French Heritage Society

French Heritage Society

Preserving our historic treasures to inspire future generations

Cultural Grants

Inspiring Walt Disney: The Animation of French Decorative Arts Exhibition

Apr 25, 2025
The FHS grant provides support for the exhibition Inspiring Walt Disney: The Animation of French Decorative Arts, presented on the occasion of the 30th anniversary of the animated film Beauty and the Beast, which was adapted from an 18th-century French fairy tale. Historical Significance Walt Disney was one of the most important and influential cultural figures of […]

Inspiring Walt Disney: The Animation of French Decorative Arts Exhibition

The FHS grant provides support for the exhibition Inspiring Walt Disney: The Animation of French Decorative Arts, presented on the occasion of the 30th anniversary of the animated film Beauty and the Beast, which was adapted from an 18th-century French fairy tale.

Historical Significance

Walt Disney was one of the most important and influential cultural figures of the 20th century, creating cinematic masterpieces that were deeply rooted in European art and culture. A distinct affinity for European art informed all areas of his professional life and personal collecting, as seen in his love of illustrated children’s literature, German Romanticism, Tudor architecture and Victorian interiors. 

Though strongly associated with American culture, Walt Disney had ancestral connections to France. The Disney family originated in Normandy in the 11th century. William the Conqueror bestowed the title “Lords of Isigny” to Hugues Suhard and his son Robert, in recognition of their loyalty. Over time, the French surname “d’Isigny” was anglicized, first to “D’Isney” and then to “Disney.” In the 19th century, Arundel Elias Disney—Walt Disney’s great-grandfather—immigrated with his family to the New World. 

Walt Disney discovered France in 1918, shortly after the armistice, when he was driving ambulances for the Red Cross. He visited France several times thereafter, and in 1935 he was made a Chevalier de la Légion d’honneur. He took great pride in his French roots, to the point that he commissioned a family crest based on the d’Isigny coat of arms, which adorns the Sleeping Beauty Castle at Disneyland Paris. 

About the Exhibition

In collaboration with the Wallace Collection in London, the Metropolitan Museum of Art is planning its first-ever exhibition devoted to Walt Disney and the artistic output of his studios. Inspiring Walt Disney, opening at The Met in fall 2021, will explore Disney’s keen interest in classic tales, art and architecture and their powerful influence on his work. This exhibition and its accompanying catalogue seek to examine in particular the visual and cultural impact of the art and architecture of France on Disney, drawing remarkable parallels between the striking designs from the Disney Studios and significant decorative works of art from The Met as well as the Wallace Collection. On view from December 6, 2021, to March 6, 2022, the exhibition will mark the 30th anniversary of Disney’s beloved animated film Beauty and the Beast, adapted from an 18th-century French fairy tale in which decorative works of art come to life.

Reims, American City

Apr 2, 2025
FHS supports the making of a documentary film that highlights the role of American philanthropy in France. Historical Background Under the impetus of President Woodrow Wilson, the United States’ entry into the war alongside the Entente powers in April 1917 was accompanied by the establishment of humanitarian assistance of an unprecedented scale. The assistance was intended […]

Reims, American City

FHS supports the making of a documentary film that highlights the role of American philanthropy in France.

Historical Background

Under the impetus of President Woodrow Wilson, the United States’ entry into the war alongside the Entente powers in April 1917 was accompanied by the establishment of humanitarian assistance of an unprecedented scale. The assistance was intended for Europe and in particular for France, financed by the Federal Reserve, and above all by the American people through fundraising campaigns. Implemented in large part by the American Red Cross, this assistance was intended not only for the soldiers of the Allied countries but also for civilian populations in need, especially those that had been displaced. After the armistice, American humanitarian aid in France focused particularly on the resettlement of refugees in their devastated towns and villages. This is how the American Red Cross came to play a major role in the return of tens of thousands of inhabitants to Reims, the largest martyred city of the war. 

Support for the reconstruction of Reims also came in the form of private funding, to a degree unparalleled elsewhere in France. In addition, people from across the Atlantic volunteered and shared their skills. Thanks to American efforts and funds, the plan of the city was redesigned; a children’s hospital, public library and tennis club were built; and the cathedral was restored. Furthermore, cultural exchanges led to the appearance of new sporting activities. This chapter of Franco-American relations, still little known to the general public, initiated bonds of friendship that persist today.

About the Film

The FHS grant supports the making of a documentary film by Pierre Coulon, with the working title Reims, American City. The film takes as its subject the humanitarian and reconstruction assistance America provided to Reims following the destruction of World War I, in one of the first examples of the role played by American philanthropy in France.  

YMCA-Paris

Apr 2, 2025
Inaugurated in 1893, the headquarters of the YMCA Paris houses the world’s oldest basketball court in its original state. Site History The YMCA, founded in 1844, fosters the spiritual, intellectual and physical development of young people. Present in 124 countries, this secular association is open to all. The YMCA Paris was founded in 1852. Architect […]

YMCA-Paris

Inaugurated in 1893, the headquarters of the YMCA Paris houses the world’s oldest basketball court in its original state.

Site History

The YMCA, founded in 1844, fosters the spiritual, intellectual and physical development of young people. Present in 124 countries, this secular association is open to all. The YMCA Paris was founded in 1852. Architect Émile Bénard, winner of the Grand Prix de Rome in 1867, designed its headquarters at rue de Trévise, inspired by models of American YMCA buildings. Inaugurated on May 7, 1893, the complex brought together in one place, for the first time in France, a gymnasium, a restaurant, a bowling alley, a swimming pool, reception and conference rooms, a concert hall and theater, a library, a billiards room, a hostel and a creamery. The gymnasium is of major heritage interest: It houses the world’s oldest surviving basketball court, which hosted the first basketball game in Europe in 1893.

About the Project

The YMCA Paris has been in need of restoration for decades. Major work will be done for the entire complex, to be undertaken in phases. The first phase includes treatment of the basement, ground floor and first floor of the section containing the gymnasium, theater and reception-bar-patio area; the creation of accessibility and installation of fire safety devices on all parts of the building overlooking the courtyard; rehabilitation of the hostel; and bringing the building up to code.

YMCA Paris Today

A major site in the history of sports and Franco-American relations, the YMCA will be restored in the context of the Summer Olympics in Paris. This restoration is much needed to enhance the site and its facilities and bring them up to code, in order to allow the YMCA Paris to better fulfill its mission: to provide lodging and meals for students and young workers at some of the lowest prices in the city, allowing youth from other parts of France and abroad to transition into Parisian life. It will also enable the YMCA to offer its facilities, including sporting facilities and the 270-seat theater, for use by local cultural associations in addition to organizing its own programming, thus enriching the city’s cultural and community life. 

Bust of Abraham Lincoln

Feb 24, 2025
Installed in memory of Renée Johnson, founder of the Paris-Chicago Committee, this bust of Abraham Lincoln celebrates Franco-American friendship and the bond between the sister cities of Chicago and Paris.  Historical Significance Chicago, one of Paris’s sister cities, played a defining role in Abraham Lincoln’s rise to political prominence. Between 1847 and 1859, the young […]

Bust of Abraham Lincoln

Installed in memory of Renée Johnson, founder of the Paris-Chicago Committee, this bust of Abraham Lincoln celebrates Franco-American friendship and the bond between the sister cities of Chicago and Paris. 

Historical Significance

Chicago, one of Paris’s sister cities, played a defining role in Abraham Lincoln’s rise to political prominence. Between 1847 and 1859, the young lawyer frequently visited the city, arguing landmark cases that shaped its development, including those influencing the northern Loop and the expansion of the railroad. In 1860, Chicago was the site of Lincoln’s nomination as the Republican candidate for the U.S. presidency. The Chicago Press and Tribune was among the first major newspapers to endorse him, and his nomination at the Wigwam building—a specially constructed wooden auditorium—was met with widespread celebration.

During the Civil War, historian Mary Livermore persuaded Lincoln to donate his original Emancipation Proclamation to the Chicago Sanitary Commission, underscoring the city’s role in the Union cause. Sadly, Chicago also became part of Lincoln’s final journey, as it welcomed his funeral procession on May 1–3, 1865, following his assassination.

About the Artwork

The chosen sculpture is a bronze bust of Abraham Lincoln cast from an original plaster made by Alfonso Iannelli (1888–1965), an Italian-American artist known for his fusion of art nouveau and cubism. Iannelli was based in Chicago for most of his life, and his works left a lasting artistic imprint on the city, making his depiction of Lincoln particularly meaningful. Initiated by the Paris-Chicago Committee, the project has received support from the City of Paris, the U.S. Ambassador to France and the Consul General of France in Chicago.

The Installation

The bust has been installed at Place Paul-Emile Victor, at the intersection of Avenue George V and Rue François 1er in the 8th arrondissement. Its location, just steps from the American Cathedral of the Holy Trinity and near the offices of French Heritage Society, underscores the deep cultural and historical ties between France and the United States.