1893 World’s Fair Coming to the Big Screen in THE CURRENT WAR

The lights are back on for a film partially set on the fairgrounds of the 1893 World’s Columbian Exposition. Scheduled to open in October 2019 is The Current War, a historical drama about the legendary “war of the currents” between titans of the electrical industry who are setting their sights on powering the 1893 World’s Fair in Chicago. The Current War tells the story of the vicious rivalry between inventors Thomas Edison (Benedict Cumberbatch) and Nikola Tesla (Nicholas Hoult), [...]

By |2024-09-23T08:18:36-05:00June 30th, 2019|Categories: NEWS, VIDEO|Tags: , , , , , |0 Comments
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2019 History Fairs Showcase Student Research on the 1893 World’s Fair

Several Chicago area students have been researching the 1893 World’s Fair and presented their project at spring history fairs. The Chicago Metro History Fair engages students in grades 6 through 12 in a research project relating to local history. A set of History Fair events during the Spring of 2019 culminated in the Finals competitions at Chicago History Museum on April 10, 2019. Some of these projects were advanced to Illinois History Day, held on Thursday, May 2, 2019, in [...]

By |2023-11-04T19:12:05-05:00June 27th, 2019|Categories: NEWS|Tags: |0 Comments
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Which 1893 World’s Fair building is Among “The 12 Most Controversial Buildings in America”?

A new article at the home advice website BobVila.com describing “The 12 Most Controversial Buildings in America” includes one from the 1893 World’s Fair. The article by Jamie Birdwell Branson lists the Woman’s Building, designed by architect Sophia Hayden. Branson notes that the controversy occurred because the building design “underwent contentious changes during construction, and many architectural journals gave it negative reviews upon completion” and also observes that the criticism may be been “reactions to the fact that the architect [...]

By |2019-06-22T10:46:40-05:00June 22nd, 2019|Categories: NEWS|Tags: , |0 Comments
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Wind Power History and the 1893 World’s Fair

The June 2019 issue of Maritime Reporter and Engineering News includes an article on wind energy history that notes the windmill exhibit at the 1893 World’s Columbian Exposition. “Offshore Wind: A Brief History” by Tom Ewing (pp. 18-19) describes the companies that showcased wind power at the World’s Fair in Chicago. Worldsfairchicago1893.com was happy to provide an image to accompany the article. An advertisement for the U.S. Wind Engine and Pump Co. of Batavia, Illinois. The company erected a [...]

By |2019-06-10T10:13:47-05:00June 11th, 2019|Categories: NEWS|Tags: , |1 Comment
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A visit to the Elmhurst History Museum

We had the pleasure of visiting the  Elmhurst History Museum's new exhibit, “Worlds of Wonder: Remembering Chicagoland’s Amusement Parks”, which we described here. The story of amusement parks in Chicago begins at the great 1893 World's Columbian Exposition and continues through today. The exhibit is free and runs through August 18, 2019.

By |2019-06-09T19:17:15-05:00June 9th, 2019|Categories: EXHIBITS (current), NEWS|0 Comments
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Louisville celebrates 1893 World’s Fair sculptor Enid Yandell

Louisville, Kentucky, is celebrating hometown sculptor Enid Yandell (1870-1934) with a series of events in 2019. The Louisville native, who studied under Auguste Rodin and Frederick MacMonnies, contributed several notable works to the 1893 World’s Columbian Exposition in Chicago. Yandell sculpted the four caryatids supporting the railing of the roof garden of the Woman’s Building. She was selected for the job for Bertha Palmer, President of the Board of Lady Managers and herself a Kentucky native. The artist also [...]

By |2022-09-02T08:25:09-05:00April 25th, 2019|Categories: EVENTS (past), NEWS|Tags: , , , , , |1 Comment
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Restored Map of Jackson Park Before the 1893 World’s Fair

To celebrate the American Library Association’s Preservation Week (April 21-27, 2019), the Chicago Public Library has posted some remarkable photographs of their conservation work on a very fragile map of Jackson Park before the 1893 World’s Fair. Portion of an 1885 map showing the “General Plan for the Jackson Park Shore Protection.” [Image from the Chicago Public Library.] The “General Plan for the Jackson Park Shore Protection” was drawn for the South Park Commissioners in 1885, five years before [...]

By |2019-04-16T09:57:01-05:00April 21st, 2019|Categories: NEWS|Tags: |0 Comments
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New Biography of Daniel Chester French

Today we’re celebrating the birthday of Daniel Chester French, born on April 20, 1850, and sculptor of The Statue of the Republic and other works for the 1893 World’s Fair. Author's Voice “Virtual Book Signing” video series recently posted the latest episode of “A House Divided” (Season 3, Episode 2). Host Harold Holzer of the Abraham Lincoln Book Shop interviews author Dan Weinberg on his new biography of the sculptor, titled Monument Man: The Life & Art of Daniel Chester [...]

By |2019-04-19T16:02:06-05:00April 20th, 2019|Categories: NEWS|Tags: , |0 Comments
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Russell L. Lewis

The Chicago History Museum has announced that their Chief Historian Emeritus and Trustee Emeritus Russell Lewis passed away today. Lewis was an eminent World's Columbian Exposition historian, authoring significant collections such as Historic Photos of the Chicago World's Fair (Turner, 2010) and Remembering the Chicago World’s Fair (Turner, 2011). His recent article “A Wheel With a View” in Summer 2017 issue of Chicago History described the Ferris Wheel. We delighted in, and were enriched by, his presentations on the [...]

By |2019-04-19T19:28:51-05:00April 19th, 2019|Categories: NEWS|Tags: |0 Comments
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Article on “Diana of the Tower” in New York Archives magazine

“America’s Grandest Tower” by Suzanne Hinman in the Spring 2019 (Volume 18, Number 4) issue of New York Archives magazine explores the 1891 dedication of the new tower of the Madison Square Garden in New York City. Topping the tower was a golden goddess who would come down in less than a year and be shipped off to the 1893 World’s Fair in Chicago. The article features several beautiful photos of Augustus Saint-Gaudens’ Diana (including one supplied by WorldsFairChicago1893.com) showing [...]

By |2019-04-16T11:28:56-05:00April 18th, 2019|Categories: NEWS|Tags: , |0 Comments
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