That wisp of a smile belonged to Annie Moore, the first immigrant processed at Ellis Island, which you find today at the Statue of Liberty National Monument.

As part of the celebration surrounding National Public Lands Day and the official roll-out of Ken Burns' documentary on national parks, the Statute of Liberty National Monument and Ellis Island will be open for evening tours on September 24 and 25th.

The Statue of Liberty’s crown reopens to the public on July 4. Soon somebody schlepping up those 354 steps will have the dubious distinction of being the first visitor to make a personal acquaintance with Lady Liberty’s RAT.

On July 4th, the Statue of Liberty’s crown will be reopened to the public for the first time since the 9/11 terrorist attacks. The NPS will start taking reservations this Saturday.

Continuing on his whirlwind work schedule, Interior Secretary Ken Salazar has cut through all the security red tape of the Bush administration and announced that the public once again will be able to climb all the way to the crown of the Statue of Liberty.

Is it time to reopen Miss Liberty's crown to the general public? Interior Secretary Ken Salazar thinks so.

When Ellis Island became part of Statue of Liberty National Monument in 1965, its buildings were in terrible condition. By 1990, only the Main Building and some other north side buildings had been restored. In 2000, Save Ellis Island, Inc. and its partners began the expensive task of stabilizing and restoring the south side buildings.

Public access to the observation deck in the Statue of Liberty’s crown has been banned since September 11, 2001, for safety and security reasons. In response to loud protests, Congress has ordered a study to determine if crown access can be made safe.