This Side Up: The OTHER Man Who Mailed Himself to the Midway in a Box

[Continued from Part 1 of this article.] Millions of visitors poured into Chicago during the 1893 World’s Fair. They arrived by train, boat, carriage, wagon, horseback, bicycle, and several even walked. A few others chose, well … less conventional modes of transport. For example, Herman Zeitung—the Austrian tailor, small in stature but big in bravery—mailed himself C.O.D. to the 1893 World’s Columbian Exposition. When he popped out of his cargo box on July 28, officials must have thought “Oh, [...]

By |2023-10-05T07:27:43-05:00October 4th, 2023|Categories: HISTORY|Tags: |1 Comment

This Side Up: The Man Who Mailed Himself to the Midway in a Box

Despite having nearly 120,000 people enter the fairgrounds on Friday, July 28, this was the slowest day of the week at the 1893 World’s Columbian Exposition. The day before had been a busy one, with Commercial Travelers and German Turners pouring into the Chicago fair for their "special days." Among the few events on Friday was the opening of an interesting package in the Woman’s Building. The box contained a gift from Empress Elisabeth of Austria to the Board [...]

By |2023-10-05T07:24:01-05:00October 3rd, 2023|Categories: HISTORY|Tags: , , |1 Comment

156. Picturesque World’s Fair – Interior View in Old Vienna

INTERIOR VIEW IN OLD VIENNA.—The memory of hours passed in the Austrian Village, or reproduction of a portion of the Vienna of a hundred and fifty years ago, is, perhaps, what will linger longest in the minds of those who "did" the Plaisance thoroughly during the past Exposition. The quaint, bustling scene presented on every side, the suppers in the open air and the delicious music afforded, combined to make the resort one worthy of many visits. The greatest [...]

By |2023-10-10T17:10:17-05:00September 20th, 2023|Categories: REPRINTS|Tags: , , |0 Comments

The Fair as a Spectacle, Part 3: An Enormous Whirligig of Pleasure

Continued from Part 2 [Note: This text includes names and descriptions now considered culturally disparaging. Please see our statement on “Potentially Offensive Text and Images.”] THE FAIR AS A SPECTACLE. How it seemed to a visitor—Strolling and dreaming by day and by night. By Charles Mulford Robinson Part 3: An Enormous Whirligig of Pleasure The entrance to the Plaisance was directly beyond this building. Serious purposed womanhood, as personified by the structure, stood before the Plaisance, blocking the way [...]

Vienna Beef History Museum Closes

UPDATE (1/26/2020): The Vienna Beef History Museum will be closing on February 1, 2020, with no plans for reopening, according to reporting by Block Club 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 [...]

By |2023-04-09T08:56:39-05:00January 26th, 2020|Categories: EXHIBITS (past), NEWS|Tags: , , , |0 Comments

THE CITY OF WONDERS: A Souvenir of the World’s Fair (Chapter 12)

THE CITY OF WONDERS A SOUVENIR OF THE WORLD'S FAIR by Mary Catherine Crowley (1894)

THE CITY OF WONDERS: A Souvenir of the World’s Fair (Chapter 10)

THE CITY OF WONDERS A SOUVENIR OF THE WORLD'S FAIR by Mary Catherine Crowley (1894)

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.

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 [...]

PICTURESQUE WORLD’S FAIR – Interior of “Old Vienna” (p. 31)

Page 31 INTERIOR OF “OLD VIENNA."— From: PICTURESQUE WORLD’S FAIR. AN ELABORATE COLLECTION OF COLORED VIEWS INTERIOR OF “OLD VIENNA."—To leave the Exposition without having visited the Austrian Village, more widely known as "Old Vienna," was, in the opinion of many people, not to have seen the Fair at all. It was one of the most popular places of resort for the multitude, despite the expensiveness of the luxury, for prices in Old Vienna were "World's Fair prices" indeed. There was [...]

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