World's FairS

Three huge World's Fairs took place in the United States in the fifty years after the Civil War: 1876 (Centennial in Philadelphia), 1893 (400th Columbian Exposition in Chicago), and 1904 (Lewis & Clark Centennial in St. Louis).

These Fairs served as great venues to roll out all sorts of new products. Inventions and other new technologies were primary (telephone, lightbulbs, zippers, spray paint, etc.)  The Statue of Liberty, Kudzu, and the Pledge to the Flag also made their debuts at the World's Fairs.

For our experience, students may research and present one of the following: * indicates need of a physical representation.

*Animal crackers (Walter G. Wilson & Co.) 1876 Philadelphia

*Bananas (Lorenzo Baker) 1876 Philadelphia

*Chocolate Bar (Hershey/Lehmann) 1893 Chicago

*Juicy Fruit Gum (Wrigley) 1993 Chicago

*Cracker Jack (Rueckheim) 1893 Chicago

*Brownie (Bertha Palmer) 1893 Chicago

*Iced tea (Blechynden) 1904 St. Louis

*Cotton candy (Wm Morrison) 1904 St. Louis

*Ice cream cone (Hamwi) 1904 St. Louis

*Dr. Pepper (Lazenby) 1904 St. Louis

*Jello (Woodward) 1904 St. Louis

In addition to the fairs, many other entertainment venues emerged in this era: Professional Sports, Circuses, Music, Toys, Freak Shows, and Buffalo Bill's Wild West show.

*Teddy Bear

*Baseball

*Basketball

"Freaks"

Houdini

SONGS

"Take Me Out to the Ball Game"

"Bicycle Built for Two" (Daisy Bell)

"Meet Me in St. Louis, Louis"

Mark Twain, storyteller

Annie Oakley