The World’s Columbian Exposition, otherwise dubbed The Chicago World’s Fair, held in 1893 was nothing if not spectacular. It was filled with huge buildings built to look like ancient Rome in white plaster surrounding a lagoon in the Parisian style. Thousands of foreign dignitaries flocked to the fair and Chicago outshone Paris’ Eiffel tower with a glittering Ferris wheel.
But Chicago’s fair set a Midwest-wide precedent not only that America had to borrow cultural attractions from Europe and elsewhere, but also that Westerners (as opposed to East Coasters) had no culture worthwhile enough to build a fair around.
The World’s Columbian Exposition was designed to celebrate the 400thanniversary of Christopher Columbus’ landing in America. America had a lot of pride at stake in the performance of this exhibition—Paris had recently put on a hugely successful World’s Fair, unveiling the stunning Eiffel Tower as the pièce de résistance.
The fair was also a matter of civic pride to Chicago. Eastern cities had basically been calling their midwestern counterpart--which had recently claimed the honor of America’s second largest city, after New York—a backcountry city with a taste for blood that grew larger than it should have. New York, Washington, D.C., St. Louis and Chicago all put in bids to host the great fair in their cities. Chicago won. In 1890, President Benjamin Harrison signed the act that said Chicago would hold the fair.
The fair was planned and created in a mere three years. Prominent architects including Louis Sullivan and Richard Morris Hunt designed the buildings that would house the exhibition’s events. They were under the control of the prominent Chicago architecture firm, Burnham & Root.
In some ways, New York still won during the architect selection process. Burnham first selected only eastern architect—with a single one from Kansas City—and none from Chicago. The eastern men were only tepidly interested, and Burnham & Root had to use all their powers of persuasion to convince the men to take the journey west to examine the fair’s spot. The fair committee urged Burnham to select Chicago architects, as well, which he later did.
These were not your typical state fair buildings, however. One became the largest structure standing in the world—for the time being—and others included huge beamed roofs, steel and stone. Two of the great stone buildings still house the Chicago landmarks the Field Science Museum and the Art Institute of Chicago.
Exhibitions included the latest inventions in science and technology, as well as pavilions from 46 other nations. One of the most popular amusement rides, called “Street in Cairo” introduced American audiences to belly dancing. In addition, a nostalgia symbols of Americana, the Ferris wheel was first produced and introduced at this fair.
The exposition closed on October 30, 1893, but its legacy did not end here. Other cities throughout the Midwest and the United States tried to recreate Chicago’s “White City,” using white plaster substances called staff to construct neoclassical buildings efficiently and cheaply. In essence, the Chicago Fair created a long-held attitude that Americana culture wasn’t enough for their great fairs—only European replicas shipped across the ocean and recreated in wood and plaster would suffice.
It wasn’t all bad, however. The fair helped Chicago continue its city planning, sprucing up the once-dismal Jackson Park and creating the City Beautiful movement that followed.