Introduction
The World’s Columbian Exposition of 1893, which took place in Chicago, Illinois, was a significant event in the social and cultural life of the United States of America. Celebrating the 400th anniversary of Columbus’ discovery of the New World, this event marked a new stage of architectural, industrial, and overall social development on the verge of the 19th and 20th centuries. Being set on the shore of Lake Michigan in Jackson Park, this fair received over 27 million visitors during the six months of its existence (Reed, 2021). The scope of the event, its manifestation of the US’ power, and industrial advancement had a long-term encouraging impact on the society’s acceptance of industrial progress and shaped the design and architectural style of the City of Chicago. This research paper explores the major players, challenges, and exhibits of the World’s Fair to examine its impact on society, design, and architecture.
Major Players
The Columbian Exposition was a grandiose event, the stakeholders of which included a variety of representatives of different spheres and professions. In particular, according to Reed (2021), the exposition was an international endeavor, which meant that the stakeholders from other countries participated in the preparation of the exhibits for the fair. Major players of the event were painters, musicians, scientists, engineers, architects, designers, and technicians who presented their creations as examples of a technologically new era. For example, the chief architect of the whole project was Daniel H. Burnham, who directed all architectural works of the fair (“World’s Columbian Exposition of 1893,” n. d). Another significant figure participating in the fair was George Washington Gale Ferris, a mechanical engineer who designed and built the biggest entertainment attraction of the event – the recreational wheel (Reed, 2021). The educational exhibits related to anthropology were directed by G. Browne Goode and Sol Bloom (Reed, 2021). In addition, state and federal authorities were present at the event to mark its significance for the country.
Furthermore, the major players of the event included not only the immediate participants but also the influential visitors who later contemplated the significance and the overall impact of the fair on society. In particular, one of the key controversies associated with the exposition was the representation of the African American community. Since the Columbian Exposition’s primary aim was to demonstrate the progress and growth of America since its inception, the progress made by Black Americans was underrepresented in the fair (Reed, 2021). The dominant figures in the emancipation movement, namely Frederick Douglass and Ida B. Wells-Barnett, shared their criticism of the fair’s neglect of the contribution of African Americans to the historical economic and cultural advancement of the country (Reed, 2021). Thus, the fair’s participants and stakeholders were not only the decision-makers but also critics of the event due to its ultimate impact on the future of society.
Challenges of the Design
The scope and multitude of exhibits constituted the main challenge of the event’s design. It took the organizers and main participants three years and over $30 million to implement the ideas and prepare the exposition (Reed, 2021). Moreover, the large area of over 630 acres in Jackson Park on the shores of Michigan Lake was challenging due to the importance of integrating the landscape into the overall design of the exposition (Great documentaries, 2016; Reed, 2021). Despite the landscape-related challenges, the engineers and designers of the event were capable of embracing the uniqueness of the site and integrating shoreline, lake landscapes, and the park into the overall plan of the fair.
Moreover, the burden of responsibility for successfully implementing the fair for Chicago City was considered one of the challenges. In particular, many cities were competing with Chicago to become the hosting location. Therefore, the accomplishment of the planned event was anticipated to ensure that Chicago is a powerful and influential fast-developing city (Reed, 2021). In terms of the design solutions, the fair must have resembled the style of America in its richness with a particular emphasis on Chicago culture. In addition, the combination of different types of exhibits of educational, recreational, entertaining, and technological nature different in size and scope necessitated engineering decision-making for proper planning.
Overview of the Exposition
The exposition entailed a multitude of venues, exhibits, entertainment spots, and technological sites, all integrated into the same location with a unique style and exquisite design. The exposition contained “two general areas: the White City and the Midway” (Reed, 2021, p. 319). The White City was an architectural location with the ideal buildings representing a perfect city of the future. The design of the buildings was based on the best examples of the Roman and Greek architectural styles to denote the dominance of classical approaches that would enable solving urban challenges of the future (“World’s Columbian Exposition of 1893,” n. d.). The White City’s main building was the largest building in the world in 1893 (Great documentaries, 2016). Since the White City represented the perfect future urban area, it contained exhibits of “Transportation, Electricity, Machinery, Manufacturing, Mining, and Metallurgy” (Reed, 2021, p. 319). It also contained the Ferris Wheel, which allowed for demonstrating the grandiosity of the city.
Contrary to the White City, the Midway was predominantly an entertainment area of the fair. It integrated food courts, walking pathways, educational exhibits, and the representation of “exotic people from around the world” (Reed, 2021, p. 320). Technological and engineering solutions were applied to introduce new types of entertainment to the visitors of the fair. Overall, the Columbian Exposition of 1893 contained both outdoor and indoor exhibits located in Jackson Park and on the shore of Michigan Lake.
Impact on Society
The time when the exposition was held marked the shift of two epochs, which was characterized by uncertainty mixed with hopeful anticipation. It demonstrated the “conflicting interests and ideas in the presentation and reception of the Fair” due to “the increasing fragmentation and confusion, of self-conscious searching for an identity on a personal and on a national level” (Rose, 1996, para. 3). However, the search for new opportunities and the change of the USA from an agricultural country into an industrial and progress-based one were the dominant impacts of the exhibition on the society. According to Great documentaries (2016), “the Chicago World’s Fair embodied the 19th-century progress, optimism, ambition, and sheer delight in variety and discovery” (00:11:21-00:11:30). The people who observed the event and participated in it celebrated the accomplishments of the past century and anticipated greater progress in the upcoming century. In such a manner, the presentation of electricity opportunities, machines, technological solutions to transportation and production, as well as architecture and arts, signified the new turn in a life full of change and positive anticipations. The US society felt powerful, diverse, and capable of a competitive global presence.
Impact on Design and Architecture
The most influential effect on the design and architecture of the future in Chicago and beyond was triggered by the White City. The alignment of the architectural style of the buildings at the exposition with the classical designs of Beaux-Arts designated the shift of the city design toward this style (Rose, 1996). Indeed, after the exposition, the City Beautiful Movement emerged to denote the aftermath of the World’s Fair and transform the city buildings into ones relevant to the new age. In particular, “Burnham and Edward H. Bennett’s 1909 Plan of Chicago was a culmination of lessons learned at the fair” since the city plan “offered Chicago a blueprint for growth and influenced city planning around the world” (“World’s Columbian Exposition of 1893,” n. d., para. 4). The choice of new materials, such as alabaster opened new opportunities for experimenting and finding new solutions for effective city planning (Great documentaries, 2016). Beaux-Arts buildings in the city architecture remain till today, reminding of the glory of the Columbian Exposition and its long-term influence on the architectural ideas of modernity.
Conclusion
In summation, the World’s Columbian Exposition in Chicago was a major event in the cultural history of the USA at the end of the 19th century. The grandiose constructions, a multitude of exhibits in the form of technological inventions, architectural creations, monuments, arts, music, and industrial advancements demonstrated at the fair shifted society toward the path of progress. The impact of the White City’s design and architecture was long-term ad decisive in terms of its shaping of Chicago city planning in the upcoming years.
References
Reed, J. L. (2021). Columbian exposition. In J. D. Buenker & J. Buenker (eds.) Encyclopedia of the Gilded Age and Progressive Era (pp. 319-322). Routledge.
Great documentaries. (2016). EXPO – magic of the White City (narrated by Gene Wilder) [Video]. YouTube. Web.
Rose, J. K. (1996). The World’s Columbian Exposition: Ideas, experience, aftermath. Web.
World’s Columbian Exposition of 1893. (n. d.). Web.