The Palatine Library hosts a talk on "The 1893 Chicago World's Fair" on Wednesday, March 22, 2023, from 6:30-7:30 pm in the Main Library building (700 N. North Court, Palatine, IL). Historian Jim Gibbons will detail the events of the World’s Columbian Exposition, while incorporating the story of a darker story of America’s first well-known serial killer, the infamous H.H. Holmes. Register to attend the free event here.
The Newberry Library's Adult Education program will offer an online writing seminar on Erik Larson's The Devil in the White City: Murder, Magic, and Madness at the Fair That Changed America. This acclaimed 2003 historical non-fiction book introduced millions of readers to the facinating and tumultuous history of how the 1893 World's Columbian Exposition was built. "Deconstructing The Devil in the White City" will analyze the craft of the storytelling in Larson's writing. Dr. Caroline Malloy—a historian, book coach, and [...]
One of the largest surviving display artifacts of the 1893 World’s Columbian Exposition sits in a park in Geneva, Illinois. The Viking ship, a replica of the ancient Viking ship Gokstad, was built in Norway in 1892 and sailed to Chicago in 1893, surviving a long and dangerous non-stop crossing of the Atlantic Ocean. Since 1995, the ship has stood in Good Templar Park in Geneva, Illinois, and now is managed and preserved by the Friends of The Viking [...]
In 1891 a brilliant 23-year-old woman won an architecture contest to design the Woman’s Building for the World’s Columbian Exposition in Chicago. What should have been the start to a flourishing career in architecture became career-ending. Throughout the two-year process of building the Woman’s Building, the architect quietly endured bullying, micromanaging, and undermining until she finally spoke up. In a time when women were defined as physically and intellectually weaker than men, her concerns were not only not heard, [...]
Chicago’s Joffrey Ballet once again will stage their spectacular production of The Nutcracker, with story set on the fairgrounds of 1893 World's Columbian Exposition. Performances run from December 3-7, 2022, at the Lyric Opera House (20 N. Wacker Dr. in Chicago) This ballet by choreographer Christopher Wheeldon, which premiered in 2016, invites the audience to … “journey inside Chicago’s 1893 World’s Fair ... when young Marie and her mother, a sculptress who is creating the fair’s iconic Statue of [...]
A new exhibition explores the history of race and the built environment in Chicago through archaeology connecting the “White City” of the 1893 World’s Columbian Exposition to the material, spatial, and social histories of two 1892 structures—the Charnley-Persky House and the Mecca Flats—located respectively on Chicago’s privileged Near North and disinvested Near South Sides. The City Beyond the White City: Race, Two Chicago Homes, and their Neighborhoods, sponsored by the Charnley-Persky House Museum Foundation and Society of Architectural Historians [...]
Paragon Ragtime Orchestra will present MEET ME AT THE FAIR!: Music from the Great “World’s Fairs” on November 3, 2022. A spectacular musical celebration of the legendary world’s fairs, including the 1876 Centennial Exhibition, the 1893 World’s Columbian Exposition, the 1904 St. Louis World’s Fair, and the 1915 Panama-Pacific Exposition. Music played a key role in the success of all these international festivals, launching both hit songs and the illustrious careers of many American musicians (including Scott Joplin and Sousa). [...]
To mark the 200th anniversary of the birth of renowned landscape architect Frederick Law Olmsted, Sr, the Newberry Library is hosting a seminar on "Olmsted in Chicago: Iconic Greenspaces and the 1893 White City." The online seminar will run for three Thursday sessions from 6-8pm on October 6, 13, and 20. Hosting the sminar will be Julia Bachrach, consulting historian and preservationist and author of The City in a Garden: A History of Chicago’s Parks, and Rebecca S. Graff, Associate [...]
After centuries of relative isolation, Korea opened its borders to international trade and diplomacy in 1876, but for years the country remained little known outside of Asia. Korea’s participation in the Chicago World’s Fair in 1893 changed that. Visitors to the Korean pavilion were dazzled by the colorful displays of traditional clothing (hanbok), such as embroidered silk jackets and robes made for the Joseon royal court. South Korea's emergence as a pop culture powerhouse and one of the most [...]
A new full-length documenary film 1893 Chicago's Columbian Exposition will have it theatrical premier on September 10th, 2022, at 5 pm. The event is in coordination with the Design Museum of Chicago and will be held at Chicago Filmmakers (1326 W. Hollywood Ave. in Chicago). A $10 donation is requested. Following the screening will be a demonstration on the patio of a World's Fair augmented reality project. For more information on the film, related book and music, and the [...]
