I was reading a history book that had a section the 1933 World’s Fair in Chicago – “The Century of Progress.” I never knew that so many of the areas that I have been to many times used to have some really interesting buildings.
Too bad that everything that was there is now demolished or moved. It went from this:
to this (Meigs Field Airport):
to this: (at Mayor Daley had it secretly bulldozed at night)
The Museum of Science and Industry still remains. It was built for the Worlds Fair. I’ve seen the ins and outs of that building behind the scenes, and there are some very cool old building techniques used. Massive amounts of brick columns hidden behind walls, etc. Still nothing like what you’ve shown though.
Poor Meig’s Field. I’m still pissed off about that.
The Museum of Science and Industry kind of counts as still being there --it was actually built for the Columbian Exposition of 1893 as the Palace of Fine Arts. Unlike the other buildings at that fair, it was made of sturdy, lasting, and fire-proof material to protect the works of art from around the globe.
After the fair, it was home to the Field Museum for a few years before it moved to the current location. Eventually the Palace of Fine Arts was converted to an industrial museum and it was opened as the Museum of Science and Industry in 1933 as part of World’s Fair from that year – so it was part of both fairs.
I like MSI – the original main entrance is actually in the back. Visitors at the 1893 Exposition were brought to the Museum by boat and the lagoon is still there. I have always wanted to enter the museum that way but I doubt it will ever happen.
There have been some very cool World’s fair architectural pieces. Maybe of the older ones were erected hastily, with out the best quality or thought as to what they could be when the fair was over, which may have resulted in a lot of it being gone, which is a shame. There have been several in New York that look like they must have been amazing.
