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Lewis Temple Statue

Introduction

Text-to-speech Audio

Lewis Temple Memorial Sculptor James C. Toatley (1941-1986). Installation: 1987. Lewis Temple (1800-1854), a free Black man and proprietor of a local Blacksmith shop by 1836, invented the “Temple Toggle Iron” in 1848, a pivot-head harpoon which revolutionized the whaling industry. Commissioned in 1985 by the City of New Bedford to create a memorial to Lewis Temple, local African-American sculptor Jim Toatley died after completing a maquette of the memorial. His design was mechanically enlarged to a six-foot figure as originally created, and conveys Lewis Temple, clad in a working-man’s apron, looking at a harpoon that he has been working on. Dedication of the Lewis Temple Memorial Before the Free Public Library in New Bedford, Massachusetts, July 5, 1987.

Images

Plant, Building, Sky, Pedestal

Backstory and Context

Text-to-speech Audio

Lewis Temple Memorial

Sculptor James C. Toatley (1941-1986). Installation: 1987.

Lewis Temple (1800-1854), a free Black man and proprietor of a local Blacksmith shop by 1836, invented the “Temple Toggle Iron” in 1848, a pivot-head harpoon which revolutionized the whaling industry. Commissioned in 1985 by the City of New Bedford to create a memorial to Lewis Temple, local African-American sculptor Jim Toatley died after completing a maquette of the memorial. His design was mechanically enlarged to a six-foot figure as originally created, and conveys Lewis Temple, clad in a working-man’s apron, looking at a harpoon that he has been working on.

Dedication of the Lewis Temple Memorial Before the Free Public Library in New Bedford, Massachusetts, July 5, 1987.

Sources

https://destinationnewbedford.org/listing/lewis-temple-memorial/

Additional Information