World's Columbian Exposition: Technology at the Fair

Introduction

In many ways, technology was one of the main themes of the World’s Columbian Exposition. At the time, technology and progress were nearly synonymous. The leaders of the fair used the display of technological innovation to demonstrate America’s prosperity and modernity.

Period Photo: Main Fountain in the Court of Honor

From the fair’s opening ceremony alone, one can immediately glean that technology was of the utmost importance to the exhibitors. On opening day, President Grover Cleveland gave a short but eloquent speech before the first visitors in which he tied technology and prosperity together and linked mechanical innovation and American principles. He ended his speech with the words, “as by a touch the machinery that give slight to this vast Exposition is set in motion, so that at the same instant let our hopes and aspirations awaken forces which in all time to come shall influence the welfare, the dignity, and the freedom of mankind.” As he finished speaking he touched a gold key in his hand, which caused an electrical circuit to close and set off various machines, steam engines, and fountains in the court of honor as well as released several American flags. As if by magic, technology had caused the fair to come alive. American and technology, Cleveland seemed to say, are tied, and together they are not only effective, they are beautiful.

Electricity 

In the late 19^th century, electricity was the most obvious symbol for innovation and technological progress.

Burnham, the Direct of the fair, planned to illuminate the White City at night, so that the power of American Technology would glow for all to see. There were lights on nearly every building, and it was estimated that the fair would consume almost three times as much electricity as the entire city of Chicago. Unfortunately, figuring out how to accomplish such a feat was a question not easily answered.

The White City Illuminated at Night

At the time, there were two main competitors in the electricity market, and the question of who would become the standard American provider of electricity was a question that went back several decades. 

Thomas Edison had invented the electric light bulb, just about ten years earlier, in 1879, providing Americans with an incandescent lamp that could be used indoors. Edison's patent was then bough by General Electric, which used Direct Current electricity to power American homes and shops. By the 1880s, small electrical stations based on Edison’s invention were in a number of American cities. However, General Electric's system of Direct Current electricity (DC), was inefficient because the voltage could not travel far without losing energy. As a result, each station was only able to power a few short city blocks, and the cost of mass electricity was proving to be impractical.

Inventors Tomas Edison (left) and Nicola Tesla (right)

Because of these deficiencies in their technology, it was not long before General Electric saw competition. In 1888, Nicola Tesla invented a viable method of using Alternating Current (AC), which was a much more efficient and less expensive way of transmitting high voltage power. Westinghouse Company soon backed Tesla and what ensued was what “the War of the Currents"; Edison claimed that Tesla’s high voltage AC system was dangerous, while Tesla pointed out the inefficiency of Edison’s design, and each company fought to be the standard provider of electricity in America.

Thus, when it came time for the leaders of the 1893 World’s Fair to choose who would provide electricity for the exhibition, all eyes were watching. Whoever was chosen to light the “White City,” an event which stood for technological innovation and progress, would surely become the standard supplier of electricity in the country.

Eventually, Westinghouse put down a much lower price than General Electric, and the fair went with Tesla's invention. To this day, Americans use AC electricity.

Interior of Electricity Building

The choice proved to be the right one, and General Electric used the fair to promote its brand. The Electricity Building, located in Court of Honor, housed many electrical devices, all powered by AC current. An almost unbelievable array of electrical devices were on display, from phonographs to motion pictures, to household devices like fans, stoves, irons, and laundry machines. Some other interesting electrical devices shown for the first time include a primitive fax machine and neon lights.

Most alluring of all, however, was the sheer number of lights used to illuminate the city at night. Visitors were mesmerized; some even came away swearing the had “seen a vision of Heaven.”

The Ferris Wheel

Another question at the fair was what monumental structure to erect that could rival the reent Paris Exposition's Eiffel Tower. Burnham, and the fair's other artchitects saw the selection of such a monument as an opportunity to promote American engineering and technological innovation.

Burnham reached out to American engineers, and the designs came pouring in. However, everything seemed uninspiring; Burnham didn’t just want a second Eiffel tower, he wanted something bold, novel, and unique. He rejected hundreds of designs, even declining a design presented by Monsieur Eiffel himself. 

Finally, he found what he was looking for in the unique design of the young engineer George Washington Gale Ferris. Ferris proposed building a gigantic steel rotating wheel on which visitors could sit and view the fair grounds before them. At first, his design was dismissed as lunatic; no one thought that such a structure was possible. However, after much persuasion the Fair Directors were convinced, and construction for the great wheel began.

Ferris Wheel in the Midst of Construction

By the time the fair had accepted his design, Ferris only had four months to build. The construction of the wheel itself was a feat of modern technology and engineering. The axle of the wheel alone weighed 89,000 pounds and had to be raised 140 feet high. There were times throughout the process when visitors and architects alike thought that the project would never be completed.

The Ferris Wheel Axle

Finally however, on June 21st, 1893, almost two months after the official opening of the fair, the wheel was ready for its first turn. The finished product was a 267 foot wheel with 36 cars and which weighed 2, 079, 884 pounds in total. Visitors sat in the cars in awe as they watched the beauty of the White City spread out before their eyes. The day after the wheel's first turn, The Chicago Tribune called it “the most wonderful vehicle of transportation in the whole of the great World’s Fair.”

View from the Ferris Wheel

The wheel was eventually moved to several different locations after the end of the exposition. Unfortunately, in 1906 the wheel was sadly dismantled and destroyed; it took nearly 300 pounds of dynamite to tear it down.

However, without a doubt, the 1893 Ferris Wheel stood as a symbol of technological progress and success in America. Visitors came from near and far to enjoy and celebrate the spectacular possibilities that innovation in technology provided. Technology at the World’s Columbian Exposition was not merely mechanical progress, it was bright, it was miraculous, it was beautiful.

 References

Larsen, Erik. The Devil in the White City. New York: Vintage Books, 2003.

Various Editors. “World’s Columbian Exposition.” Encyclopedia Britannica Online. Encyclopedia Britannica, June 29, 2014. Web.

Rose, Julie. “The World’s Columbian Exposition: Idea, Experience, Aftermath.” August 1, 1996. Web.

“Trial Trip of the Ferris Wheel: It Moves Slowly But there is no Mishap – Toasts are Drank.” Chicago Daily Tribune. 16 June, 1893: Print

University of Chicago. "The Columbian Exposition." ECUIP.