And just like that, Lady Liberty's crown will be closed to the public again—along with the rest of her! The crown just reopened again last year, after being closed off since just after 9/11. According to the NY Post, the Statue of Liberty will be closed for security upgrades starting starting sometime next Fall, meaning no visitors will be allowed in the crown, base or pedestal for up to 12 months. The park surrounding the statue will be the only thing visitors can access during the time—which happens to be the Lady's 125th anniversary! Guess she deserves a vacation. more ›

Yesterday, the Statue of Liberty's crown reopened to excited crowds. But the visits were tempered with the reality of climbing 354 steps during a beautiful (and warm!) day: The NY Times reports, "No wonder by the time these huddled masses reached the top of the hot, sticky and narrow staircase, they were indeed yearning to breathe free." One visitor said it was "absolutely awesome!" and "intensely uncomfortable." Anyway, one couple made the most of the heady views—Aaron Weisinger of Walnut Creek, California proposed to girlfriend Erica Breder. Breder said yes, "I had no idea. Even when he got down on one knee, I still didn't know what was going on." Weisinger explained why the holiday was important to the couple—their families immigrated from Eastern Europe, his great-grandparents through Ellis Island and Breder's father came to New York and drove a cab when he arrived from Czechoslovakia. Weisinger said, "The Statue of Liberty symbolizes independence and freedom. It's a pretty unique spot." more ›

The Statue of Liberty's crown reopened to the public this morning after being closed down since 9/11, making today possibly the biggest reason to celebrate the Fourth inside Lady Liberty since she turned 100 and reopened from renovations in 1986. more ›

In what could be the toughest reservation to book since Momofuku Ko opened, the Statue of Liberty crown, which will be reopened on July 4th for the first time since the 9/11 attacks, will begin accepting reservations starting this Saturday at 10 a.m. Tickets will cost an additional $3 and will be combined with reserved ferry tickets, which are currently $12 for adults, $10 for seniors and $5 for children. You can make reservations for up to a year in advance, but competition is going to be intense because the National Park Service is limiting the number of visitors to the crown to ten at a time, with about three groups ascending the crown per hour. more ›

The Statue of Liberty's crown is getting some finishing touches before a grand re-opening on July 4th. It's been closed since 9/11, and now the Daily News' Michael Daly takes a look inside what they dub "New York's attic." The biggest difference for visitors will be the 10 person-at-a-time limit (though previously it was reported that groups of 30 would be allowed), giving you more space and time to enjoy the visit. more ›

The Today Show is broadcasting live from the Statue of Liberty's crown this morning with an exclusive scoop from Secretary of the Interior Ken Salazar: For the first time since 9/11, the general public will be allowed up into Lady Liberty's diadem, starting July 4th. Officials hope the news will give a little boost to New York’s tourist industry, but really it's all worth it just to see this goofy video of NBC's morning show hosts gabbing from the crown. more ›

Last July 4th word came out that the Statue of Liberty's crown may have a shot at reopening, after being closed off to the public following 9/11. Now the Daily News reports that, according to Interior Secretary Ken Salazar (who visited the crown in January), the grand reopening could take place on America's 233rd birthday. more ›

After considerable nagging from Representative Anthony Weiner, the federal government has hired a contractor to determine what it will take to reopen the Statue of Liberty's crown, which has been closed since 9/11. The study will cost $150,000, but Weiner, who's running for Mayor in '09, tells the Daily News it will just be a big waste of money if the contractor gets bogged down trying to bring the landmark up to safety and security codes: "This is a good step if it brings the National Park Service to where they need to be to reopen the crown. But if it's just another bureaucratic barrier, then it's not worth the paper it's written on." See, he's already got the hang of this mayor thing – if the data supports your argument, it's good; if not, it's worthless! more ›

Representative Anthony D. Weiner long advocated re-opening the Statue of Liberty's crown, which has been closed since the 9/11 attacks. Partly due to terrorism fears, the National Parks Service also noted the narrow staircase "violates every fire code in the city of New York and the state of New York and the state of New Jersey." However, Weiner blamed the park service for "a failure of creativity" by not solving the issues through renovation and evacuation plans. more ›