World's Columbian Exposition Lantern Slides

Part of a larger collection donated to the Ohio State University Archives in June, 1966, by Calvin D. Beard. Date of gift to Newberry unknown.

The World's Columbian Exposition Lantern Slides are open for research in the Special Collections Reading Room; 1 box at a time (Priority III).

The World's Columbian Exposition Lantern Slides are the physical property of the Newberry Library. Copyright may belong to the authors or their legal heirs or assigns. For permission to publish or reproduce any materials from this collection, contact the Roger and Julie Baskes Department of Special Collections.

World's Columbian Exposition Lantern Slides, The Newberry Library, Chicago.

Virginia Hay Smith, 2014.

The World's Columbian Exposition, also known as The Chicago World's Fair, was held in Chicago in 1893 to celebrate the 400th anniversary of Columbus's arrival in the New World. Much of it designed by Daniel Burnham and Frederick Law Olmsted, the fair served as a defining moment in Chicago's history, affecting architecture, the arts, and the city's self-image.

Conceived to demonstrate the progress of civilization, the exposition covered more than 600 acres, with nearly 200 buildings featuring peoples and cultures from around the world. There were numerous exhibits showing examples of American business, industrial innovation and technology, and a mile-long avenue called the Midway Plaisance which offered education and amusements.

Shortly after the fair closed, many of the buildings were destroyed by fire.

Fifty-six glass slides of the World's Columbian Exposition held in Chicago in 1893, showing scenes of the landscape, buildings, exhibits, and the Midway Plaisance.

A few of the slides have cracks and/or slight deterioration, and most retain the original labels.

Slides arranged alphabetically.

• Subject
  • Chicago
  • Manuscripts, American -- Illinois -- Chicago
  • Photographs
• Geographic CoverageChicago (Ill.) -- Pictorial works