Chicago’s World Fair, or otherwise known as the World’s Columbian Exposition opened in the year 1893. The Exposition was to commemorate the 400th anniversary of Columbus’ voyage to America. Not only was it a commemoration, but it was also an attempt to outshine the Exposition Universelle in France that occurred in 1889, with it’s impressive building structure at the time, which was the Eiffel Tower. American pride needed to be redeemed and the Exposition would be proof in showing the world that America was a superior nation. To determine to what extent the fair was indeed a great influence in American society, it is essential to analyze the cultural, industrial, and technological effects that occurred. To start with, the fair influenced greatly …show more content…
in the cultural aspects as it made a statement that the sights seen in the fair would be imitated, as well as the social position of women growing to play a stronger role in society. In the industrial view, the fair gave way to influence architectural design through the neoclassical style that Burnham and the other architects decided on building. Lastly, progress in technology was seen during the fair as inventors were able to present their new achievements to spectators, especially with the display of the new form of electricity. To a larger extent, the Chicago World’s fair was a prominent event in American history to have forged together cultural, industrial, and technological impacts in the lives of the American people. Culture was greatly influenced with the exhibits that were displayed in the fair, especially the Manufacture and Liberal Arts Building that displayed exhibits from various nations around the world, which slowly started influencing American culture.
The Manufacture Building was without a doubt, a marvel that brought awe to the people because of its exhibits and architecture. Not only was the Manufacture Building of cultural importance, but as well as the Midway Plaisance, where displays of native villages greatly inspired circuses to include tribal people. As well as the theatrical entertainment showcased in Midway help establish theme parks such as Disneyland and Disney World (Rose). Since the exhibits gave such an impact to America, that after the fair, “many of the exhibits found their way into museums around the country, including the Smithsonian Institution and the Philadelphia Commercial Museum. Chicago's Field Museum owed its origin to the fair and opened in 1894 in the former Palace of Fine Arts, a building that would later be reconstructed to become the Museum of Science and Industry,” (Rydell). The displays impacted Americans considerably, that it would be a disgrace for such exhibits to be destroyed, so in turn, it was then decided to be added in museums and be viewed by the people to see its grand prominence. Furthermore, women’s role in society grew as they persisted in having their own building, which was then called the Woman’s building. Thus creating a Board …show more content…
of Lady Managers, to manage the building and it’s features (“The Legacy Of A Truly World's Fair”). It was a big step for women as it was a sudden change in viewing women, “This was the first moment in American history that women had formal, institutionalized role in the planning and execution of government tasks; to as a member of the Board of Lady Managers was to participate in a singular moment in American women’s history,” (Maxwell). What an astounding change in American culture due to the various attributes in the buildings, as well as the gradual impact in women's history. Industry changed after the construction of the Chicago’s Fair as it’s sense of style was seen to be of great importance in architectural design, as well as influencing the City Beautiful Movement that grew after the fair. The elegance and uniformity was shown in the buildings as it was a neoclassical style which was more known as Beaux-Arts. The neoclassical style seemed to change the ways of architecture, which such buildings was now spreading around the country after the exposition (Wolski). The fair was viewed as something to be only seen in dreams, it was magical place with it’s white colored buildings, and grandeur style. Burnham needed to have the city have glory, beauty and harmony, and this view on building was largely seen in the City Beautiful Movement, to come later after the fair. The movement adopted Burnham’s ideas, and the movement was also to save cities of their rugged and gloomy look into a magical place, thus influencing many cities in America (“The Legacy Of A Truly World's Fair”). Industrial movements formed after the exposition, and the architecture and beauty of the cities gradually grew in the incoming 20th century. The fair got it’s name of White City due to its white plaster, as well as the fair’s ample use of street lights.
New technological advancements were produced in the city for the people’s viewing. It was such a phenomenon to see all the various new inventions that were displayed in the fair that many people have never seen before. Such description was given of the people’s view on the fair, “Within the fair’s buildings visitors encountered devices and concepts new to them and to the world. They heard live music played by an orchestra in New York and transmitted to the fair by long-distance telephone. They saw the first moving pictures on Edison’s Kinetoscope, and they watched, stunned, as lightning chattered from Nikola Tesla’s body. They saw even more ungodly things—the first zipper; the first-ever all-electric kitchen, which included an automatic dishwasher;” (Larson 247). The most innovative contraption seen in the fair was Nikola Tesla’s AC electricity system that overshadowed Edison’s direct current system. Tesla’s system was a huge success as “lamps that laced every building and walkway produced the most elaborate demonstration of electric illumination ever attempted and the first large-scale test of alternating current...These were important engineering milestones,” (Larson 254). Milestones, indeed, as this was a new sense of technology that was being brought out in the fair, making the fair a huge success for it’s technological influence in American
society. With all the great productions being made due to the fair, the fair did have it’s downfall. The fair was constructed during a time of financial crisis, and the fair was made in order to overlook the growing economic recession of the nineteenth century. Even with this, the fair did not help ignore the growing problems as numerous big banks started to fail around the country after the fair opened. This economic crisis brought much disdain to many people and were mostly focused on these problems than visiting the great White City (Larson 240). Although, given some time, the fair slowly started to gain large amounts of people to attend the fair and furthermore, seemed to give its effect of a magical city. Nevertheless, after the fair closed, it seemed the glorious time of happiness and relief was to be destroyed. Great sorrow for such a change in atmosphere the city of Chicago undertook, “What a human downfall after the magnificence and prodigality of the World’s Fair which had so recently closed its doors! Heights of splendor, pride, exaltation in one month; depths of wretchedness suffering, hunger, cold, in the next,” (Larson 334). In conclusion, the World’s Columbian Exposition was a cultural, industrial, and technological influence in America for the twentieth century and further along the line of American history. American society was lacking it’s artistic style and appearance before the fair, and all thanks to American pride of trying to achieve the great title of holding such a grandeur exposition to show off to other nations in the world. The Chicago Fair help unify Americans in shifting from an agrarian style of life into a life of urban and industrial cities with elegance and beauty surrounding the cities. Furthermore, the White City triggered multiple effects on Americans and thus revolutionized America heading into the 20th century.
The Chicago World's Fair of 1893 changed America in enormous ways. Probably the most prominent being that it directly changed America's and the world's perception of America and our capabilities. Not only was it the first in America, but the Chicago World's Fair propelled America...
One story describes the planning of the 1893 Chicago World’s Fair that had been proposed to celebrate the four hundred years since Columbus landed in America. The idea didn’t get much attention until a year earlier, when Paris held a world fair and unveiled the Eiffel Tower. Not to be outdone, America decided now it was a matter of who would hold a fair that would put France’s fair to shame. There was a dilemma of where the fair would be built New York or Chicago, but votes were tallied up and the majority of the vote was Chicago. Among the many architects in Chicago, the main job of the designing the fair was given to Daniel H. Burnham. He needed a companion to help him with the design and other features of the fair, so he chose John Root, a very close friend of his and former associate. Because of the amount of time it took to decide where to build the fair, The White City was believed to be impossible to construct because of time con...
In the annals of World's Fairs, the 1901 Buffalo fair is listed, as a matter of record. However, it is one of the lesser-remembered fairs. This is not due to a lack of planning or physical appeal, but rather to the fact that on September 6, 1901, President William McKinley was shot and killed at the Temple of Music. This was the kind of event that is so infamous and carries such bad press that it condemns everything it touches, from the setting, the surrounding events, and the people involved, to the same black blanket of notoriety. Due to the President's assassination, the popularity of the Fair spiraled downward. Despite the deploring of the Fair, however, it was home to some remarkable buildings.
From first impression, Burnham found that Chicago had a murky factorial image lined with a “fantastic stink that lingered in the vicinity of Union Stock yards” (41). The dreadful surface that Chicago was maintaining allowed Burnham to be determined to collaborate and recreate its image. His efforts would also make a reputational comeback for America’s poor representation in the Exposition Universelle (15). One major feature that transformed public opinion of the state was to illuminate the entire fair with clean white buildings that outlined the goodness of the area (252). Eye-catching whiteness contradicted the presumed dirtiness of the town. Making a contradiction from what was assumed of the city would allow the fair to generate a much bigger transformation. The lights also gave the fair a unique, whimsical edge. “The lamps that laced every building and walkway produced the most elaborate demonstration of electric illumination ever attempted”, incorporating new technology in a grand-scale way merely to keep the theme of brightness ongoing throughout each day and night (254). Most importantly, it displayed the town’s potential to become a thriving and respected city. The theme of whiteness interlaced with the neoclassical outline in The World Fair’s de...
Although the Chicago World’s fair of 1893 only lasted 6 months, it had an enormous impact on the city of Chicago, its people, and indeed the entire country. Up until that point in its history, the US had done nothing on the scale of the world’s fair, and was regarded as a country of barbarians and cowboys by much of the world, especially Old Europe. The fair was a perfect way for the US to disprove this. In building the fair, they would be placed in direct competition with France, who had built a magnificent fair only a few years before. If Chicago could at least build a fair on par with the Paris fair, it would prove to the world that the US was a cultural, military and political force to be reckoned with. Because of the fair’s gigantic scale, it became a microcosm of the conflicts and the tenor of the times. In effect, the fair was the turning point between the old Victorian days and the modern era, technologically, culturally, politically, and in the hearts of the people of the US and the world.
One half of the story was of a man named Daniel Burnham, who was a famous architect of his time. It’s in this half of the story that can you see the good part of the city. Pride can be seen mainly throughout his story. His life in these pages was based on the construction of the World Columbian Exposition which was a fair held in Chicago in 1893. This magnificent fair was in honor of one of America’s most well known discoverers, Christopher C. Columbus. This was the 400th anniversary of his discovery of the new world. Through Burnham’s pride and his determination, he was able to complete the fair in almost a year. However, it was not truly ready for opening day due to a few construction issues, such as the world’s f...
In 1921, the New York State and New York City Departments of Education sponsored the America’s Making Exposition. The objective of...
In 1893 a world fair was held in Chicago Illinois to celebrate the 4thcentenniel of Columbus discovering the Americas. The exposition displayed grand buildings with beautiful architecture, hundreds of exhibits ranging from exotic tribes of Africa, to new inventions, expertly constructed landscape, and astounding attractions such as the first Ferris wheel. The fair lasted for six months and had over 27 million visitors, including ¼ of the American population.
Chicago wins the bid for the 1893 World's Exposition or as some call it the World Fair. Author Larson includes two different plots. One of the plot lines is about an architect, named Daniel
“When people arrived in the morning on the 17th there was a display of horses, cattle and farm products” (Drury 807). “The first Montgomery County Agricultural Fair was held in Dayton at Swaynie’s Hotel on East First Street October 17th and 18th, 1839” (Drury 807). 1853, the state fair was held on Washington Street, the same year the county fair was held there (Drury 807) then in 1874, “the Southern Ohio Fair Association began having fairs on the Montgomery County Fairgrounds for fifteen years” (Drury 808). This set the stepping stone for many fairs in the years in counting. When individuals see the Montgomery County Fairgrounds today, it is seen as just being a place where random fairs or talent shows are held at. Not knowing its history, one could be right. Much has changed on the Montgomery County Fairgrounds; from its architecture to the people that now visit it.
The “White City” was a vast collection of architecture and arts that were put on display in the year 1893. The Chicago World Fair, also called the “White City”, was a major event in American history that impacted America’s culture, economic, and industry. The Chicago World Fair was held to honor Columbus’ discovery of the New World. The real reason why it was made was to proudly have back their wealth and power. Larson said, “the tower not only assured the eternal fame of its designer, Alexandre Gustave Eiffel but also offered graphic proof that France had edged out the United States for dominance in the realm of iron and steel…”(15). To accomplish this, architects led by Daniel Burnham and John Root made numerous buildings and beautiful scenery
At this time the United States was constructing massive amounts of railroad track that eventually grew to connect the entire country. The World’s Fair acted as a jumping off point for the creation of the railroad in some respects. For example, the powerful 999 steam train was presented at the World’s Fair. This train made fast train travel more accessible and ushered in the age of the locomotive. The quadricycle was another important invention that was present at the fair. The quadricycle was an extremely early iteration of an automobile. The quadricycle itself was not necessarily a huge step in history, but it was seen by the man who would go on to create the greatest advancement in automobile technology 20 years after the fair, Henry Ford. Henry Ford, of Ford Automobile fame, was inspired to create his revolutionary automobile design by the quadricycle. The quadricycle gave Ford an idea that changed the world, without the quadricycle Ford may not have gone into the auto industry and produced the first widely used automobiles. The quadricycle is indirectly responsible for one of the single most important inventions ever, the world would have been very different had the quadricycle not existed. The World’s Fair acted as a breeding ground for new ideas and inventions that went
In 1893, the great Chicago World’s Fair took place. Just climbing to the second largest populated city in America, Chicago had a lot to prove. The World’s Fair was a perfect opportunity for Chicago to come together and show that they can compete with other large cities like New York and Philadelphia. For the World’s Fair to be as successful as it was, there was a need for leaders, innovators, new inventions, and tremendous attractions. Without these, the fair could not have been designed and constructed as well as it was. Eventually, Chicago had convinced the entire United States that they could be just as powerful and influential as all the other larger, big-name cities of the country. America transformed into an advanced country as a result of the 1893 Chicago World’s Fair.
Traxel, David. 1898: The Birth of the American Century. New York: A.A. Knopf, 1998. Print.
A line of carriages carries important people, including President Grover Cleveland and Daniel Burnham, to the fair at Jackson Park. President Cleveland speaks at a ceremony signifying the much-anticipated opening of the exposition. The general consensus among the crowd is that the fair is a success, despite the mud-covered walkways and roads, unfinished landscaping, and unfinished Ferris wheel. Attendance registers between 500,000 and 600,000 people. However, the cause for celebration doesn't last long. Day two of the fair reels in roughly 10,000 people. Through the days to come after the fair had officially opened, many banks are forced to close and the stock market crashes. Burnham and his brigade of architects, draftsmen, engineers, and contractors had accomplished so much in an impossibly short time, but apparently not enough to overcome the damping effect of the fast-degrading economy. Many aspects of the fair were still unfinished including the elevators, the Ferris wheel being half finished, and roadways were still submerged under mud. “First and foremost, Burnham knew, the fair had to be finished, but in the meantime lures had to be cast to encourage people to shed their fears of financial ruin and come to Chicago” (page, 241). Burnham appointed Frank Millet to come up with new ideas on getting greater attendance at the fair. Millet implemented things such as fireworks, shows and parades. Millet even dedicated specific days