Exposition "Les Bollée, Une dynastie de fondeurs de cloches"

As part of Le Mans Sonore

An emblematic figure in the heritage of Mance, with a long line of visionary inventors, the Bollée family has left its mark on the history of the region in many ways. The best known remains their major contribution to the development of the automobile. But the family's unique blend of expertise, innovation and scientific mastery can also be found in hydraulic, wind, computing and measurement technologies.

At the start of what can be described as an industrial saga, the Bollée name became known as early as the eighteenth century for its foundry activity.

From the Haute-Marne to the Sarthe via the Loiret, Jean-Baptiste père, then Jean-Baptiste fils and Ernest Sylvain established a reputation for quality thanks to their bells, which can be found in Reims, Rouen, Vitré, Notre-Dame de Paris, and even on the Isle of Wight or in New York State! Synonymous with precision in a constant process of innovative fever, this production has been enriched by creations such as the belfry, the carillon mechanism, the keyboard and the fittings, to establish a trademark of undiminished prestige, bringing influence and opening the way to a tradition of which our region is still proud to this day, and which this exhibition invites you to rediscover in pictures.

Thanks to the Conseil Départemental de la Sarthe, the Archives Départementales de la Sarthe, the association Patrimoine Le Mans Ouest and the association L'Armabollée.

Free access to the exhibition in the rue de Bolton.