★ Statue of Liberty ★
In 1886, President Grover Cleveland dedicated the Statue of Liberty in New York Harbor. The collaborative project began in 1875 to celebrate one hundred years of friendship between France and the United States. It was conceived by Frédéric Auguste Bartholdi and Édouard de Laboulaye as a monument to the American ideal of liberty. A fundraising drive in France financed the 151-foot copper colossus La Liberté éclairant le monde (Liberty Enlightening the World), and the United States provided its massive 154-foot stone pedestal. A deed of gift formally transferred the statue from the people of France to the people of the United States.
Over time, the Statue of Liberty has been a powerful symbol for people around the world, who have connected it to their own aspirations. It sparked dialogues about the full promise of liberty for all, including the abolition of slavery, voting rights, and equal treatment under the law. In 1903, the statue’s pedestal was inscribed with Emma Lazarus’s 1883 poem, "The New Colossus." The poem’s most memorable lines, “Give me your tired, your poor/ Your huddled masses yearning to breathe free,” linked the statue to the dreams of millions of immigrants passing through nearby Ellis Island. During the 50th anniversary of the statue’s dedication, on the eve of the Second World War, President Franklin Roosevelt reminded the world that liberty is a "living thing" that each generation must "guard and vitalize anew". Today, the Statue of Liberty continues to stand as a universal icon of hope, drawing over 3.5 million visitors annually to reflect on the values it represents.
★ Liberty Bell ★
In 1751, Isaac Norris, speaker of the Pennsylvania Assembly, commissioned a tower bell from the Whitechapel Foundry in London. When it cracked upon ringing, it was recast in Philadelphia in 1753. It rang out from atop the Pennsylvania State House to signal meetings and important news, such as the repeal of the Stamp Act. Its inscription, from the King James Bible, Leviticus 25:10, reads, “Proclaim Liberty Throughout All the Land Unto All the Inhabitants thereof.”
Nineteenth-century abolitionists seized on the inscription and employed the bell in their fight to end slavery, leading to its "Liberty Bell" nickname. In the 1840s, after ninety years of use, the bell cracked, and following failed repair attempts, the bell could not be rung again. This didn’t stop its use as a powerful symbol of American liberty. Women referenced the Liberty Bell in their fight for voting rights in the early twentieth century. By the mid-twentieth century, the two-ton bell had made seven tours of the United States and furnished its image and legend to Liberty Bond campaigns that raised money for both world wars.
The U.S. Treasury Department featured the Liberty Bell in its 1950 “Save for Your Independence” Series E Savings Bond campaign. U.S. industries funded a Liberty Bell Replica for each state, and these bells toured each state to sell savings bonds, emphasize American virtues, and headline demonstrations of civic pride.
Arkansas’s Replica Liberty Bell was incorporated into the state’s Bicentennial Memorial on the grounds of the state capitol in 1976. The original Liberty Bell is on display in Philadelphia at Independence National Historic Park.
★ White House ★
1600 Pennsylvania Avenue is arguably the most famous address in American history. The White House, more than an official residence, is a symbol of the presidency. George Washington oversaw its location, and John Adams and his family became its first residents in November 1800. Designed by Irish architect James Hoban, the building’s Neoclassical design –with soaring columns and balanced symmetry–was meant to evoke the democratic ideals of ancient Greece and the stability of a republic.
Despite early critics calling it the "President's Palace," the White House was designed to reflect a government by and for the people. Andrew Jackson famously opened the White House to the public, a tradition that continues today through public tours and events like the annual Easter Egg Roll on the South Lawn.
The structure has been a work in progress for over two centuries. After British troops burned it during the War of 1812, it was rebuilt and expanded by successive administrations. Notable additions include the South Portico (1824), the West Wing, (1902), and the East Wing (1934). Renovations during President Truman’s term stabilized and modernized the structure and added the Truman balcony, while President Nixon added a media briefing room in 1970.
Inside, the building’s spaces reflect its multiple uses. The first floor hosts ceremonies, while the upper floor is the First Family’s private home. The West Wing holds the Oval Office and the Situation Room. Over the years, presidents have added personal touches like a bowling alley, putting green, and swing set to make the “People’s House” their home.
Finally, why is it white? The iconic color began as a lime-based whitewash in 1798, applied to protect the sandstone. While the building was nicknamed “The White House” in the early 19th century, Theodore Roosevelt made the name official in 1901.
★ US Capitol ★
The United States Capitol is one of the most iconic government buildings in the world. Like other U.S. government buildings, its style is neoclassical, and the exterior is white. It contains the meeting rooms, or chambers, for the House of Representatives and the Senate. Inside, elected officials write, debate, and pass legislation, and the President delivers the annual State of the Union address. The rotunda and crypt also function as important gathering places to receive visiting dignitaries, as well as host state ceremonies upon the deaths of esteemed Americans. Every four years, the exterior forms the backdrop for presidential inaugurations.
The location of the capital in Washington, D.C., was one of the nation’s first political compromises; southern states agreed to help pay the war debts of northern states in exchange for the building of a new government district along the Potomac River in the southern part of the country. George Washington set the cornerstone for the National Capitol in 1793. First home to Congress in 1800, the structure was partially burned by British troops during the War of 1812. While Congress repeatedly debated slavery within its walls, enslaved laborers worked to build, restore, and enlarge the structure. They expanded the building to accommodate new chambers for the House and Senate as the nation added more states. The bronze Statue of Freedom, ringed by the motto E Pluribus Unum, topped off the newly-completed dome in 1863.
The National Capitol features artwork celebrating important figures and events in the country’s history. Constantino Brumidi painted The Apotheosis of Washington, which depicts George Washington alongside Greek and Roman gods, on the underside of the dome. A frieze on the base of the dome, as well as murals and paintings in the rotunda, illustrate historic vignettes from the colonial period through the 19th century. Each state furnished two statues of notable figures for the National Statuary Hall Collection. Arkansas is represented by Civil Rights pioneer Daisy Gatson Bates and musician Johnny Cash.