In the context of Golden Boy (Manitoba), explore the Creation of the History.
In the summer of 1915, Simon commissioned Parisian sculptor Georges Gardet to create the statue. Over the next 18 months or so, the men exchanged transatlantic letters and drawings regularly. These documents are now preserved at the Archives of Manitoba in Winnipeg.Simon prepared the shaft for statue to be built in two parts: the upper part, extending from the statue to the centre of the ball where it would fit into the coupling, was to be built in France. The lower part of the shaft would be built in Winnipeg, upon delivery of the statue. As both metals and lathes were needed for the war effort, obtaining even basic materials for the statue was difficult; in a memo to the Manitoba Minister of Public Works in December 1917, Simon explained that it "was impossible to obtain [the shaft] either in England or in France owing to war conditions". Eventually the upper shaft was constructed in Chicago and shipped to France. Simon had also wished for the statue to be cast from one piece of material without any joints or seams. Given the metal shortage in France, however, several smaller pieces were used.Purchased by the Government of Manitoba from France, the statue was completed by Gardet in 1918, cast in bronze by the Barbedienne Foundry. The factory was bombed but the statue was not damaged.
Chicago Archives of Manitoba Winnipeg Parisian Georges Gardet Government of Manitoba bronze lathes Manitoba Minister of Public Works Manitoba