The Statue of Liberty was unveiled to the public.
A description of that day from Writers Almanac:
The day of the dedication was cold and rainy, but huge crowds came out for the celebration anyway. The hotels were full throughout New York City, and many of the tourists who arrived for the occasion were French. The sculptor Frédéric-Auguste Bartholdi was alone in the statue’s crown, waiting for the signal to drop the veil. A boy down below was supposed to wave a white handkerchief at the end of the big speech. The boy accidentally waved his handkerchief before the speech was over and Bartholdi let the curtain drop, revealing the huge copper lady. A salvo of gunshots rang out from all the ships in the harbor. The speaker, who had been boring everybody, just sat down.
Happy birthday, O Lady of the Harbor!
[picture taken from the observation deck of the World Trade Center]
In my darker moments I wonder if the Statue of Liberty was some kind of subtle French joke. They delivered it to us as a gift but all the tired poor, huddled masses keep tumbling out onto our shores not theirs.