Statue of Liberty National Monument — Centennial Restoration
Joseph's 1985 work coincided with the Statue of Liberty's centennial restoration.
The Statue of Liberty in May 1984, encased in scaffolding at the start of the centennial restoration.
1984 · Photo: Jet Lowe, HAER · Public domain · Source
Why this project matters
- Project identity
- Verified
- Kelly connection
- Family source
- Masonry scope
- Strong
Rita’s list
Transcription: Statue of Liberty National Monument — 1985
Recorded by Rita Bartscherer · Bartscherer family record
KM-181
2 of two
“Statue of Liberty National Monument — 1985”
The Statue underwent a major 1982–86 restoration campaign leading up to the July 1986 centennial.
Most plausible Kelly scope is pedestal/interior-base masonry: repairs and improvements to the pedestal, museum/visitor-space masonry, CMU/service/fire-rated walls, and possibly localized stone/brick repair. The 1985 GAO budget specifically identifies pedestal repairs/improvements and a new museum within the pedestal; this does not imply Kelly worked on the copper skin, armature or torch.
What Kelly did here
Family source
Strong
Likely masonry work in the pedestal/Fort Wood visitor-access and restoration program—repair/repointing or rebuilding of stone/brick masonry and new fire-rated masonry walls/shafts—rather than work on the copper skin or iron armature.
This scope is recorded as strong, not documented. It is a disciplined reading of the building and the trade practice of the period, not a contract-level record of Kelly’s work.
The construction team
- 01Architect
Restoration team under NPS / Statue of Liberty–Ellis Island Foundation
- 02GC / construction manager
Statue of Liberty–Ellis Island Foundation / NPS / Interior → Lehrer/McGovern CM → permanent construction contractors/trades
What happened to it
Landmarked
Sources
4 citedOpen →
- Jet Lowe, Historic American Engineering Record · Public domain · Historic American Engineering Record via Wikimedia Commons · 1984
The Statue of Liberty in May 1984, encased in scaffolding at the start of the centennial restoration.
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