Kaz Rowe Ranks the Weirdest Things at the 1893 Chicago World’s Fair

YouTuber Kaz Rowe has posted an engaging video “Ranking the Weirdest Things at the 1893 Chicago World’s Fair” in which she explores twenty-five quirky, surprising, or just-plain-strange attractions of the Columbian Exposition and ranks them on a scale from “slumgullion” to “some pumpkins.” From the Ferris Wheel to the Mammoth Cheese to the Windmill exhibit, visitors to the Chicago fair were treated to a salmagundi of curiosities. During an interlude in her rankings, Rowe visits with Marissa Croft of [...]

The Columbian Exposition, a Scintillating Diadem

Mr. Gerald James of London, puzzled by the discouraging impressions of the Fair reaching him through the New York press, came to Chicago to see for himself what the Exposition had to offer an open mind. “The Fair is supreme,” he wrote. “It is a scintillating diadem crowning the civilized world with the honor and glory of peace. It tells a story that centuries of books and newspapers could not tell, and is worth more to a man or [...]

California’s “Tower of Oranges” at the 1893 World’s Fair

California had a knack for building unusual towers for the 1893 World’s Fair. An amber-hued obelisk known as the “Olive Oil Tower” greeted visitors entering the south portal of the California Building. This display from Santa Barbara County was constructed from 2,000 quart-sized bottles of virgin liquid. In the northwest corner of the building, Butte County built twin towers made from several hundred boxes of choice dried fruits. In an upper floor of the Horticultural Building stood a “Walnut [...]

By |2023-12-12T14:51:11-06:00December 13th, 2023|Categories: HISTORY|Tags: , , , |0 Comments
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