Fall 2011 |
Fall 2011 Newsletter
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Volume 26 |
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Restoration of The Bartholdi Fountain
And Spotlight on Richard H. Robinson, President of Robinson Iron
History of The Bartholdi Fountain
The Bartholdi Fountain named in honor of its creator, Frederick Auguste Bartholdi, is located in Washington, DC southwest of the Capitol Building, across Independence Ave. from the U.S. Botanic Garden. It is the centerpiece of Bartholdi Park, a triangular island between Independence Avenue, First Street SW, and Washington Ave.
Condition & Removal of the Bartholdi Fountain
With the passage of time the large pool in which the fountain stands had developed issues. Maintenance efforts could only accomplish superficial problems. New plumbing and electrical components were badly needed.
Restoration of the Bartholdi Fountain
Robinson Iron also supervised the removal and transportation of the twelve surrounding basin lampposts. Once everything had been carefully cleaned to bare metal, repairs were made. New anchorage was devised and the lampposts reassembled on the floor of Robinson's shop building.
Painting & Installation of the Bartholdi Fountain
The fountain along with the restored lampposts received a faux bronze finish specially developed for this project by Robinson Iron. Bartholdi had made a scaled down mock-up of the Statue of Liberty which resides in the Galleries of the Smithsonian in Washington. The finish is a close approximation of the one Bartholdi used on this figure.
Richard H. Robinson, President, Robinson Iron Corporation
You could easily refer to Ricky Robinson as "Mr. Fountain". His very first restoration project, back in the day, was of a large cast iron fountain located at Court Square in Montgomery, Alabama. Since that time he has lent his expertise to many more fountain restorations and countless architectural projects completed by Robinson Iron.