The French ship Isère carried the disassembled Statue of Liberty to New York in 1885. The vessel transported the statue in more than 200 packed crates after the monument was dismantled in France for its Atlantic voyage.
Designed by sculptor Frédéric Auguste Bartholdi and engineered by Gustave Eiffel, the statue was a gift from France commemorating the alliance between the two countries during the American Revolution. Isère reached New York Harbor on June 17, 1885, where crowds welcomed the shipment. The statue was then reassembled on Bedloe’s Island, now Liberty Island.
The dedication took place on October 28, 1886, nearly a year after the ship’s arrival. The monument’s torch, tablet and broken-chain imagery express liberty and emancipation, making it a natural symbol in America250 discussions. Isère is often overlooked because people remember the statue’s designers rather than its transport ship.