For All Mankind

After their mission to the moon, the Apollo 11 astronauts were not done with their travels. In late September, Neil Armstrong, Buzz Aldrin, and Michael Collins set out on their 45-day Giantstep-Apollo 11 Presidential Goodwill Tour around the world. In total, the astronauts and their wives visited 24 countries and 27 cities.

Just as the world watched Armstrong and Aldrin walk on the moon, people from across the world took part in celebrating that human achievement. One hundred to 150 million people saw the astronauts during their trip. Mary Lynne and Steve Hewlett, newlyweds who travelled to Rio de Janiero on their honeymoon, remember meeting the astronauts during the Goodwill Tour. They recalled the astronauts being humble and grateful. To the Hewletts, the Apollo 11 crew seemed to want to share their experiences with the others. As they did, the astronauts were honored for their achievement with medals and keys to cities.



On October 8, the astronauts arrived in Paris, their eighth stop on the tour. While in Paris, Neil Armstrong and his fellow crew members each received a golden replica of the Apollo 11 Lunar Excursion Module (LEM). Neil Armstrong gave his model to the Ohio History Connection in 1973.

The readers of the newspaper Le Figaro commissioned Cartier to create the LEM replicas for each of the Apollo 11 astronauts. Only three in the world exist. The artists at Cartier who handcrafted the gold replicas included many details in white gold and black lacquer, including forward and overhead hatches; Rendezvous Radar, S-band, EVA and VHF antennas; and docking target. The artists formed and painted tracking and docking lights, four thruster clusters, an egress platform, and a ladder. On one side of the LEM, the red, white, and blue enamel of the American flag shines above the words "UNITED STATES." A corresponding side is engraved with the words, "Les lecteurs du journal / LE FIGARO / a / NEIL ARMSTRONG." A piece of microfilm inside the module lists the names of individuals who contributed in the creation of the "objet d' art."

While in Paris, Neil Armstrong was also presented with several medals. Some of those medals include the De La Vaulx Medal from the Federation Aeronautique Internationale and the Societe de Geographie medal. The Societe de Geographie of Paris, France is one of the oldest geographical societies in the world.

As an Ohio History Connection site, the Armstrong Air & Space Museum houses several medals and keys to cities given to Neil Armstrong during the Goodwill World Tour. We also care for and display commemorative art as seen in our Art & Armstrong exhibit.