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1.2: A Close Look at the 1893 World's Fair - Classroom Activity

  • Page ID
    316535
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    Introduction

    Today's discussion is centered around making and sharing observations about trends you notice across the built spaces of the World's Columbian Exposition and considering what other possibilities could have been implemented, given other input and priorities.

    Black and white photograph showing a tent in front of some cliffs

    Small Group Reflection and Discussion

    • In groups (to be assigned by the instructor), reflect on what you read for homework. Share responses to what you read and heard about how Black American leaders like Ida B. Wells and Frederick Douglass both participated in and critiqued the fair, particularly white organizers’ decisions about how and where in the fair to display works by people of color from the US and around the world. Share any details from the WTTW resource or any of the assigned SmartHistory readings that surprised, confused, or stood out to you.
      • Build on that foundation by reviewing images from the photo album Chicago Tribune Glimpses of the World’s Fair (1893). Notice any differences in the photo album between photos of the White City (mostly pages 1-63) and the section of the fair known as the Midway Plaisance (pages 64, 67, 72, 132-186). Does this visual evidence support or contradict what you read for homework? Collaborate with your group members to brainstorm some adjectives that could be applied to each of those main sections.

    What's Your Recommendation?

    • Following that discussion and based on what you have explored, each group should generate two recommended changes you would suggest to the fair’s organizers. Write a letter directed to the fair organizers that presents these recommendations along with your rationale for each.

    RIGHT: "Exhibit of the relics of the Cliff Dwellers - Chicago World's Fair 1893" by Aussie~mobs is marked with Public Domain Mark 1.0.

    BELOW: "South Facade of the Art Palace - Chicago World's Fair 1893" by Aussie~mobs is marked with Public Domain Mark 1.0.

    black and white photograph of Beaux-Arts style building serving as the Palace of Fine Arts in the Chicago World's Fair of 1893


    This page titled 1.2: A Close Look at the 1893 World's Fair - Classroom Activity is shared under a CC BY-NC-SA 4.0 license and was authored, remixed, and/or curated by Erica McCormack and Jack Lindsay.