Centennial festivities. The arm did not arrive in Philadelphia until August; because of its late arrival, it was not listed in the exhibition catalogue, and while some reports correctly identified the work, others called it the "Colossal Arm" or "Bartholdi Electric Light". The exhibition grounds contained a number of monumental artworks to compete for fairgoers' interest, including an outsized fountain designed by Bartholdi. Nevertheless,
1744-484: A layer of verdigris which protects the copper from further corrosion. A ceremony of dedication was held on the afternoon of October 28, 1886. President Grover Cleveland, the former New York governor, presided over the event. On the morning of the dedication, a parade was held in New York City; estimates of the number of people who watched it ranged from several hundred thousand to a million. President Cleveland headed
1853-498: A number of groups about the project, and urged the formation of American committees of the Franco-American Union. Committees to raise money to pay for the foundation and pedestal were formed in New York, Boston, and Philadelphia. The New York group eventually took on most of the responsibility for American fundraising and is often referred to as the "American Committee". One of its members was 19-year-old Theodore Roosevelt ,
1962-688: A plan to build Progress or Egypt Carrying the Light to Asia , a huge lighthouse in the form of an ancient Egyptian female fellah or peasant, robed and holding a torch aloft, at the northern entrance to the Suez Canal in Port Said . Sketches and models were made of the proposed work, though it was never erected. There was a classical precedent for the Suez proposal, the Colossus of Rhodes : an ancient bronze statue of
2071-406: A reality in the United States. In order to honor these achievements, Laboulaye proposed that a gift be built for the United States on behalf of France. Laboulaye hoped that by calling attention to the recent achievements of the United States, the French people would be inspired to call for their own democracy in the face of a repressive monarchy." According to sculptor Bartholdi, who later recounted
2180-450: A respectable living for himself and family, without being ku-kluxed , perhaps murdered, his daughter and wife outraged, and his property destroyed. The idea of the "liberty" of this country "enlightening the world," or even Patagonia , is ridiculous in the extreme. When the torch was illuminated on the evening of the statue's dedication, it produced only a faint gleam, barely visible from Manhattan. The World characterized it as "more like
2289-448: A symbolic act, the first rivet placed into the skin, fixing a copper plate onto the statue's big toe, was driven by United States Ambassador to France Levi P. Morton . The skin was not, however, crafted in exact sequence from low to high; work proceeded on a number of segments simultaneously in a manner often confusing to visitors. Some work was performed by contractors—one of the fingers was made to Bartholdi's exacting specifications by
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#17331145246382398-567: A week before the dedication, the Army Corps of Engineers vetoed the proposal, fearing that ships' pilots passing the statue would be blinded. Instead, Bartholdi cut portholes in the torch—which was covered with gold leaf —and placed the lights inside them. A power plant was installed on the island to light the torch and for other electrical needs. After the skin was completed, landscape architect Frederick Law Olmsted , co-designer of Manhattan's Central Park and Brooklyn's Prospect Park , supervised
2507-783: Is a commune in the Hauts-de-Seine department and Île-de-France region of north-central France. It lies on the right bank of the Seine , some 6 km (3.7 mi) from the centre of Paris in the north-western suburbs of the French capital. It is the most densely populated town in Europe and, together with neighbouring Neuilly-sur-Seine , one of the most expensive suburbs of Paris. The name Levallois-Perret comes from two housing developments, Champerret (started by landowner Jean-Jacques Perret in 1822) and Village Levallois (founded by developer Nicolas-Eugène Levallois in 1845), which resulted in
2616-425: Is fragmented with architectural detail, in order to focus attention on the statue. In form, it is a truncated pyramid, 62 feet (19 m) square at the base and 39.4 feet (12.0 m) at the top. The four sides are identical in appearance. Above the door on each side, there are ten disks upon which Bartholdi proposed to place the coats of arms of the states (between 1876 and 1889, there were 38 of them), although this
2725-520: Is now the south-western part of Levallois-Perret. Landowner Jean-Jacques Perret initiated a number of housing developments in 1822 in the northeast of the commune of Neuilly-sur-Seine, in a place which soon came to be known as Champerret ("champ Perret": "Perret field") and would later give its name to a station on the Paris Métro. Later in 1845, Nicolas-Eugène Levallois began to develop housing on behalf of André Noël , who owned land near La Planchette (in
2834-721: Is one of the most important in France with 14 500 members and a string of well-known sportsmen like Teddy Riner or Maureen Nisima . The club's former basketball section merged with Paris Basket Racing in 2007 to form Paris-Levallois Basket, which in turn renamed itself Levallois Metropolitans in 2017 and Metropolitans 92 in 2019. Since 1983, the Levallois Sporting Club has won 24 Olympic medals, 146 world championships medals and 130 European championships medals. Its most famous discipline are fencing, judo and table tennis. Levallois-Perret Levallois-Perret ( French pronunciation: [ləvalwa pɛʁɛ] )
2943-432: Is to be feared. By exaggerating the forms, in order to render them more clearly visible, or by enriching them with details, we would destroy the proportion of the work. Finally, the model, like the design, should have a summarized character, such as one would give to a rapid sketch. Only it is necessary that this character should be the product of volition and study, and that the artist, concentrating his knowledge, should find
3052-613: Is traced to a mid-1865 conversation between Laboulaye, a staunch abolitionist , and Frédéric Auguste Bartholdi , a sculptor. In after-dinner conversation at his home near Versailles , Laboulaye, an ardent supporter of the Union in the American Civil War , is supposed to have said: "If a monument should rise in the United States, as a memorial to their independence, I should think it only natural if it were built by united effort—a common work of both our nations." The National Park Service, in
3161-495: The Confederate States of America , was concerned that the pileus would be taken as an abolitionist symbol. He ordered that it be changed to a helmet. Delacroix's figure wears a pileus , and Bartholdi at first considered placing one on his figure as well. Instead, he used a radiate halo , nimbus , to top its head. In so doing, he avoided a reference to Marianne, who invariably wears a pileus . Many believed they evoke
3270-493: The Eiffel factory in the nearby Parisian suburb of Levallois-Perret . The change in structural material from masonry to iron allowed Bartholdi to change his plans for the statue's assembly. He had originally expected to assemble the skin on-site as the masonry pier was built; instead, he decided to build the statue in France and have it disassembled and transported to the United States for reassembly in place on Bedloe's Island. In
3379-462: The Transilien Paris ;– Saint-Lazare suburban rail line. The municipality of Levallois-Perret operates two free bus lines circulating the town. Levallois Sporting Club is one of the most important sports club in France with 14500 members. Among them you can find notable sportsperson like Teddy Riner , Gauthier Grumier and Gévrise Émane . During his youth Didier Drogba played for
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3488-409: The U.S. Declaration of Independence . With her left foot she steps on a broken chain and shackle , commemorating the national abolition of slavery following the American Civil War . After its dedication the statue became an icon of freedom and of the United States, being subsequently seen as a symbol of welcome to immigrants arriving by sea. The idea for the statue was conceived in 1865, when
3597-594: The 18th and 19th centuries striving to evoke republican ideals commonly used representations of Libertas as an allegorical symbol. A figure of Liberty was also depicted on the Great Seal of France . However, Bartholdi and Laboulaye avoided an image of revolutionary liberty such as that depicted in Eugène Delacroix 's famed Liberty Leading the People (1830). In this painting, which commemorates France's July Revolution ,
3706-415: The 2010s is now known as Metropolitans 92 . The traditional coat of arms for the municipality puts emphasis on the importance of industry in its history. The centre of the arms consists of a shield with red background; a yellow gearwheel in the bottom left and a yellow perfume diffuser in the top right represent the mechanical and perfume industries. Three red bees , are depicted on a silver bend from
3815-458: The Atlantic was insufficiently supportive of the proposal, and he and Laboulaye decided to wait before mounting a public campaign. Bartholdi had made a first model of his concept in 1870. The son of a friend of Bartholdi's, artist John LaFarge , later maintained that Bartholdi made the first sketches for the statue during his visit to La Farge's Rhode Island studio. Bartholdi continued to develop
3924-502: The Atlantic, with letters of introduction signed by Laboulaye. Arriving at New York Harbor , Bartholdi focused on Bedloe's Island (now named Liberty Island ) as a site for the statue, struck by the fact that vessels arriving in New York had to sail past it. He was delighted to learn that the island was owned by the United States government—it had been ceded by the New York State Legislature in 1800 for harbor defense. It
4033-596: The Beattie Quarry in Branford, Connecticut . The concrete mass was the largest poured to that time. Norwegian immigrant civil engineer Joachim Goschen Giæver designed the structural framework for the Statue of Liberty. His work involved design computations, detailed fabrication and construction drawings, and oversight of construction. In completing his engineering for the statue's frame, Giæver worked from drawings and sketches produced by Gustave Eiffel. Fundraising in
4142-599: The French attempt to build the Panama Canal . The copper may have come from multiple sources and some of it is said to have come from a mine in Visnes , Norway, though this has not been conclusively determined after testing samples. According to Cara Sutherland in her book on the statue for the Museum of the City of New York , 200,000 pounds (91,000 kg) was needed to build the statue, and
4251-552: The French copper industrialist Eugène Secrétan donated 128,000 pounds (58,000 kg) of copper. Although plans for the statue had not been finalized, Bartholdi moved forward with fabrication of the right arm, bearing the torch, and the head. Work began at the Gaget, Gauthier & Co. workshop. In May 1876, Bartholdi traveled to the United States as a member of a French delegation to the Centennial Exhibition, and arranged for
4360-458: The French government had agreed to pay for its transport to New York. The statue remained intact in Paris pending sufficient progress on the pedestal; by January 1885, this had occurred and the statue was disassembled and crated for its ocean voyage. The committees in the United States faced great difficulties in obtaining funds for the construction of the pedestal. The Panic of 1873 had led to an economic depression that persisted through much of
4469-406: The French historian and abolitionist Édouard de Laboulaye proposed a monument to commemorate the upcoming centennial of U.S. independence (1876), the perseverance of American democracy and the liberation of the nation's slaves. The Franco-Prussian War delayed progress until 1875, when Laboulaye proposed that the people of France finance the statue and the United States provide the site and build
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4578-552: The Greek god of the sun, Helios . This statue is believed to have been over 100 feet (30 m) high, and it similarly stood at a harbor entrance and carried a light to guide ships. Both the khedive and Ferdinand de Lesseps , developer of the Suez Canal, declined the proposed statue from Bartholdi, citing the high cost. The Port Said Lighthouse was built instead, by François Coignet in 1869. Upon his return from Egypt, Bartholdi visited
4687-505: The New York committee commissioned Richard Morris Hunt to design the pedestal. Within months, Hunt submitted a detailed plan, indicating that he expected construction to take about nine months. He proposed a pedestal 114 feet (35 m) in height; faced with money problems, the committee reduced that to 89 feet (27 m). Hunt's pedestal design contains elements of classical architecture, including Doric portals, as well as some elements influenced by Aztec architecture . The large mass
4796-467: The New York committee, Senator William M. Evarts . A French flag draped across the statue's face was to be lowered to unveil the statue at the close of Evarts's speech, but Bartholdi mistook a pause as the conclusion and let the flag fall prematurely. The ensuing cheers put an end to Evarts's address. President Cleveland spoke next, stating that the statue's "stream of light shall pierce the darkness of ignorance and man's oppression until Liberty enlightens
4905-504: The Statue of Liberty. Bartholdi and Laboulaye considered how best to express the idea of American liberty. In early American history, two female figures were frequently used as cultural symbols of the nation. One of these symbols, the personified Columbia , was seen as an embodiment of the United States in the manner that Britannia was identified with the United Kingdom, and Marianne came to represent France. Columbia had supplanted
5014-479: The U.S. for the pedestal had begun in 1882. The committee organized a large number of money-raising events. As part of one such effort, an auction of art and manuscripts, poet Emma Lazarus was asked to donate an original work. She initially declined, stating she could not write a poem about a statue. At the time, she was also involved in aiding refugees to New York who had fled antisemitic pogroms in eastern Europe . These refugees were forced to live in conditions that
5123-413: The United States in the late 19th and early 20th century; many entered through New York and saw the statue not as a symbol of enlightenment, as Bartholdi had intended, but as a sign of welcome to their new home. The association with immigration only became stronger when an immigrant processing station was opened on nearby Ellis Island. This view was consistent with Lazarus's vision in her sonnet—she described
5232-463: The World . The French people were to finance the statue (contrary to the common misconception of it being funded by the French national government); and Americans would be expected to pay for the pedestal. The announcement provoked a generally favorable reaction in France, though many Frenchmen resented the United States for not coming to their aid during the war with Prussia . French monarchists opposed
5341-474: The arm proved popular in the exhibition's waning days, and visitors would climb up to the balcony of the torch to view the fairgrounds. After the exhibition closed, the arm was transported to New York City, where it remained on display in Madison Square Park for several years before it was returned to France to join the rest of the statue. During his second trip to the United States, Bartholdi addressed
5450-460: The bank, suspended work on the pedestal. With the project in jeopardy, groups from other American cities, including Boston and Philadelphia, offered to pay the full cost of erecting the statue in return for relocating it. Joseph Pulitzer , publisher of the New York World , a New York newspaper, announced a drive to raise $ 100,000 (equivalent to $ 3,391,000 in 2023). Pulitzer pledged to print
5559-444: The classical Colossus of Rhodes as a frightening symbol, with the new "American colossus" as a "beacon to the lost and hopeless". Even with these efforts, fundraising lagged. Grover Cleveland , the governor of New York , vetoed a bill to provide $ 50,000 for the statue project in 1884. An attempt the next year to have Congress provide $ 100,000, sufficient to complete the project, also failed. The New York committee, with only $ 3,000 in
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#17331145246385668-451: The committee resumed work on the pedestal. France raised about $ 250,000 to build the statue, while the United States had to raise up to $ 300,000 to build the pedestal. On June 17, 1885, the French steamer Isère arrived in New York with the crates holding the disassembled statue on board. New Yorkers displayed their newfound enthusiasm for the statue. Two hundred thousand people lined the docks and hundreds of boats put to sea to welcome
5777-483: The commune of Clichy). The land developed by Levallois soon became known as the Village Levallois. In the 1860s, the village had grown to the point of forming a single built-up area and several requests were made to the authorities for the area to be incorporated as a commune. Eventually the requests were acceded to and on 30 June 1866 the commune of Levallois-Perret was eventually created by detaching that part of
5886-574: The commune. EVA Air has its Paris office in Levallois-Perret. According to Le Journal du Net , the debt per inhabitant of Levallois is 9,030 euros, the French record. Saft Groupe S.A. , a subsidiary of Total S.A. in the battery manufacturing industry, is also based in Levallois-Perret. Previously, Carrefour had its head office in Levallois-Perret. Public preschools and elementary schools: Public preschools: Public elementary schools: Private preschools and elementary schools: Junior high schools (public junior high schools are operated by
5995-619: The concept following his return to France. He also worked on a number of sculptures designed to bolster French patriotism after the defeat by the Prussians. One of these was the Lion of Belfort , a monumental sculpture carved in sandstone below the fortress of Belfort , which during the war had resisted a Prussian siege for over three months. The defiant lion, 73 feet (22 m) long and half that in height, displays an emotional quality characteristic of Romanticism , which Bartholdi would later bring to
6104-399: The conglomerate Alstom . The northern part of the famous Île de la Jatte , in the river Seine, is where French impressionist painters created many of their masterpieces. Patrick Balkany had been the mayor of Levallois-Perret from 2001 until 2020. He was also mayor during the period 1983–95. The current mayor, elected in 2020, is Agnès Pottier-Dumas. An immigrant is a person born in
6213-437: The construction work. Construction on the 15-foot-deep (4.6 m) foundation began in 1883, and the pedestal's cornerstone was laid in 1884. In Hunt's original conception, the pedestal was to have been made of solid granite . Financial concerns again forced him to revise his plans; the final design called for poured concrete walls, up to 20 feet (6.1 m) thick, faced with granite blocks. This Stony Creek granite came from
6322-412: The copper skin and the iron support structure, Eiffel insulated the skin with asbestos impregnated with shellac . Eiffel's design made the statue one of the earliest examples of curtain wall construction, in which the exterior of the structure is not load bearing , but is instead supported by an interior framework. He included two interior spiral staircases , to make it easier for visitors to reach
6431-453: The copper skin to his proposed masonry pier. The following year, Bartholdi was able to obtain the services of the innovative designer and builder Gustave Eiffel . Eiffel and his structural engineer, Maurice Koechlin , decided to abandon the pier and instead build an iron truss tower. Eiffel opted not to use a completely rigid structure, which would force stresses to accumulate in the skin and lead eventually to cracking. A secondary skeleton
6540-445: The crush of people. The restriction offended area suffragists , who chartered a boat and got as close as they could to the island. The group's leaders made speeches applauding the embodiment of Liberty as a woman and advocating women's right to vote. A scheduled fireworks display was postponed until November 1 because of poor weather. Shortly after the dedication, The Cleveland Gazette , an African American newspaper, suggested that
6649-469: The decade. The Liberty statue project was not the only such undertaking that had difficulty raising money: construction of the obelisk later known as the Washington Monument sometimes stalled for years; it would ultimately take over three-and-a-half decades to complete. There was criticism both of Bartholdi's statue and of the fact that the gift required Americans to foot the bill for the pedestal. In
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#17331145246386758-435: The department of Hauts-de-Seine): Senior high schools/sixth-form colleges (public high schools/sixth-form colleges are operated by the Île-de-France region ): Lycée Montalembert is in nearby Courbevoie Post-secondary: Levallois-Perret is served by three stations on Paris Métro Line 3 : Louise Michel , Anatole France , and Pont de Levallois – Bécon . It is also served by Clichy – Levallois station on
6867-488: The establishment there of such companies as Clément-Bayard , Delage , and the coachbuilders Chapron and Faget & Varnet . Citroën purchased the Clément-Bayard factory and produced the famous Citroën 2CV there for nearly forty years. Levallois-Perret was also an important centre of the cosmetics industry in the early 20th century. It is also home to the large European commercial real estate company Atisreal and to
6976-518: The face was modeled after that of Augusta Charlotte Beysser Bartholdi, the sculptor's mother, but Regis Huber, the curator of the Bartholdi Museum is on record as saying that this, as well as other similar speculations, have no basis in fact. He designed the figure with austere face and a strong, uncomplicated silhouette, which would be set off well by its dramatic harbor placement and allow passengers on vessels entering New York Bay to experience
7085-497: The football section, as Joakim Noah did in basketball before moving to the United States for high school and college play and eventually the NBA. LSC continues to operate teams in a wide variety of sports, but basketball is no longer among them. In 2007, the LSC basketball section merged with Paris Basket Racing , creating Paris-Levallois Basket, which after two name changes in the last half of
7194-487: The foreigners here. Give me a chance to prove that I am worth it, to do something, to be someone in America." And always that statue was on my mind. The statue rapidly became a landmark. Originally, it was a dull copper color, but shortly after 1900 a green patina , also called verdigris , caused by the oxidation of the copper skin, began to spread. As early as 1902 it was mentioned in the press; by 1906 it had entirely covered
7303-403: The form and the line in its greatest simplicity. Bartholdi made alterations in the design as the project evolved. Bartholdi considered having Liberty hold a broken chain, but decided this would be too divisive in the days after the Civil War. The erected statue does stride over a broken chain, half-hidden by her robes and difficult to see from the ground. Her right foot is raised and set back, in
7412-577: The future governor of New York and president of the United States. On March 3, 1877, on his final full day in office, President Grant signed a joint resolution that authorized the President to accept the statue when it was presented by France and to select a site for it. President Rutherford B. Hayes , who took office the following day, selected the Bedloe's Island site that Bartholdi had proposed. On his return to Paris in 1877, Bartholdi concentrated on completing
7521-590: The head, which was exhibited at the 1878 Paris World's Fair . Fundraising continued, with models of the statue put on sale. Tickets to view the construction activity at the Gaget, Gauthier & Co. workshop were also offered. The French government authorized a lottery; among the prizes were valuable silver plate and a terracotta model of the statue. By the end of 1879, about 250,000 francs had been raised. The head and arm had been built with assistance from Viollet-le-Duc , who fell ill in 1879. He soon died, leaving no indication of how he intended to transition from
7630-550: The incorporation of the commune. On the territory of what is now Levallois-Perret, before the French Revolution , stood the village of Villiers and the hamlet of Courcelles (or La Planchette). They now give their names to two Paris Métro stations. At the time of the creation of French communes during the French Revolution, they were part of the commune of Clichy , and the commune of Neuilly-sur-Seine extended over what
7739-537: The municipality. Statue of Liberty The Statue of Liberty ( Liberty Enlightening the World ; French : La Liberté éclairant le monde ) is a colossal neoclassical sculpture on Liberty Island in New York Harbor , within New York City . The copper -clad statue, a gift to the United States from the people of France , was designed by French sculptor Frédéric Auguste Bartholdi and its metal framework
7848-455: The name of every contributor, no matter how small the amount given. The drive captured the imagination of New Yorkers, especially when Pulitzer began publishing the notes he received from contributors. "A young girl alone in the world" donated "60 cents, the result of self denial." One donor gave "five cents as a poor office boy's mite toward the Pedestal Fund." A group of children sent
7957-410: The observation point in the crown. Access to an observation platform surrounding the torch was also provided, but the narrowness of the arm allowed for only a single ladder, 40 feet (12 m) long. As the pylon tower arose, Eiffel and Bartholdi coordinated their work carefully so that completed segments of skin would fit exactly on the support structure. The components of the pylon tower were built in
8066-682: The outlines of the Statue and made it beautiful." The statue was painted only on the inside. The Corps of Engineers also installed an elevator to take visitors from the base to the top of the pedestal. On July 30, 1916, during World War I, German saboteurs set off a disastrous explosion on the Black Tom peninsula in Jersey City, New Jersey , in what is now part of Liberty State Park , close to Bedloe's Island. Carloads of dynamite and other explosives that were being sent to Russia for its war efforts were detonated. The statue sustained minor damage, mostly to
8175-477: The parade passed the New York Stock Exchange, traders threw ticker tape from the windows, beginning the New York tradition of the ticker-tape parade . A nautical parade began at 12:45 p.m., and President Cleveland embarked on a yacht that took him across the harbor to Bedloe's Island for the dedication. Lesseps made the first speech, on behalf of the French committee, followed by the chairman of
8284-439: The pedestal was threatened by lack of funds. Publisher Joseph Pulitzer , of the New York World , started a drive for donations to finish the project and attracted more than 120,000 contributors, most of whom gave less than a dollar (equivalent to $ 34 in 2023). The statue was built in France, shipped overseas in crates, and assembled on the completed pedestal on what was then called Bedloe's Island. The statue's completion
8393-641: The pedestal. Bartholdi completed the head and the torch-bearing arm before the statue was fully designed, and these pieces were exhibited for publicity at international expositions. The torch-bearing arm was displayed at the Centennial Exposition in Philadelphia in 1876, and in Madison Square Park in Manhattan from 1876 to 1882. Fundraising proved difficult, especially for the Americans, and by 1885 work on
8502-466: The procession, then stood in the reviewing stand to see bands and marchers from across America. General Stone was the grand marshal of the parade. The route began at Madison Square , once the venue for the arm, and proceeded to the Battery at the southern tip of Manhattan by way of Fifth Avenue and Broadway , with a slight detour so the parade could pass in front of the World building on Park Row . As
8611-415: The project. As chief engineer, Viollet-le-Duc proposed designing a brick pier filled with sand within the statue up to the hips, with iron bars like veins of a leaf to which the skin would be anchored. After consultations with the metalwork foundry Gaget, Gauthier & Co., Viollet-le-Duc chose the metal which would be used for the skin, copper sheets, and the method used to shape it, repoussé , in which
8720-551: The rim of the pedestal and the interior of the statue's crown from within; public access to the torch has been barred since 1916. According to the National Park Service , the idea of a monument presented by the French people to the United States was first proposed by Édouard René de Laboulaye , president of the French Anti-Slavery Society and a prominent and important political thinker of his time. The project
8829-467: The sheets were heated and then struck with wooden hammers. An advantage of this choice was that the entire statue would be light for its volume, as the copper need be only 0.094 inches (2.4 mm) thick. Bartholdi had decided on a height of just over 151 feet (46 m) for the statue, double that of Italy's Sancarlone and the German statue of Arminius , both made with the same method. By 1875, France
8938-417: The ship. After five months' daily calls to donate to the statue fund, on August 11, 1885, the World announced that $ 102,000 had been raised from 120,000 donors, and that 80 percent of the total had been received in sums of less than one dollar (equivalent to $ 34 in 2023). Even with the success of the fund drive, the pedestal was not completed until April 1886. Immediately thereafter, reassembly of
9047-456: The statue as "Mother of Exiles"—but her work had become obscure. In 1903, the sonnet was engraved on a plaque that was affixed to the base of the statue. Oral histories of immigrants record their feelings of exhilaration on first viewing the Statue of Liberty. One immigrant who arrived from Greece recalled: I saw the Statue of Liberty. And I said to myself, "Lady, you're such a beautiful! [ sic ] You opened your arms and you get all
9156-413: The statue began. Eiffel's iron framework was anchored to steel I-beams within the concrete pedestal and assembled. Once this was done, the sections of skin were carefully attached. Due to the width of the pedestal, it was not possible to erect scaffolding , and workers dangled from ropes while installing the skin sections. Bartholdi had planned to put floodlights on the torch's balcony to illuminate it;
9265-549: The statue's announced name. Initially focused on the elites, the Union was successful in raising funds from across French society. Schoolchildren and ordinary citizens gave, as did 181 French municipalities. Laboulaye's political allies supported the call, as did descendants of the French contingent in the American Revolutionary War . Less idealistically, contributions came from those who hoped for American support in
9374-509: The statue's torch not be lit until the United States became a free nation "in reality": "Liberty enlightening the world," indeed! The expression makes us sick. This government is a howling farce. It can not or rather does not protect its citizens within its own borders. Shove the Bartholdi statue, torch and all, into the ocean until the "liberty" of this country is such as to make it possible for an inoffensive and industrious colored man to earn
9483-606: The statue, allowing visitors to better appreciate Eiffel's design. In 1901, President Theodore Roosevelt, once a member of the New York committee, ordered the statue's transfer to the War Department , as it had proved useless as a lighthouse. A unit of the Army Signal Corps was stationed on Bedloe's Island until 1923, after which military police remained there while the island was under military jurisdiction. Wars and other upheavals in Europe prompted large-scale emigration to
9592-470: The statue, if for no other reason than it was proposed by the liberal Laboulaye, who had recently been elected a senator for life . Laboulaye arranged events designed to appeal to the rich and powerful, including a special performance at the Paris Opera on April 25, 1876, that featured a new cantata by the composer Charles Gounod . The piece was titled La Liberté éclairant le monde , the French version of
9701-417: The statue. Believing that the patina was evidence of corrosion, Congress authorized US$ 62,800 (equivalent to $ 2,130,000 in 2023) for various repairs, and to paint the statue both inside and out. There was considerable public protest against the proposed exterior painting. The Army Corps of Engineers studied the patina for any ill effects to the statue and concluded that it protected the skin, "softened
9810-438: The story, Laboulaye's alleged comment was not intended as a proposal, but it inspired Bartholdi. Given the repressive nature of the regime of Napoleon III , Bartholdi took no immediate action on the idea except to discuss it with Laboulaye. Bartholdi was in any event busy with other possible projects. In 1856, he traveled to Egypt to study ancient works. In the late 1860s, he approached Isma'il Pasha , Khedive of Egypt , with
9919-441: The sun, the seven seas, and the seven continents, and represent another means, besides the torch, whereby Liberty enlightens the world, but research has not confirmed this. Bartholdi's early models were all similar in concept: a female figure in neoclassical style representing liberty, wearing a stola and pella (gown and cloak, common in depictions of Roman goddesses) and holding a torch aloft. According to popular accounts,
10028-514: The territory of Clichy on which the Village Levallois stood and merging it with that part of Neuilly-sur-Seine occupied by Champerret. The Eiffel company had its factory in the commune, and it was therefore in Levallois-Perret that the structures of both the Statue of Liberty and the Eiffel Tower were built. Levallois-Perret became an important centre of the early French automotive industry with
10137-711: The time, and representations of Liberty appeared in popular and civic art, including Thomas Crawford 's Statue of Freedom (1863) atop the dome of the United States Capitol Building . The statue's design evokes iconography evident in ancient history including the Egyptian goddess Isis , the ancient Greek deity of the same name, the Roman Columbia and the Christian iconography of the Virgin Mary . Artists of
10246-401: The top left to bottom right of the shield, these are another symbol of work in the city, beekeeping taking place at the île de la Jatte . The coat of arms also has a wreath at the bottom around the shield and three castles topping the shield; both in yellow. VILLE DE / LEVALLOIS – PERRET, is inscribed in black letters above the coat of arms. A cartoon-style bee is used in the modern emblem of
10355-400: The torch-bearing right arm, and was closed for ten days. The cost to repair the statue and buildings on the island was about $ 100,000 (equivalent to about $ 2,800,000 in 2023). The narrow ascent to the torch was closed for public-safety reasons, and it has remained closed ever since. That same year, Ralph Pulitzer , who had succeeded his father Joseph as publisher of the World , began
10464-529: The traditional European Personification of the Americas as an "Indian princess", which had come to be regarded as uncivilized and derogatory toward Americans. The other significant female icon in American culture was a representation of Liberty , derived from Libertas , the goddess of freedom widely worshipped in ancient Rome , especially among emancipated slaves . A Liberty figure adorned most American coins of
10573-408: The wealthy Lazarus had never experienced. She saw a way to express her empathy for these refugees in terms of the statue. The resulting sonnet , " The New Colossus ", including the lines "Give me your tired, your poor/Your huddled masses yearning to breathe free", is uniquely identified with the Statue of Liberty in American culture and is inscribed on a plaque in its museum. Lazarus's poem contrasted
10682-400: The whole figure' while they were about it, and given us statue and pedestal at once." The New York Times stated that "no true patriot can countenance any such expenditures for bronze females in the present state of our finances." Faced with these criticisms, the American committees took little action for several years. The foundation of Bartholdi's statue was to be laid inside Fort Wood ,
10791-443: The world". Bartholdi, observed near the dais, was called upon to speak, but he declined. Orator Chauncey M. Depew concluded the speechmaking with a lengthy address. No members of the general public were permitted on the island during the ceremonies, which were reserved entirely for dignitaries. The only women granted access were Bartholdi's wife and Lesseps's granddaughter; officials stated that they feared women might be injured in
10900-611: The years following the Civil War, most Americans preferred realistic artworks depicting heroes and events from the nation's history, rather than allegorical works like the Liberty statue. There was also a feeling that Americans should design American public works—the selection of Italian-born Constantino Brumidi to decorate the Capitol had provoked intense criticism, even though he was a naturalized U.S. citizen. Harper's Weekly declared its wish that "M. Bartholdi and our French cousins had 'gone
11009-489: Was attached to the center pylon, then, to enable the statue to move slightly in the winds of New York Harbor, and, since the metal would expand on hot summer days, he loosely connected the support structure to the skin using flat iron bars or springs, which culminated in a mesh of metal straps, known as "saddles", that were riveted to the skin, providing firm support. In a labor-intensive process, each saddle had to be crafted individually. To prevent galvanic corrosion between
11118-503: Was built by Gustave Eiffel . The statue was dedicated on October 28, 1886. The statue is a figure of a classically draped woman, likely inspired by the Roman goddess of liberty Libertas . In a contrapposto pose, she holds a torch above her head with her right hand, and in her left hand carries a tabula ansata inscribed JULY IV MDCCLXXVI (July 4, 1776, in Roman numerals ), the date of
11227-460: Was created in 1983. Before that, the club was called Entente Sportive Levalloisienne. At first, 12 sports were represented. By the way of its first president Patrick Balkany , the club grew quickly into a professional club. In 1988, eight Levalloisiens were selected for the Seoul Olympics . At this event, Frédéric Delpla , a fencer, became the first olympic champion of the club. Nowadays, the club
11336-411: Was enjoying improved political stability and a recovering postwar economy. Growing interest in the upcoming Centennial Exposition to be held in Philadelphia led Laboulaye to decide it was time to seek public support. In September 1875, he announced the project and the formation of the Franco-American Union as its fundraising arm. With the announcement, the statue was given a name, Liberty Enlightening
11445-571: Was further delayed by the Franco-Prussian War , in which Bartholdi served as a major of militia. In the war, Napoleon III was captured and deposed. Bartholdi's home province of Alsace was lost to the Prussians , and a more liberal republic was installed in France. As Bartholdi had been planning a trip to the United States, he and Laboulaye decided the time was right to discuss the idea with influential Americans. In June 1871, Bartholdi crossed
11554-515: Was initially uncertain of what to place in Liberty's left hand; he settled on a tabula ansata , used to evoke the concept of law. Though Bartholdi greatly admired the United States Constitution , he chose to inscribe JULY IV MDCCLXXVI on the tablet, thus associating the date of the country's Declaration of Independence with the concept of liberty. Bartholdi interested his friend and mentor, architect Eugène Viollet-le-Duc , in
11663-560: Was marked by New York's first ticker-tape parade and a dedication ceremony presided over by President Grover Cleveland . The statue was administered by the United States Lighthouse Board until 1901 and then by the Department of War ; since 1933, it has been maintained by the National Park Service as part of the Statue of Liberty National Monument , and is a major tourist attraction. Limited numbers of visitors can access
11772-432: Was not done. Above that, a balcony was placed on each side, framed by pillars. Bartholdi placed an observation platform near the top of the pedestal, above which the statue itself rises. According to author Louis Auchincloss , the pedestal "craggily evokes the power of an ancient Europe over which rises the dominating figure of the Statue of Liberty". The committee hired former army General Charles Pomeroy Stone to oversee
11881-454: Was thus, as he put it in a letter to Laboulaye: "land common to all the states." As well as meeting many influential New Yorkers, Bartholdi visited President Ulysses S. Grant , who assured him that it would not be difficult to obtain the site for the statue. Bartholdi crossed the United States twice by rail, and met many Americans whom he thought would be sympathetic to the project. But he remained concerned that popular opinion on both sides of
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