This Day in History, February 26

AUSTIN, Texas (KWTX) – On February 26, 1888, the original “goddess of liberty” statue was placed on top of the Texas Capitol building.

The goddess was created by welding together 80 separate pieces of zinc, before the 16-foot-tall statue was hoisted to the top of the dome.

After years of upkeep and restoration, the original statue was eventually replaced by an aluminum replica in 1986.

However, the original “goddess of liberty” is still on display at the Bullock Texas State History Museum in Austin.