Some of you are saying, “Wait a minute. Something is wrong here. The Statue of Liberty is in New York, not Pennsylvania.”
Well, the most famous statue was erected in 1886 by New York City locals in New York Harbor and welcomed people who arrived by ship into the harbor. Yes, it is the most famous Statue of Liberty in spite of the fact that the original Statue of Liberty is located in Paris, France. What made the New York statue more famous? Location. Although the original statue is on an island on the Seine River in the middle of the city, the most famous one on an island in New York Harbor welcomed people entering into the United States of America. When France wanted to bring the statue to New York, the United States government was opposed to it. That is when New York City area locals stepped in to fund the bringing of the statue to New York City, and it has been a symbol of American freedom welcoming people into the Land of Freedom one of the world’s top iconic sites ever since.
Other Statue of Liberty’s were erected across the United States of America. One of these statue was erected in the middle of the Susquehanna River in the town of Dauphin in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania, a suburb of Harrisburg, the state capital. Why the Susquehanna River? The Susquehanna River is the longest unnavigable river in the United States of America which means that no ships pass by here. The only traffic is that on U.S. Routes 22 and 322. A statue was erected here in 1986 to commemorate the one hundredth anniversary of the one in New York Harbor, but it was later destroyed. Locals saw how significant that statue was and erected a new statue, and that statue stands today. Now, drivers along U.S. Routes 22 and 322 can see a great icon along their journey through Pennsylvania.
Some of you are saying, “This is nice. It is great that the people of France gave the Statue of Liberty to New York City, and it is great that the Statue of Liberty is a great icon not just for New York City and the United States of America, but for the entire world. As for this one in the Susquehanna River, it is just a replica of the famous one. Since this is just a replica of the famous one, I will not be using my liberty to see this replica statue.”
What is special about the Statue of Liberty in Dauphin, Pennsylvania? As you drive along the highway and look out at the statue, you will notice what the statue was erected on. What is it on? The statue was erected on a piling of an old railroad bridge. There was once a railroad bridge where the current statue stands. Which railroad crossed the bridge is unknown at this point although it is upriver from the world famous Rockville Bridge, the longest stone arch bridge in the world and now owned by the Norfolk Southern Railway.
Now you can see that the Statue of Liberty in Dauphin, Pennsylvania is not just a replica of the famous statue and a symbol of American freedom, but the statue has a little bit of railroad history attached to it.
As mentioned, the original statue made with plywood and Venetian blinds was erected in 1986, but it was blown off the piling by strong winds and destroyed in 1992. Locals later erected the current statue you see today, and it was made with steel. The man who erected the original replica remained silent for many years until 2011. He happened to be a local lawyer who erected the statue as a prank. He had no idea that it would be a permanent and famous icon in the Susquehanna River Valley of Pennsylvania.
The Statue of Liberty of the Susquehanna Valley is located in the middle of the Susquehanna River west of the city of Harrisburg, and it can be seen from U.S. Routes 22 and 322. Be advised that there is no pull-off on the highway to view the statue so you will need to be mindful as you drive on the highway. (We do not want to see anyone getting stuck in the rear bumper while seeing the statue.)
The Statue of Liberty stands for American freedom. Near Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, the Statue of Liberty stands on a piece of railroad history.
John Cowgill: Stories of the Railroad 