Liberty Island | |
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![]() Liberty Island in December 2014 with Jersey City in the background | |
Location | Upper New York Bay |
Coordinates | 40°41′24″N 74°2′42″W / 40.69000°N 74.04500°W |
Area | 14.717 acres (59,560 m2) |
Governing body | National Park Service |
Designated |
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Designated by | |
Official name | Statue of Liberty National Monument, Ellis Island and Liberty Island |
Designated | October 15, 1966 |
Reference no. | 66000058 |
Official name | Statue of Liberty National Monument, Ellis Island and Liberty Island |
Designated | May 27, 1971 |
Reference no. | 1535[2] |
Type | Individual |
Designated | September 14, 1976 |
Location in Upper New York Bay |
Liberty Island is a federally owned island in Upper New York Bay in the northeastern United States. Its most notable feature is the Statue of Liberty (Liberty Enlightening the World), a large statue by Frédéric Auguste Bartholdi that was dedicated in 1886. The island also contains the Statue of Liberty Museum, which opened in 2019 and exhibits the statue's original torch.
Long known as Bedloe's Island, it was renamed by an act of the United States Congress in 1956. Part of the State of New York, the island is an exclave of the New York City borough of Manhattan, surrounded by the waters of Jersey City, New Jersey. There were a number of disputes regarding the jurisdictional status of the island during the 20th century.
Liberty Island became part of the Statue of Liberty National Monument in 1937 through Presidential Proclamation 2250, signed by President Franklin D. Roosevelt.[3] In 1966, it was listed on the National Register of Historic Places as part of Statue of Liberty National Monument, Ellis Island, and Liberty Island.[4]