Today in NYC History: Google Doodle Celebrates Arrival of Statue of Liberty to New York Harbor

Though wildly beloved today, the Statue of Liberty faced an uphill climb in regards to its financing, here in America, particularly after the Panic of 1873. There was also some criticism of the statue itself, designed by sculptor Frédéric Auguste Bartholdi, with assistance from Gustav Eiffel who provided the engineering. There was grumbling that France should have also provided the base for the sculpture. It wasn’t until Joseph Pulitzer stepped in, announcing a fundraising drive. He promised to print the name of every contributor on his newspapers and even printed the notes he received from them. Although 80% of donations were less than $1, Pulitzer raised $102,000, equivalent to over $2.3 million today.

The pedestal was finished in 1886 and the sculpture was reassembled on Liberty Island, then Bedloe’s Island. Although the lights were initially intended to be attached to the balcony of the torch, the Army Corps of Engineers vetoed the idea–so Bartholdi cut holes in it to install the lights.

Next, discover the many replicas of the Statue of Liberty in NYC and Paris. There has been a lot of debate as to who the face of the Statue of Liberty was modeled after, find out the latest theory.