Why the Statue of Liberty Almost Never Got Built

The main hall of New York City's Grand Central Railway Station in the early 1900s.

Arlington National Cemetery during the Civil War.

Frank Lloyd Wright's Fallingwater mansion.

Workers Working On The Empire State Building Around 1931

Korean War Veterans Memorial in Washington

Landmarks and monuments, the physical record of human civilization, include spectacular structures like the Eiffel Tower, Mount Rushmore, the Panama Canal, the Brooklyn Bridge and more.

Landmarks

Learn about great landmarks like the Eiffel Tower, Mount Rushmore, the Panama Canal, the White House, the Golden Gate Bridge, the World Trade Center and more.

Landmarks: Historic Monuments | HISTORY

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HISTORY

Sarah Pruitt is a writer and editor based in seacoast New Hampshire. She has been a frequent contributor to History.com since 2005, and is the author of Breaking History: Vanished! (Lyons Press, 2017), which chronicles some of history's most famous disappearances.

Sarah Pruitt

Jesse Greenspan is a Bay Area-based freelance journalist who writes about history and the environment.

Jesse Greenspan

<a href="https://urldefense.proofpoint.com/v2/url?u=https-3A__msbeckylittle.tumblr.com_&amp;d=DwMFaQ&amp;c=bHpC9irXhivtSwyVyKc43lLt4-cAwmmH7TeQLPqTb5E&amp;r=DnM91hJ18gcNL3QDGSFbaxqDKqUNYha-dXU1EFEqguU&amp;m=G-7sCRahZ4NeqUBMRIzpVYF_SWJZdHf6oZ3GZnosXWc&amp;s=zmyoc9Pijw9wmJOCBZEXDORhhj0TxUZKXRRMCwVGaTI&amp;e=">Becky Little</a> is a journalist based in Washington, D.C. Follow her at <a href="https://urldefense.proofpoint.com/v2/url?u=https-3A__twitter.com_MsBeckyLittle&amp;d=DwMFaQ&amp;c=bHpC9irXhivtSwyVyKc43lLt4-cAwmmH7TeQLPqTb5E&amp;r=DnM91hJ18gcNL3QDGSFbaxqDKqUNYha-dXU1EFEqguU&amp;m=G-7sCRahZ4NeqUBMRIzpVYF_SWJZdHf6oZ3GZnosXWc&amp;s=vkbwVD5s79Na0AuPtG5PY8OTUvwTHP3BjHLGApztU4w&amp;e=">@MsBeckyLittle</a>.

Becky Little

Dave Roos is a journalist and podcaster based in the U.S. and Mexico. He's the co-host of <a title="https://urldefense.com/v3/__https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/biblical-time-machine/id1648738323__;!!CyZMqN24eIU!HXBYfsRrBo7N5os-y_lSq05ShV3dCj9JEctYUd9Gok5iCyZHx7Gw2tqSCGiGSqkIqI2JpY9mKkYaNAhA-3WOj0eb3mc$" href="https://urldefense.com/v3/__https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/biblical-time-machine/id1648738323__;!!CyZMqN24eIU!HXBYfsRrBo7N5os-y_lSq05ShV3dCj9JEctYUd9Gok5iCyZHx7Gw2tqSCGiGSqkIqI2JpY9mKkYaNAhA-3WOj0eb3mc$">Biblical Time Machine</a>, a history podcast, and a writer for the popular podcast <a title="https://urldefense.com/v3/__https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/stuff-you-should-know/id278981407__;!!CyZMqN24eIU!HXBYfsRrBo7N5os-y_lSq05ShV3dCj9JEctYUd9Gok5iCyZHx7Gw2tqSCGiGSqkIqI2JpY9mKkYaNAhA-3WORJo2DiQ$" href="https://urldefense.com/v3/__https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/stuff-you-should-know/id278981407__;!!CyZMqN24eIU!HXBYfsRrBo7N5os-y_lSq05ShV3dCj9JEctYUd9Gok5iCyZHx7Gw2tqSCGiGSqkIqI2JpY9mKkYaNAhA-3WORJo2DiQ$">Stuff You Should Know</a>. Learn more at <a title="https://urldefense.com/v3/__http://www.daveroos.com/__;!!CyZMqN24eIU!HXBYfsRrBo7N5os-y_lSq05ShV3dCj9JEctYUd9Gok5iCyZHx7Gw2tqSCGiGSqkIqI2JpY9mKkYaNAhA-3WO_YrhCB4$" href="https://urldefense.com/v3/__http://www.daveroos.com/__;!!CyZMqN24eIU!HXBYfsRrBo7N5os-y_lSq05ShV3dCj9JEctYUd9Gok5iCyZHx7Gw2tqSCGiGSqkIqI2JpY9mKkYaNAhA-3WO_YrhCB4$">daveroos.com</a>.

Dave Roos

Ratha Tep, based in Dublin, is a frequent contributor to The New York Times. She also writes books for children.

Ratha Tep

Jessica Pearce Rotondi is the author of <a title="https://urldefense.com/v3/__http://bit.ly/InheritLegacies__;!!CyZMqN24eIU!BX8sz9I7ILilE7m4RTaQnqvKzETh3kNCTVpl2nf1yLL_dIIV2G5r7s-YyJ3x4GFxdzSEzT1Q9tIn_IVLu7mHWLOhfRRBy0w$" href="https://urldefense.com/v3/__http://bit.ly/InheritLegacies__;!!CyZMqN24eIU!BX8sz9I7ILilE7m4RTaQnqvKzETh3kNCTVpl2nf1yLL_dIIV2G5r7s-YyJ3x4GFxdzSEzT1Q9tIn_IVLu7mHWLOhfRRBy0w$">What We Inherit: A Secret War and a Family’s Search for Answers</a>. Find her at <a title="https://urldefense.com/v3/__http://bit.ly/JPRTwitter__;!!CyZMqN24eIU!BX8sz9I7ILilE7m4RTaQnqvKzETh3kNCTVpl2nf1yLL_dIIV2G5r7s-YyJ3x4GFxdzSEzT1Q9tIn_IVLu7mHWLOhdpRBiTQ$" href="https://urldefense.com/v3/__http://bit.ly/JPRTwitter__;!!CyZMqN24eIU!BX8sz9I7ILilE7m4RTaQnqvKzETh3kNCTVpl2nf1yLL_dIIV2G5r7s-YyJ3x4GFxdzSEzT1Q9tIn_IVLu7mHWLOhdpRBiTQ$">@JessicaRotondi</a> or at <a title="https://urldefense.com/v3/__http://bit.ly/WhatWeInherit__;!!CyZMqN24eIU!BX8sz9I7ILilE7m4RTaQnqvKzETh3kNCTVpl2nf1yLL_dIIV2G5r7s-YyJ3x4GFxdzSEzT1Q9tIn_IVLu7mHWLOhsaTHWD4$" href="https://urldefense.com/v3/__http://bit.ly/WhatWeInherit__;!!CyZMqN24eIU!BX8sz9I7ILilE7m4RTaQnqvKzETh3kNCTVpl2nf1yLL_dIIV2G5r7s-YyJ3x4GFxdzSEzT1Q9tIn_IVLu7mHWLOhsaTHWD4$">JessicaPearceRotondi.com</a>.

Jessica Pearce Rotondi

Elizabeth Yuko, Ph.D., is a bioethicist and journalist, as well as an adjunct professor of ethics at Fordham University. She has written for numerous publications, including Rolling Stone, The New York Times, The Washington Post and The Atlantic.

Elizabeth Yuko

Tim Ott has written for HISTORY.com and other A+E sites since 2012. He has also contributed to sites including MLB.com and Optimism, and teaches writing in his adopted hometown of Fort Lee, New Jersey.

Tim Ott

Kellie B. Gormly is an award-winning journalist who writes for publications including The Washington Post, Smithsonian and Woman's World. She specializes in Civil War history.

Kellie B. Gormly

From raising families to leading armies, women such as Catherine the Great, Eleanor of Aquitaine, Queen Amanirenas, Queen Elizabeth I, Susan B. Anthony, Rosa Parks, Marie Curie, Rosalind Franklin and countless others have played a vital role in history.

Women’s History

The Civil War was America's bloodiest and most divisive conflict, pitting the Union Army against the Confederate States of America. The war resulted in the deaths of more than 620,000 people, with millions more injured and the South left in ruins.

Civil War

In the early 20th century, America was flexing its economic and political muscle on the international stage. The era was defined by the temperance movement, Progressive-era activism, the sinking of the Titanic and World War I.

Early 20th Century U.S.

Art history tells the complex story of human civilization through art, literature and design. It ranges from prehistoric art of the Neolithic period through Renaissance masterpieces, Impressionism, Modernism, the Bauhaus and contemporary art.

Art, Literature and Film History

Minhae Shim Roth is a writer and reporter based in the San Francisco Bay area.

Minhae Shim Roth

The 1950s were a decade marked by the post-World War II boom, the dawn of the Cold War and the civil rights movement in the United States. At this time the U.S. economy was booming and more (mostly white) Americans could afford new cars, suburban houses and other consumer goods. But the 1950s also saw great conflict and division, from the nascent civil rights movement to the crusade against communism at home and abroad in the Korean War.

1950s

Though the 19th century saw the rise of populism, the labor movement and Jacksonian democracy, it also ushered in the Gilded Age, when men like Cornelius Vanderbilt and J. P. Morgan wielded vast control over politics and business.

19th Century

Explore the wars, battles, leaders, civilizations, regimes, prominent figures and major events from the continent that encompasses 2 percent of the Earth’s surface. From Stonehenge to the Great Awakening to the French Revolution to the rise and fall of Communism in Russia, see how Europe’s often tumultuous history unfolded.

Landmarks ‑ Stories

Why Are There 19 Statues in the Korean War Memorial?

How the Empire State Building Was Built in Record Time

Why (and How) Engineers Drained Niagara Falls in 1969

5 Hidden Features of the NYC Subway

How Fallingwater Became Frank Lloyd Wright’s Architectural Comeback

The 5 Deepest Lakes in the US

Route 66: The Iconic Highway’s Rise and Decline

How Emily Roebling Saved the Brooklyn Bridge

The Dark Origins of the Paris Catacombs

How Robert E. Lee’s Home Became Arlington National Cemetery

8 Secret Features of Grand Central Terminal

Why the Statue of Liberty Almost Didn’t Get Built