Up ‘n’ down
Ferris wheel
Tell me how does it feel
To be so high
Looking down here.
— Norah Jones “Carnival Town“
Grab a box of chocolates and a bouquet of roses, because today is … National Ferris Wheel Day! This annual celebration honors the anniversary of George Washington Gale Ferris, Jr.’s birth on February 14, 1859, in Galesburg, Illinois.
Ferris, of course, was the engineer who invented the biggest attraction of the 1893 World’s Fair. More than 1.4 million people rode on his great wheel on the Midway Plaisance.
The image we offer here is from the Chicago Herald issue of July 16, 1893–a few weeks after the Ferris Wheel had opened to the public on June 21. This illustration, by an uncredited artist, accompanies an article about “Ferris’ Great Wheel.”
“Ferris’ Great Wheel” from the July 16, 1893, issue of the Chicago Herald.
“There is absolutely no danger in riding on the Ferris Wheel,” states the article, “as every precaution has been taken to provide against accidents, and all persons who ride once are anxious to go again and bring their friends to enjoy the beautiful scenery.” Even the “wild hurricane” that swept through the Midway Plaisance the previous Sunday did not shake the confidence of its inventor.