The 1893 World's Fair

Paper Summary:

This paper discusses the 1893 World's Fair and examines its importance in the historical context. It discusses how the fair was an opportunity for investors to show off their wares, which were characteristic of the time period known as the Gilded Age. The writer describes the social and cultural developments of the time, which were represented at the fair.

From the Paper:

"Also entitled The World's Columbian Exposition, the 1893 World's Fair held in Chicago, Illinois was a spectacular event that provided entertainment, commercial opportunity, and cultural enlightenment for millions of visitors. This huge event gave considerable insight into the state that America was in at the end of the "Gilded Age." America saw a great deal of turmoil in the early 1890s, and the fair represented an outlet for the representation of the conflicting ideas and interests in the forefront of American life. The early 1890s marked an age of accelerated fragmentation and confusion among the American population, due to widespread searching for personal and national identity. This was a time of transition. America was being transformed by the industrial and electrical revolutions, which replaced agriculture as the central focus of the American way of life. The end of the "Gilded Age" also saw a shift in social control from the hands of the people and the government to the hands of big business. Americans were experiencing a gamut of emotions, ranging from confusion and a sense of being overwhelmed, to feelings of excitation and elation. The 1893 World's Fair in Chicago provided a means of exploring the changes being experienced in America with an underlying appreciation of the virtues of American society."

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