Windmills Causing Illness at the 1893 World’s Fair?

The story below comes from the June 6, 1893, issue of the Chicago Times, but feels oddly relevant in light of recent, strange claims making news headlines. In the southeast corner of the fairgrounds of the 1893 World's Columbian Exposition, two men overwhelmed by the great windmill exhibit encounter a sober Columbian guard who offers sage advice. When the World’s Congress on Temperance opened on June 5, many newspapers responded by offering commentary on drinking, though usually lacking in [...]

Libraries at the Columbian Exposition

“Extremes meet at Chicago.” —librarian Caroline Harwood Garland. The 1893 World’s Fair was full of contrasts: exotic dancing on the Midway and educational exhibits; fountains illuminated by electricity and bibles illuminated by paintings, dynamos and the Dewey decimal system; balloon rides and books. Amidst the Cracker Jack and orange cider was also “food for reflection in the existence of so many libraries.” To celebrate National Library Week, let’s take a look at libraries at the 1893 World’s Columbian Exposition. [...]

PICTURESQUE WORLD’S FAIR – East Lagoon by Moonlight (p. 77)

PICTURESQUE WORLD’S FAIR. AN ELABORATE COLLECTION OF COLORED VIEWS Page 77 – THE EAST LAGOON BY MOONLIGHT THE EAST LAGOON BY MOONLIGHT.— The night scenes at the Fair were undoubtedly the most beautiful for those who liked dreamy pictures, or half darkness contrasted with a blaze of glorious lights, better than unvarying white beauty. The fireworks, the illumination about the Court of Honor, the colored effects upon the Wooded Island were all charming and, in addition to these, was [...]

From the Balcony of Henry Ives Cobb’s Fisheries Building

Detail from "From the Balcony of the Fisheries Building" in Harper's New Monthly Magazine May 1893. Henry Ives Cobb (August 19, 1859 – March 27, 1931) contributed several buildings to the fairgrounds of the 1893 World's Columbian Exposition, but perhaps none so beautiful and intricately detailed as the great Fisheries Building. "In the Fisheries Building, a clever scheme of surface ornament has been composed from casts of starfish, seahorses, crabs, lobsters, and creatures of land and water [...]

By |2019-03-26T20:55:53-05:00March 27th, 2019|Categories: REPRINTS|Tags: , |0 Comments

Woman’s Part at the World’s Fair, Part III

Throughout Women’s History Month, we’re reflecting on women’s valuable contributions to the 1893 World’s Columbian Exposition. Reprinted here is Part 3 of “Woman’s Part at the World’s Fair” from the May 1893 issue of The Review of Reviews. “The Children's Building” was contributed by Clara Doty Bates, who served as the librarian for the building. Earlier this month we posted Part 1 and Part 2. Additional images have been added to the original article. Clara Doty Bates. [Image [...]

PICTURESQUE WORLD’S FAIR – The Life Saving Station (p. 76)

PICTURESQUE WORLD’S FAIR. AN ELABORATE COLLECTION OF COLORED VIEWS Page 76 – THE LIFE SAVING STATION THE LIFE SAVING STATION —The Life Saving Station was a popular institution at the World's Fair. At a certain hour every afternoon the crowd assembled on the lake shore and gazed out over the water, out of which, at a considerable distance, rose a mast, theoretically, that of a vessel submerged beneath. To the mast clung one or more supposedly shipwrecked people awaiting [...]

By |2019-03-10T19:20:34-05:00March 17th, 2019|Categories: REPRINTS|Tags: , , , |0 Comments

Woman’s Part at the World’s Fair, Part II

March is Women’s History Month and a fitting time to reflect on women’s valuable contributions to the 1893 World’s Columbian Exposition. Reprinted here is Part 2 of “Woman’s Part at the World’s Fair” from the May 1893 issue of The Review of Reviews. “The Woman's Branch of the World's Congress Auxiliary” was written by Ellen M. Henrotin, Vice-President of the Woman's Branch of the World's Congress Auxiliary. Part 1 was posted earlier this month, and Parts 3 will follow [...]

PICTURESQUE WORLD’S FAIR – The Interior of the Agriculture Building (p. 75)

PICTURESQUE WORLD’S FAIR. AN ELABORATE COLLECTION OF COLORED VIEWS Page 75 – INTERIOR OF AGRICULTURE BUILDING INTERIOR OF AGRICULTURE BUILDING.—The visitor new to the Fair and as yet unfamiliar with the topography of interiors was not unlikely to get lost in the Agriculture Building, with its acres of space and mile upon mile of displays. It was a most bewildering, but attractive, place, and drew the people, regardless of their occupation when at home. The dainty city woman and [...]

By |2019-03-10T20:13:03-05:00March 10th, 2019|Categories: REPRINTS|Tags: , , |0 Comments

Woman’s Part at the World’s Fair, Part I

March is Women’s History Month and a fitting time to reflect on women’s valuable contributions to the 1893 World’s Columbian Exposition. Reprinted here is Part 1 of “Woman’s Part at the World’s Fair” from the May 1893 issue of The Review of Reviews. “The Work of the Board of Lady Managers” was written by one of its Vice Presidents, Virginia C. Meredith of Indiana. Parts 2 and 3 will follow later this month. Section headers and additional images have [...]

How Should Chicago be Governed?

Chicago City Hall. [Image from Butterworth, Hezekiah Zigzag Journeys in the White City (Estes and Lauriat, 1894).] With the election for a new Mayor of Chicago on the horizon, citizens are demanding cleaner streets, a crackdown on crime and vice, and safer public transportation. The year was 1893. The mayoral election of the spring of 1893 would decide who would become the “World’s Fair Mayor” as the city prepared for the May 1 opening of the World’s Columbian [...]

By |2019-01-30T19:43:21-06:00February 19th, 2019|Categories: REPRINTS|Tags: |0 Comments
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