Have you visted any Exposition or Commemorative sites and the structures that remain???
keets
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I'm not certain for smaller Commemorative events, but for National events and World's Fair type Exhibitions it is typical that the grounds where the event is held be returned to their previous state.................with the exception of one structure which is left intact for historical posterity. I suppose that at some event sites, often held on vacant land donated or leased by the organizers, housing may be present and the residents may not be aware of the location and what it represents. In Cleveland, where the Great Lakes Exposition was held in 1936, there is an area referred to as "the Mall" which is large open area of concrete and gardens. It is close to/adjacent to the old Municipal Stadium and retains the tall pylons from the Exhibition, visible in any old photographs from the era. The area is heavily used by residents and commuters who work in the city, and events like rib-burn-off's and concert are held there. I imagine most residents and visitors don't realize what took place there almost eighty years ago.
Is there an Exhibition which took place close to you that you are aware of?? Are there any intact structures?? Have you visited the site?? Do you agree with me that the public in general tend to be unaware of the event or the structure(s) that still remain in use??
I suppose it's part of being a coin geek to pose these questions. Among other thing we tend to be interested in History.
Al H.
Is there an Exhibition which took place close to you that you are aware of?? Are there any intact structures?? Have you visited the site?? Do you agree with me that the public in general tend to be unaware of the event or the structure(s) that still remain in use??
I suppose it's part of being a coin geek to pose these questions. Among other thing we tend to be interested in History.
Al H.
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you've seen MIB, right??
Joseph J. Singleton - First Superintendent of the U.S. Branch Mint in Dahlonega Georgia
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Virtually nothing remains from this exposition. Unlike the 1893 Columbian Exposition, known as the White City because all of the buildings were painted white, the Century of Progress was an explosion of color. One of the last surviving buildings was the Ford Rotunda, which, after the exposition closed, was moved to Dearborn, Michigan. It burned down in 1962. The Rotunda had been a late addition to the Century of Progress, added after Ford saw just how popular the expo was.
A note on the 1893 Columbian Exposition:
The exposition was lit entirely by alternating current electric lights.
an artificial island constructed on the San Francisco Bay between the cities of San Francisco and Oakland.
The fair ran from 1939 to 1940.
Treasure Island was later taken over by the US Navy as a headquarters and some of the buildings remain.
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I decided to take a drive out by Stone Mtn. to see what it was like. I was pretty awesome to take in.
Just a few weeks ago, I was in Schaumburg, Ill., for work. I noticed an off ramp on the way back from Union, Ill. that indicated that I was near Elgin. I wanted to stop and see it, but I was pretty toast at that time and really didn't have enough energy to make a side trip.
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WOW! Great topic!!! Yes, I live near the site of the 1939 N.Y.W.F. which has its 75th anniversary this year. Yes, people in the area are sometimes quite ignorant of the meaning and sometimes even existence of this wonderful event - despite the fact that some 60 million people made their way here in 1939/40 from all over the world. Many that know of it are victims of misinformation. For example, we tried like heck to get Nazi participation but we could not secure it. The two flagpoles that remain near what was the Lagoon of Nations are by Robert Foster in his "steel ribbon" style, but the park tour says they are from Nazi Germany. It just goes on and on.
I have collected items from that Fair for 25 years. One item I have in my collection - a section of the Glass Building - recently toured the country with an exhibit that started in The National Building Museum in Washington DC and went on the the Henry Ford Museum and the Museum of the City of NY etc. I also provided the restored color Kodachrome illustrations for accompanying text Designing Tomorrow: America's World's Fair on the 1930's. Another neat item I have - several cars designed by Norman Bel Geddes for the Futurama in the General Motors Highways and Horizons building. I used to give guided lecture tours through the Fairgrounds, but stopped when the "where are we all going to eat" arguments became ridiculous with some wanting one check, others wanting individual checks, lighter fare...There is much more to see at the old '39 W.F. grounds than you see on the official tour, which claim all that remains is the Queens Museum, when there is an intact bridge, the Boathouse and even plants (if you know when and where to look). There is one house right near what was the Corona Gates that has a Trylon and Perisphere built into its brickwork. The Trylon and Perisphere (@ 180 ft and 610 ft respectively) were the these structures for this Fair. I could talk about this for years without a break - so I'll shut up now.
Best wishes,
Eric
PS - The NYS pavilion in MIB was from 1964 not 1939, but the 1939 Westinghouse Time Capsule is just a hundred yards away more or less.
Some of my self-restored images:
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Construction to demolition, 1936-1941 Top to bottom, left to right:
The site in 1936 when it was an ash dump in a swamp as described in The Great Gatsby. Next, you can see the drainage in 1937, the Trylon and Perisphere going up in 1938, the T&P in 1939, the Democracity inside the Perisphere by Henry Dreyfuss, the Perisphere at night, the Astronomer by Carl Milles at night, Petroleum at night (in blue), T&P at night, the Westinghouse robot Elektro and his pal Sparko in a hand tinted photo, Bel Geddes GM Futurama, Continental Baking (Wonder bread wrapper building!), closing and demolition in early 1941.
The city scene with the tall buildings in the bottom row is the Futurama diorama - this is where my cars come from. Obviously, closing day was on Halloween, Oct 31st 1939. This image is the test for the lighting and hails from the Peter Warner collection. The rest were caught in the wild by me
The color demolition slide took nearly 25 years to find!
With the exception of the Halloween photo (press), all are unique candids.
The Trylon and Perisphere image, first photo in the second row, was enlarged to huge size and displayed behind the original aluminum builders model in D.C.
<< <i>The building that now houses the Museum of Science and Industry in Chicago was originally built for the 1893 Columbian Exposition. During the exposition it was the Palace of Fine Arts. The exterior of the building, which, for the exposition, was only temporary, was replaced with real stone work after the exposition closed. >>
The Building that Houses the Art Institute of Chicago was also built for the 1893 Colombian Exposition, It was the Worlds Congress Building during the Exposition, and was one of the only buildings located outside of Jackson Park. The Art Institute underwrote part of the construction cost and moved into it right after the Exposition closed.
Eric
<< <i>the 1939 World's Fair
you've seen MIB, right??
The observation towers and Unisphere featured in the movie were built for the 1964 World's Fair on the same site as the 1939 World's Fair.
When I was a kid I visited a World's Fair site in Canada, probably near Montreal. This was in the 1979-82 timeframe. I remember seeing a mummy at the Egyption pavillion and thinking it was pretty cool.
JH
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One very important architectural note needs to be made clear; none of the buildings at the Pan-American, with the exception of the New York State building, were built to be a permanent structure. Looking closely at the many photographs reveals buildings falling apart at the seams. In order to construct world's fairs at a quick pace, 95% of the buildings were constructed of wooden frames and chicken wire with a base coat of plaster! Each rainfall caused the buildings to decay more and more so you can imagine the dilemma the directors of the Pan-American faced with the summer of 1901 being one of the wettest in Buffalo's history. The New York State Building, located in Delaware Park, was designed to permanently outlast the Exposition and is presently used as a museum by the Buffalo History Museum. Designated a National Historic Landmark in 1987, it can be visited on Nottingham Court.
To this day, residents of the various neighborhoods developed after the Pan-American was finally cleared away still find traces of plaster when digging in their gardens." *
*Source:wikipedia.org/wiki/Pan-American_Exposition
"Everything is on its way to somewhere. Everything." - George Malley, Phenomenon
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There are still ruins left of the 1964-5 New York World's Fair in Queens the last I knew in addition to the Unisphere which is good shape. The main one remember is the New York State pavilion.
--Severian the Lame
<< <i>San Diego's Balboa Park has some of the old buildings. The remnants of the Columbian Exposition are in a bad part of Chicago that I rarely visit. I've been through Elgin several times in recent years, but, never bothered looking for the pioneer statue. >>
I've been to Balboa Park, very lovely, good to see that several buildings survived.
My home city of Philadelphia still has Memorial Hall, which was one of the main buildings for the 1876 Centennial, of which no commems were issued, I gather, maybe a medal? Of the 1926 Sesquicentennial Exposition, I think maybe the current Swedish American Museum was a hall at the time, but that's all that I know of.
The Palace of Fine Arts was constructed for the 1915 Panama Pacific Exposition. I have several photos from a 1995 vacation.
Jim