Orleans 'beast' statue was up a decade before Robert E. Lee statue removal | Fact check

The claim: Image shows statue that replaced Robert E. Lee statue in New Orleans

An Aug. 27 Facebook post ( direct link , archive link ) includes photos of a statue of a silver beast-like figure standing upright.

“They replaced the Robert E. Lee statue in New Orleans with this,” reads the caption on the post. “This is diabolical.”

It was shared 50 times in two days. Other versions of the claim spread widely on X , formerly Twitter .

More from the Fact-Check Team: How we pick and research claims | Email newsletter | Facebook page

Our rating: False

The beast statue did not replace the Lee statue. It is on private property adjacent to the area where the Lee statue once stood, a New Orleans city spokesperson said. The beast statue has been in the area since well before the Lee statue was removed in 2017.

'Sentinel' statue temporarily occupied former site of Lee statue

A 16-foot-tall bronze statue commemorating the Confederate general was taken down from its place in New Orleans' since-renamed Lee Circle in 2017, as WWL-TV in New Orleans reported . It’s one of many Confederate monuments that have been taken down around the country.

But the statue shown in the social media posts “did not replace the Robert E. Lee statue,” said city spokesperson Leatrice Dupré .

In fact, there have “not been any replacements” for the Lee statue, Dupré said.

A statue titled “Sentinel” was placed in Egalite Circle , formerly Lee Circle, in January 2022, but it was only a temporary installment as part of an art exhibition and was taken down later that year .

The sculpture shown in the social media posts is on “private property adjacent to the circle,” Dupré said. A website where users visit and log locations using GPS coordinates shows the statue has been there since at least 2007, a decade before the Lee statue was removed.

Fact check : Congress did not designate Confederate veterans as U.S. veterans

USA TODAY reached out to the property manager and users who shared the post for comment but did not immediately receive a response.

Our fact-check sources:

• Waymarking.com, accessed Aug. 30, K&B Plaza – New Orleans, LA
• Leatrice Dupré , Aug. 29, Email exchange with USA TODAY
• The Advocate, Aug. 28, A beast statue didn’t replace Robert E. Lee monument in New Orleans. Here’s the real story.

Thank you for supporting our journalism. You can subscribe to our print edition, ad-free app or e-newspaper here .

USA TODAY is a verified signatory of the International Fact-Checking Network, which requires a demonstrated commitment to nonpartisanship, fairness and transparency. Our fact-check work is supported in part by a grant from Meta .

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Orleans 'beast' statue was up a decade before Robert E. Lee statue removal | Fact check