Echoes of the White City Part 2: “A Midway in Miniature”
For two weeks in November of 1894, an ersatz Midway Plaisance sprang to life inside of the Battery D Armory and Second Regiment Armory buildings in downtown Chicago.
Echoes of the White City Part 1: Chicago Society’s 1894 Charity Bazaar
When the Midway reopened in 1894, the Ferris Wheel had only four passenger cars, the girls in the Congress of Beauty had to shave their faces, and the famous “belly dance” was performed by a male window decorator from Marshall Field’s.As carriages pulled up along Michigan Avenue, Chicago’s society folk were greeted by a fat, little man wearing “trousers that might have been intended for twin balloons,” a fez, and shoes with turned-up toes. Standing on a red platform, he [...]
A 360-Degree View of the 1893 World’s Columbian Exposition (Sneak Peek)
The Chicago 00 Project has released a sneak peek of their upcoming an augmented and virtual reality experience, The 1893 World's Columbian Exposition, to be published in early 2020. A partnership between the Chicago History Museum and filmmaker Geoffrey Alan Rhodes, the Chicago 00 Project has been producing a series of interactive multimedia experiences using historical images of important sites and events in Chicago. Their augmented reality app allows participant to overlay historic photos with real-time views at the site [...]
PICTURESQUE WORLD’S FAIR – Egyptian Swordsmen (p. 87)
PICTURESQUE WORLD’S FAIR. AN ELABORATE COLLECTION OF COLORED VIEWS Page 87 – EGYPTIAN SWORDSMEN EGYPTIAN SWORDSMEN.— Among the attractions of a Street in Cairo were a number of swordsmen, some of them very expert in their profession. Their weapons were not of the style in use among Europeans and Americans, but resembled Japanese swords somewhat and had no guard above the hand grip. The blades were not, however, used much in a defensive way, that being left to the [...]
Oct. 21, 2019- May 2021: American Medina-Stories of Muslim Chicago (Chicago History Museum)
Some of the earliest Muslim communities in Chicago came for the 1893 World’s Columbian Exposition and on the Midway Plaisance were several of the first mosques in the city. The Chicago History Museum opens a new exhibit “American Medina: Stories of Muslim Chicago” on October 21, 2019. CHM notes that “the intention of this exhibition is to record the diverse stories and life experiences of Muslim people living in Chicago in order to build connections in our communities through [...]
Sean Masterson’s Magic from the Midway
A story about the Midway Plaisance of the 1893 World’s Columbian Exposition weaves its was through a Chicago magic show. Sean Masterson’s Timeless Magic blends expert sleight-of-hand trickery, quirky humor, and a personal detective story centering around a World’s Fair commemorative coin. Masterson shares with his audience his quest to discover the origin of his coin, taking us on a tour of several magicians who worked on the Midway and in Chicago at the time of the Fair. (You’ll [...]
PICTURESQUE WORLD’S FAIR – A View Through the Ferris Wheel (p. 85)
PICTURESQUE WORLD’S FAIR. AN ELABORATE COLLECTION OF COLORED VIEWS Page 85 – A VIEW THROUGH THE FERRIS WHEEL A VIEW THROUGH THE FERRIS WHEEL.—Imposing as was the Ferris Wheel seen from a distance, a great object towering aloft and showing the location of the Fair from a distance of miles away, it was scarcely less impressive when its monster parts were examined from one of the cars which revolved with it, carrying their hosts of passengers. It was not [...]
THE LADY OF THE LAKE by Julian Hawthorne Part III: Curiosities of the Midway Plaisance
Author Julian Hawthorne visited the 1893 World’s Columbian Exposition in Chicago. Reprinted below is the third part of Julian Hawthorne’s “The Lady of the Lake” about his June visit to the fairgrounds and published in the August 1893 issue of Lippincott’s Magazine. The previous installments can be found in Part I and Part II. [NOTE: By today’s standards, some of Hawthorne’s remarks about the Midway Plaisance and citizens of the international villages sound racist. It was not uncommon for commentators [...]
Ice and Snow on the Midway Plaisance
Here's some cool news from the July 8, 1893, Chicago Dispatch: Yesterday the thermometer nearly reached the one hundredth degree mark, and to-day is not much cooler, yet amidst this sultry heat of midsummer many thousands of visitors to the Midway Plaisance can, and many did, enjoy the enviable pleasure of a genuine sleigh ride on pure white snow. Not imitation snow, but the pure crystal itself. It is in itself worth a trip to Chicago and to the [...]
Chicago Magazine Recalls the “Indecent Undulations” on the Midway Plaisance
A photograph of "Egyptian Dancing Girls" from Picturesque World’s Fair shows more modest attire than is often described for the "belly dancer" show on the Midway. The February 2019 issue of Chicago Magazine offers a historical survey of baring skin in the Windy City. “Unbuttoning Chicago’s History of Covering Up” opens with the 1893 World’s Fair, summarizing how the “belly dancers” in the Street in Cairo exhibit on the Midway Plaisance shocked some viewers, raised ire of the [...]
PICTURESQUE WORLD’S FAIR – The Algerian Theatre (p. 72)
PICTURESQUE WORLD’S FAIR. AN ELABORATE COLLECTION OF COLORED VIEWS Page 72 – THE ALGERIAN THEATER THE ALGERIAN THEATRE.—The Algerian and Tunisian Village, in which the theatre was the chief attraction, was situated near the center of the Midway Plaisance and adjoining the Street in Cairo. The frontage, as may be seen in the illustration, was not remarkably pretentious, but the main building inside had a Moorish dome with towers and minarets, and its exterior was covered with the rich-hued [...]
Virility on the Midway: “The Longest Beard in the World” (Death Valley Days, 1956)
We’ll be exploring other films and videos that use the 1893 World’s Columbian Exposition as a setting in our “Filming the Fair” series. Check out other WCE videos in the Zoopraxiscope Hall section of our website. Have you heard of “The Longest Beard in the World” concession on the Midway Plaisance at the 1893 World’s Columbian Exposition? This fictional attraction plays a part in an episode of the long-running television series Death Valley Days. “The Longest Beard in the [...]
Iowa State Band Performs on Inaugural Spin of the Ferris Wheel
The great Ferris Wheel opened to the public on June 21, 1893. Though more than a month late (the fair opened on May 1), the wheel became one of the most popular attraction of the World’s Columbian Exposition. Some 2,000 spectators gathered on the Midway Plaisance for the opening ceremony. The festivities began at 3 pm with speeches by Robert W. Hunt, President of the Ferris Wheel Company; George Washington Gale Ferris, Jr., engineer and designer of the metal [...]
June 16, 2018: It’s Your Park Day (with tour) on Midway Plaisance
June 16, 2018, is "It's Your Park Day" in Chicago, the the Chicago Parks Foundation's annual citywide volunteer day, celebrating Chicago's beautiful green spaces and the communities who support them. One site includes Midway Plaisance Park, site of the great Midway attraction of the 1893 World's Fair. In addition to a park clean-up (all morning), there will be a free historical walking tour to mark the 125th anniversary of the World's Columbian Exhibition and the first Ferris Wheel located [...]
Vienna Beef History Museum opens in Chicago
We have not yet reached the dog days of summer, but Chicago is already celebrating its most famous dog, with the opening of the Vienna Beef History Museum. The 1893 World’s Columbian Exposition launched the careers of many now-famous food items, including shredded wheat, Aunt Jemima pancake mix, chili, brownies, and one of Chicago’s iconic bites: the hot dog. The Vienna beef hot dog made its debut at the World’s Fair at a stand operated by Austrian-Hungarian immigrants Emil [...]
May 4-Nov. 25, 2018: “Celebrating Libbey Glass, 1818-2018” at Toledo Museum of Art
The Toledo Museum of Art (TMA) currently has an exhibit commemorating the 200th anniversary of the Libbey Glass Company. Celebrating Libbey Glass, 1818-2018 features several pieces showing the Toledo glassmaker’s contributions to the 1893 World’s Fair in Chicago. The Libbey Glass Works building on the Midway Plaisance. [Image from Views of the World's Fair and Midway Plaisance (Conkey, 1894).] The Libbey Glass Works building, located at the east end of the Midway Plaisance at the Columbian Exposition, served [...]
“Shock of the New: The Legacy of the 1893 World’s Fair” on BackStory
On May 11, the American history podcast BackStory released episode #0238, an hour-long exploration of the Columbian Exposition titled “Shock of the New: The Legacy of the 1893 World’s Fair.” Hosts Ed Ayers, Nathan Connolly, and Joanne Freeman invite listeners to visit the fairgrounds starting with a segment called “Dreaming Bigger.” Historian Bernie Carlson then explores the role of electricity at the fair in “Electric Feel.” Purdue University Associate Professor & Director Women's Studies Tracey Jean Boisseau highlights the [...]
PICTURESQUE WORLD’S FAIR – The Ferris Wheel (p. 48)
PICTURESQUE WORLD’S FAIR. AN ELABORATE COLLECTION OF COLORED VIEWS Page 48 – THE FERRIS WHEEL THE FERRIS WHEEL.—What the Eiffel Tower was to the Paris Exposition the Ferris Wheel was to the Columbian. Like the Eiffel Tower, it was a triumph of engineering and an example of metal construction on a gigantic scale, but it had the additional feature of activity. It was in motion, a monster plaything, a device for furnishing a novel experience to the multitude. The [...]
Opening Day, Part 2: Presidential Procession to the Fairgrounds
Presidential Procession to the Fairgrounds This is Part 2 of our series “Opening Day of the World’s Fair,” which explores the events of May 1, 1893, at the World’s Columbian Exposition in Chicago. The full series can be found here. Finely decorated with flags and bunting The Auditorium Building, where the Duke of Vergua stayed. [Image from the Rijksmueum, Amsterdam.] On the morning of Opening Day of the 1893 World’s Fair, the center of attraction in downtown Chicago [...]
PICTURESQUE WORLD’S FAIR – The German Castle (p. 46)
PICTURESQUE WORLD’S FAIR. AN ELABORATE COLLECTION OF COLORED VIEWS Page 46 – THE GERMAN CASTLE THE GERMAN CASTLE.—The most notable feature of the German Village in Midway Plaisance was, assuredly, the German Castle, a manner of structure with which very few save foreign visitors were at, all familiar. It bore little resemblance to the ideal fortress of the Middle Ages, even to those upon the Rhine whence robber barons descended upon passing bodies of traders or to make war [...]