Potter Palmer

“It would never do to leave it out”: How the Columbian Exposition was omitted from the U.S. Capitol’s FRIEZE OF AMERICAN HISTORY
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“It would never do to leave it out”: How the Columbian Exposition was omitted from the U.S. Capitol’s FRIEZE OF AMERICAN HISTORY

HISTORY

“It would never do to leave it out”: How the Columbian Exposition was omitted from the U.S. Capitol’s FRIEZE OF AMERICAN HISTORY

The United States Capitol almost became the home of a painting to commemorate the 1893 World’s Columbian Exposition. [Image from Pennsylvania Railroad to the Columbian Exposition (Pennsylvania Railroad Co., 1892).] U.S. Capitol, Washington, D.C., February 24, 1890 “CHICAGO WINS,” headlines read across the country the next morning. The Midwest metropolis won the bid to host the upcoming World’s Fair on the eighth vote in the House of Representatives. After a six-hour battle on February 24, 1890, the [...]

By Scott|2025-08-18T09:14:31-05:00September 18th, 2025|Categories: HISTORY|Tags: Adlai Stevenson, Bertha Palmer, Columbian Guard, Dewitt Cregier, Duke of Veragua, Frances E Willard, George R. Davis, Grover Cleveland, Harlow Higinbotham, James W. Ellsworth, Kenyon Cox, Potter Palmer, Princess Eulalia, William E Curtis|0 Comments

Sept. 8-Oct. 13, 2018: “Chicago’s Gold Coast Patronage and the 1893 World’s Fair” Tours (Chicago)

In conjunction with their exhibit “Treasures from the White City: The Chicago World’s Fair of 1893," the Richard H. Driehaus Museum in Chicago is offering a series of walking tours titled “Chicago's Gold Coast Patronage and the 1893 World's Fair” on Saturdays from 1-2:30 pm between September 8 to October 13. Led by Sally Kalmbach, the tour will explore Chicago’s famous Gold Coast neighborhood. Still one the most beautiful and architecturally rich neighborhoods in the city, the Gold Coast [...]

By Scott|2022-03-05T10:34:28-06:00September 2nd, 2018|Categories: EVENTS (past)|Tags: Bertha Palmer, Charles McKim, Henry Ives Cobb, John Root, Louis Sullivan, Palmer Mansion, Potter Palmer, Richard H. Driehaus Museum, Richard Hunt, Solon S. Beman|0 Comments

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 [...]