Frédéric Auguste Bartholdi 1871, not finishing the massive sandstone statue until 1880. In 1871, he made his first trip to the United States, where he pitched the idea of a massive statue gifted from the French to the Americans in honor of the centennial of American independence. The idea, which had first been broached to him in 1865 by his friend Édouard René de Laboulaye, resulted in the Statue of Liberty in New York harbor. After years of work and fundraising, the statue was inaugurated in 1886. During this period, Bartholdi also sculpted a number of monuments for American cities, such as a
Bartholdi Park purpose to this day. While once having its beds planted in a formal, classical style to facilitate public gatherings, the gardens have been continually redesigned to reflect modern American horticulture and to allow the addition of new plants. In 1985, the park was renamed to Bartholdi Park, after Frédéric Auguste Bartholdi, the sculptor of the Bartholdi fountain in the center of the park. Recently the park has begun a redesign to become a part of the Sustainable Sites Initiative pilot project. This will include the addition of a demonstration garden for homeowners that will have a focus on creating self