The Centennial Exhibition in Philadelphia opened on 10 May 1876, and almost one-fifth of the Unites States' population went to the fail before its conclusion. The main purpose of the fair was to make doubtful economic situation better after the Reconstruction era, and to restore confidence in America's government as well as its social structure. The fair had five main exhibition buildings, many restaurants, Bible Pavilion, Centennial Nation Bank etc. The opening ceremony of the fair emphasized the national unity and it was attraction to the lots of immigrants despite of American's hostility toward them. Lots of the exhibits in the fair, mostly new inventions such as telephones and air brake reflected America's hierarchical material growth and development. The central theme of the fair was idea of progress and the displays were organized according to the race, which shows their idea of white superiority.
To illustrate strong contrast between America's past and progress, the fair organizer created ethnological displays in the Indian Bureau of the Interior Department. The main purpose of the Indian exhibits was to illustrate dark and inferior society of Indians in the beginning of the US. Despite its accuracy, the visitors learned lessons from the living representatives and Indians tended to increase their participation in the fair.
Contrary to the Native Indians' participation in the fair, many blacks were isolated and unwelcomed. The fair did not have any exhibit about black history, and they were only be able to work as low wage workers such as waiters and janitors. American blacks were represented as "The South", not as full human beings in their own right. Many whites describes them as happy and free, despite their reality of sharecropping and lynching.
The beauty and uniqueness Asian exhibits from Japan and China were encountered with racial prejudices of whites during that time period. While benefiting from the Asian displays, the American still pressed racial violence toward them, Also American only emphasized the nature resources of the African culture and represented their culture as inferior and desolated.
The Centennial fair closed with huge success creating significant machine life in America and confirming US's ability to develop and to look for better future. The success of the fair distributed to increase of immigrants and growth of population in Philadelphia, and also it created the inspiration for national fairs and amusement park later in the history.
Key terms:
Quaker: A religious sect who rejected predestination. William Penn got Pennsylvania from Charles II and let the Quakers live there.
Anglo-Saxon;Germanic inhabitant of England between the 5th century and the Norman Conquest.
herrenvolk democracy: A governmental system in which the majority ethnic group has a say in the government, and has the right to partake in voting, while the minority races are disenfranchised. It influenced how Chinese were treated at the Centennial Exhibition.
Cape of Good Hope: The southern tip of Africa, it was once believed to be the dividing point between the Atlantic and Indian Oceans. Lots of Africans came from here to be part of the fair.
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Citations:
Rydell, Robert W. "The Centennial Exhibition, Philadelphia, 1876: The Exposition as a "Moral Influence"" In All the World's a Fair: Visions of Empire at American International Expositions, 1876-1916, 9-37. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1984.
"Progress Made Visible: American World's Fairs and Expositions." Progress Made Visible: American World's Fairs and Expositions. December 21, 2010. Accessed March 12, 2015.
Northrup, 62-64; and, George Fredrickson, The Black Image in the White Mind (New York: Harper Torchbooks, 1971), 61.
"Herrenvolk Democracy." Wikipedia. March 11, 2015. Accessed March 13, 2015. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Herrenvolk_democracy.
"ExpoMuseum / 1876 Centennial Exposition, Philadelphia." ExpoMuseum / 1876 Centennial Exposition, Philadelphia. Accessed March 13, 2015. http://www.expomuseum.com/1876/.
Questions:
What was the major factor that contributed to the opening of the first exposition?
How did the Centennial Exhibition influenced the future world fairs?
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