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Clarence G. Nicholson World's Columbian Exposition travel journal, 1893-1894

1 volume

This journal contains Clarence G. Nicholson's recollections about his trip from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, to Milwaukee, Wisconsin, and Chicago, Illinois, in September 1893. Nicholson described his daily activities during the journey west, in Milwaukee, and at the World's Columbian Exposition. The volume contains numerous commercial photographs, advertisements, and other items related to Nicholson's travels.

This journal (32cm x 27cm, 433 pages) contains Clarence G. Nicholson's recollections about his trip from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, to Milwaukee, Wisconsin, and Chicago, Illinois, in September 1893. The narrative was written in 1894. Nicholson described his daily activities during the journey west, in Milwaukee, and at the World's Columbian Exposition. The volume contains numerous commercial photographs, advertisements, and other items related to Nicholson's travels. Nicholson's manuscript travel narrative occupies around 328 pages with ephemeral items pasted in. He wrote at length about the scenery during his railroad trip, often mentioning meals and accommodations. This first part of the volume includes watercolors, photographs, clippings, and advertisements depicting Pennsylvania scenery. While in Milwaukee, Nicholson and the other travelers visited breweries, art galleries, and other points of interest; he also wrote about the differences between the Midwest and the East Coast and about the city's artistic culture. Accompanying visual materials show Milwaukee buildings, examples of local beer bottles, and works of art. On September 23 or 24, the party split, with Nicholson and his father heading for Chicago, where they spent the next week.

Nicholson's recollections of his experiences at the World's Columbian Exposition comprise the bulk of the text, accompanied by a variety of illustrations. He describes in detail numerous state, international, and thematic buildings; exhibit halls and displays; sights along the Midway Plaisance; and the fairgrounds. He and his father also visited other areas of Chicago. Clippings, advertisements, and other ephemeral items are included throughout the volume, including numerous commercial photographs and illustrated views of the World's Columbian Exposition. Other items include exposition admission tickets, a menu, and a group of synthetic cords. Visual materials show the interiors and exteriors of large exhibit halls, state and international buildings, the Peristyle, the Ferris Wheel, and exhibits along the Midway Plaisance; a few photographs and prints show the grounds illuminated at night. The final pages of the journal contain Nicholson's thoughts upon leaving the exposition for the final time and a brief description of his return trip to Philadelphia.

Collection

Committee on Legislation for the International Exposition of 1892 minutes and scrapbook, 1889-1890

1 volume

The Committee on Legislation for the International Exposition of 1892 compiled meeting minutes, correspondence, reports, and other material between September 1889 and April 1890. Under the leadership of Senator Chauncey Depew, the committee worked with the New York-based Committee for the International Exposition of 1892 in an attempt to persuade the United States Congress to award an upcoming world's fair exhibition to the city of New York.

The Committee on Legislation for the International Exposition of 1892 compiled meeting minutes, correspondence, reports, and other material between September 1889 and April 1890. Under the leadership of Chauncey Depew, the committee worked with the New York-based Committee for the International Exposition of 1892 to attempt to persuade the United States Congress to award an upcoming world's fair exhibition to the city of New York.

The Committee on Legislation met periodically between September 19, 1889, and January 21, 1890, and discussed various cities' efforts to win congressional approval for the country's upcoming world's fair. At its first meeting, the group chose Senator Chauncey Depew as its chairman and millionaire William Earl Dodge Stokes as its secretary, among other officers. Throughout its existence, the committee regularly discussed the work of the larger Committee for the International Exposition of 1892, with whom they often coordinated their efforts, and reported developments from Washington, D. C., with respect to determining the fair's location. Among other actions, the committee suggested distributing pamphlets to damage Chicago's reputation and, therefore, its chances of winning the exposition (November 25, 1889, p. 35). The group also reacted to reports that the city of New York did not actually desire to host the event.

Correspondence, reports, a drafted legislative act, and a newspaper clipping are pasted into the volume. William McMurtrie Speer, journalist and secretary of the Committee for the International Exposition of 1892, frequently sent typed letters about cross-committee cooperation and recent developments. The legislative committee also received typed and manuscript letters from local supporters, such as Luigi Palma di Cesnola of the Metropolitan Museum of Art (November 19, 1889, p. 19), other related committees, and United States congressmen. Also included are reports that William Stokes composed a 14-page printed draft of a "Proposed act of Congress" that would award the fair to New York (October 4, 1889, p. 13). The newspaper clipping, from the New York Herald, urges the committee to send representatives to Washington, D. C., a tactic already employed by competing cities (December 7, 1889, p. 83). The final item is a 4-page report concerning the Committee on Legislation's financial expenditures (April 7, 1890, p. 117).

Collection

J. Henry Fitz diary, 1891-1893

2 items

This volume contains daily itineraries for Minnesota native John Henry Fitz's three-day visit to the World's Columbian Exposition in Chicago, Illinois, in October 1893. A printed map of Chicago accompanies the diary.

This volume (10 pages) contains daily itineraries for Minnesota native J. Henry Fitz's three-day visit to the World's Columbian Exposition in Chicago, Illinois, in October 1893. Fitz arrived in Chicago on the morning of October 25 and kept a detailed list of his time of arrival at each exhibit or attraction throughout the next three days; he usually spent between 10 minutes and an hour at a particular location. He also recorded the number of total exposition visitors on October 25 and the amount of his expenses, which totaled $24.80. The diary is accompanied by Rand, McNally & Co.'s New Map of Chicago and Suburbs, Showing the Location of the World's Columbian Exposition, Streets, Parks, Boulevards, Railroads, Street Car Lines, Etc. (1891), which shows the boundaries of Chicago's suburbs and the exposition grounds.

Collection

S. R. Morse, World's Fair Photographs, Including Views of the New Jersey Educational Exhibit, 1893

1 volume

This photograph album contains pictures taken during the World's Columbian Exposition (World's Fair) in Chicago, Illinois, in 1893. The album includes several interior views of the New Jersey educational exhibit in the Liberal Arts Building and exterior views of the exposition's large thematic buildings, individual state pavilions, international cultural exhibits, and statues.

This photograph album (31cm x 23cm) contains 105 pictures taken during the World's Columbian Exposition (World's Fair) in Chicago, Illinois, in 1893. The title Views of the World's Fair is stamped in gold on the front cover, along with an image of the Statue of the Republic. A second title, World's Fair Photographs, Including Views of the New Jersey Educational Exhibit, is printed on the first page. With the exception of two larger prints, items are pasted two to a page, above manuscript captions.

The album includes a group of rare interior views of the displays in the Liberal Arts Building. Featured are the New Jersey educational exhibit, the packing of displays after the fair's closure; views of international cultural exhibits; statues, and artifact displays. The majority of the album is comprised of more common exterior views of the exposition's large thematic and individual state pavilions. Many of the main structures, such as the Administration Building, Liberal Arts Building, Electricity Building, and the Palace of Mechanical Arts, are shown from a variety of perspectives, along with smaller structures representing many U.S. states.

Also shown are views of the nautical vessels displayed at the fair including the replica battleship USS Illinois, a replica of Columbus's Santa Maria, a replica Viking ship, and the fair's gondolas and similar smaller boats. Photographs of the Wooded Island and the Midway Plaisance also appear in the album. Of particular note are the pictures of ethnographic displays including Native American shelters and a group of "Dahomey Villagers." A series of photos taken on "Chicago Day," October 9, 1893, shows the crowds that set the world record for outdoor event attendance.