LIBERTY STATE PARK

LIBERTY STATE PARK 

Along the Hudson River

New Jersey, U.S.A.

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The Statue of Liberty was the gift of France to the United States in commemoration of her Centennial Year as a nation. 

The Statue was turned over to the U.S.A. in a ceremony in Paris on July 4, 1884, and was installed on its pedestal on Liberty Island in 1886. 

The Statue of Liberty was created by Frederic Auguste Bertholdi.

Copyright photo of Henry Libo-on

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It was not in my mind that I could be at the Liberty State Park this Saturday morning.   It was a spur-of-the-moment's decision and after we had breakfast at Jersey City Jollibee, the happy bee or in Filipino "Ang Masayahing Bubuyog", we headed straight to the park.  With breakfast of fried rice, fried egg and corned beef accompanied by hot coffee, I thought I was ready for the day's adventure.

This is my second time to be at the park.  The first time happened in 2006 but as they say, the second time is just like the first especially when you like the place. And who will not treasure the moment when you can be closer to the world's icon of freedom and democracy - The Statue of Liberty?

You need to spend a day to explore the whole park. There is also a restaurant called Liberty House. There are restrooms and a wide parking area.  Kids will truly love the wide lawn where they can run.
According to its website, it has a total land area of 1,122 acres. The State of New Jersey developed this place into the Liberty State Park as a gift to the Bicentennial Celebration of the United States in 1976.  It is here where tourists board the cruise boat to Ellis Island where they can have a face to face experience with Miss Liberty.

Copyright photo of the Statue of Liberty by Touristang Pobre while onboard the Norwegian Cruise Line.  Nearby the Statue of Liberty is the Liberty State Park in New Jersey. 

The wide manicured lawns, the jogging, and biking area in the vicinity of Liberty House, face waterways where yachts pass by and the skyscrapers of New York can be seen in a distance.

The Statue of Liberty at Ellis Island play a very important role in the lives of all immigrants coming from the different parts of the world.  As their ships arrive in New York, the immigrants have their first encounter with Lady Liberty.  Then, they were processed right there at Ellis Island.  From Ellis, they will board the train on their way to their new homes in the different parts of the United States of America. The heart of that transportation system is the central railroad of New Jersey. That terminal is located on the northern part of the Liberty State Park.

According to libertyellisfoundation.org, an immigration office was constructed on Ellis Island to accommodate an increasing number of immigrants mostly coming from Europe and particularly England, Germany, Ireland, and other Scandinavian countries, as a result of war, famine and other troubling situations in that continent. Between 1855 and 1890 around eight million immigrants had been processed in different selected areas in the U.S. that proved to be inadequate for the increasing demand.  

The Federal Government soon opened an Immigration Station at Ellis Island. The new structure on Ellis Island, built of "Georgia pine" opened on January 1, 1892. Annie Moore, a teenaged Irish girl, accompanied by her two brothers, entered history and a new country as she was the very first immigrant to be processed at Ellis Island. Over the next 62 years, more than 12 million were to follow through this port of entry.

This bar-restaurant comes alive at night. I think, I will enjoy too being here to view New York skyline at night.  

There are several bar-restaurants on Liberty Park. Mostly called Liberty. It could be Liberty Bar, Liberty on the Lake, Liberty House Restaurant, and others like Maritime Parc Restaurant.

It was a very momentous event for immigrants who arrived in New York before and after the Second World War to be welcomed by Miss Liberty with her colossal figure and the"flaming torch" very visible to approaching ships.  The Statue of Liberty is the "official greeter" of all immigrants coming to the port of New York.  These big three - the Statue of Liberty, the Ellis Island and the New Jersey Railroad System where the immigrants rode the train on their way to other parts of the United States, all played an important role in the realization of the immigrants' dream of a new life in the country they adopted, the United States of America.

Today, the Statue of Liberty still welcomes every visitor as she did many decades ago.  The way I felt when I first saw her in 2006 may be different from what the earliest immigrants felt.  But we probably share the same or common feeling - freedom, liberty, and equality. Of course, the trend now is to welcome the sick and the oppressed who can STAND ON THEIR OWN FEET and will not become a public charge, according to a television newscast a few weeks ago.

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Thinking that the children had enough of the running around the well-manicured lawns of the park, enjoyed the sights of birds, trees, and plants with colorful flowers, we decided to leave the park for the next destination of the day, the mall.  But before we do that, we drove back to the "Masayahaing Bubuyog" or Jollibee, for their refreshing "halo-halo".

If you are still planning your Spring adventures with the family and the children, here's the address of the park for the use of your GPS.  200 Morris Pesin Dr, Jersey City, NJ 07305
(201) 915-3402.  Enjoy.
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Updated on September 1, 2019. 

Liberty Park is also known as the "people's park". It is a 1,200 acres park that is located along the Hudson River and offers a good view of the Statue of Liberty and the skyline of New York City. 

TRIVIA:  Who owns Ellis Island where the Statue of Liberty stands? Please click the link to get your answer, here - How New Jersey became the official owner of Ellis Island | 6sqft

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All photos by Henry Libo-on

Touristang Pobre

Reviewed May 19, 2023.