--- description: Lady Liberty arrived in New York on June 17, 1885 title: Statue of Liberty: See Photos From Before It Got to NYC image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blta02cd6047901edae/6988532f06f2c1d22b33a83d/150605-statue-of-liberty-10.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  * [History](/section/history/) ## History Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close * [photography](/tag/photography/) ## photography Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close # See Early Photos of the Statue of Liberty Before It Came to New York  by [Lily Rothman](/author/lily-rothman/)  ## Lily Rothman Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Rothman is managing editor at TIME. Jun 17, 2015 11:00 AM CUT  The Statue of Liberty seen on Liberty Island in New York Harbor, about a decade after her arrival, in 1898. The Statue of Liberty seen on Liberty Island in New York Harbor, about a decade after her arrival, in 1898.The New York Historical Society—Getty Images  by [Lily Rothman](/author/lily-rothman/)  ## Lily Rothman Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Rothman is managing editor at TIME. Jun 17, 2015 11:00 AM CUT According to legend, the Statue of Liberty came to sculptor Frédéric Auguste Bartholdi as a vision: sailing into New York Harbor in 1870, the French artist suddenly imaged the persona of liberty welcoming him. He sketched out his idea and immediately began pitching it to influential New Yorkers and his powerful countrymen. Though the New Yorkers saw him as a dreamer, the French saw him as someone with a perfect idea for a 100th birthday present for the United States. When 1876 rolled around, however, Lady Liberty still a work in progress. Bartholdi sent her hand and torch to be displayed at the Philadelphia Exposition, while he and Gustave Eiffel (as in the Eiffel Tower) worked on engineering the rest of her. He finished the job in 1884 and displayed it in Paris while the U.S. readied the pedestal. Then, as TIME [recounted](http://time.com/vault/issue/1936-11-09/page/31/ "undefined") in 1936, it was time to bring the statue across the Atlantic: --- > “” --- It was 130 years ago today, on June 17, 1885, that the ship and its precious cargo reached New York—and another year before reassembly was complete and the finished product could be unveiled. **_Read coverage from 1986 of the effort to refurbish the statute, here in the TIME Vault:_** [A Pair of American Islands](http://time.com/vault/issue/1986-07-07/page/20/ "undefined") ### The Face of Freedom: LIFE Portraits of the Statue of Liberty  Statue of Liberty, 1951. Margaret Bourke-White—Time & Life Pictures/Getty Images  Statue of Liberty, 1946. Andreas Feininger—Time & Life Pictures/Getty Images  Statue of Liberty, 1950. Margaret Bourke-White—Time & Life Pictures/Getty Images  Statue of Liberty, 1956. Dmitri Kessel—Time & Life Pictures/Getty Images  Statue of Liberty, 1951. Margaret Bourke-White—Time & Life Pictures/Getty Images  Statue of Liberty, 1959. Stan Wayman—Time & Life Pictures/Getty Images  Harry Belafonte speaks at a civil rights rally at the Statue of Liberty, 1960. Al Fenn—Time & Life Pictures/Getty Images  Korea's Children's Choir visits the Statue of Liberty, 1954. Peter Stackpole—Time & Life Pictures/Getty Images  Statue of Liberty, 1931. Pictures Inc.—Time & Life Pictures/Getty Images  Statue of Liberty, 1961. Howard Sochurek—Time & Life Pictures/Getty Images  Statue of Liberty, 1939. Margaret Bourke-White—Time & Life Pictures/Getty Images  Statue of Liberty, unknown date. Al Fenn—Time & Life Pictures/Getty Images  Statue of Liberty and New York Harbor, 1939. Margaret Bourke-White—Time & Life Pictures/Getty Images  Statue of Liberty seen during World War II, 1942. Andreas Feininger—Time & Life Pictures/Getty Images _Read next:_ [_9 Little Known Places to Visit in New York City (That Aren’t Tourist Traps)_](http://time.com/3633782/places-visit-new-york-city/?iid=time%5Freadnext "undefined") [_Listen to the most important stories of the day._](http://time.com/newsletter/the-brief/autoplay/?xid=spl-fullbrief-article "undefined")  The hand and torch of the Statue of Liberty on display at the 1876 Centennial Exhibition, in Philadelphia, ten years before the rest of the statue was completed. MPI—Getty Images  The head of the Statue of Liberty on display in the garden at the Champ de Mars at the World's Fair in Paris to drum up support and contributions for the completion of the great project, 1878. FPG—Getty Images  View of portions of the Statue of Liberty during its construction in the workshop of French sculptor Frederic Auguste Bartholdi (seen at left) in Paris circa 1880. Musee Bartholdi/Authenticated News—Getty Images  Segments of the Statue of Liberty during its construction in the workshop of French sculptor Frederic Auguste Bartholdi, in Paris circa 1880. Hulton Archive—Getty Images  The construction of the Statue of Liberty in Paris, before its journey to the United States, circa 1883. Hulton Archive—Getty Images  The Statue of Liberty enclosed by scaffolding, while under construction, seen from the Rue de Chazelles, in Paris circa 1884 Paul-Joseph-Victor Dargand/Frederic Lewis—Getty Images  The left hand of the Statue of Liberty under construction, circa 1884. Hulton Archive—Getty Images  The framework for the right arm of the Statue Of Liberty during construction in Paris, circa 1885. Hulton Archive—Getty Images  The feet of the Statue of Liberty arrive on Liberty Island in 1885. Universal History Archive—UIG via Getty Images  The Statue of Liberty seen on Liberty Island in New York Harbor, about a decade after her arrival, in 1898. 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