Note: This poem written by Hellertown resident Asher A. Hetrick Jr. was inspired by his 1997 visit to the Statue of Liberty. The original version, copyright 1998, has been updated for 2024. The new version is published here with the author’s permission.
The Statue of Liberty stands tall
Upon her pedestal greeting one and all
As they come forth from distant lands across the sea
In their hopeful quest for freedom and opportunity
Oh, Liberty standing by the sea
So gracefully towering majestically
Was sent as a gift of friendship and alliance to our country
By the people of France in their generosity
Created in sculpture by Frédéric Auguste Bartholdi
This magnificent symbol for America’s freedom and equality
Came to stand and represents
America’s greatest historic event
When thirteen united colonies fought hand in hand
In the revolution that swept throughout this land
Against the British reign of tyranny
And won “the Independence” for this country
With Liberty’s right arm upraised and her hand upholding so high
A flaming torch of freedom straight upward into the sky
She guides the airplanes in flight and ships out at sea
Unto the shores of America and the land of the free
From Paris, France she came as sent
Aboard the Isére to celebrate and represent
The Independence of this land
And the freedom gained for the common man
Oh, Liberty standing for all to see
On her island in peaceful tranquility
Presents our nation’s policy
Of governmental democracy
In New York Harbor there she proudly stands
Welcoming the people who visit from foreign lands
To our great nation the U.S.A.
And the heritage and lifestyle of the American way
Oh, Liberty greets the aircraft in flight
And the ships coming forth each day and night
From distant lands across the sea
To the gateway of America and the homeland of the free
Standing so grand on her pedestal high above the ground
In her flowing robe of copper sheet and a seven spiked sun-ray crown
She commemorates the birth of America’s freedom and honors the U.S.A
While cradling a tablet in her left arm inscribed with our Independence Day
“July IV, MDCCLXXVI”
Oh, Liberty stands tall in this country
Presenting America’s freedom and our nation’s democracy
For the end of the unjust rule and British retreat
A broken chain-linked shackle lies at her feet
And with her flaming torch of freedom shining so bright
Among the stars throughout each night
Liberty lights up the way to this promised land
Here in America where she came to stand
