The story of the Statue of Liberty is the story of a symbol that touches each of us at the deepest possible levels of emotion. It is a story of epic vision, perseverance, and technological breakthroughs. Although it stretches the imagination to think of it, there was a time, only a century ago, when The Lady did not hold her torch aloft as a beacon of freedom to the world; when New York Harbor had no colossal statue and no skyline of towering buildings sparkling with electricity. There was a time when the American people, New Yorkers in particular, welcomed neither the concept nor the expense of this monument. In fact, she came very near to finding a permanent home in her native France for lack of funds to build her pedestal.
Yet, in the end, the people of America came through. Thousands of citizens donated their pennies and dollars to create a home for the glorious gift from the people of France-the statue they called Liberty Enlightening the World. One hundred years later, her image had become the premier symbol of the United States of America, and this time millions of us contributed our pennies and dollars without hesitation to restore and preserve the Statue of Liberty and her sister monument, Ellis Island, for generations to come. Today, more than two million people every year make the pilgrimage to Liberty Island to visit The Lady. It is a journey laden with profound meaning. Few can make it without a tightening of the throat and a strengthening of hope in the ideal of Liberty.