Cotton States and International Exposition (1895)
Encyclopedia
The 1895 Cotton States and International Exposition was held at the current Piedmont Park
in Atlanta, Georgia
. It is most remembered for the speech given by Booker T. Washington
on September 18, 1895.
The Exposition was open for 100 days, beginning on September 18, 1895 and ending December 31, 1895, attracted visitors from the U.S. and 13 countries. Over $2,000,000 was spent on the transformation of Piedmont Park. The government allocated $250,000 for the construction of a government building and many states and countries such as Argentina
also had their own buildings. Also constructed for the fair were the Tropical gardens, now known as the Atlanta Botanical Garden
, and Lake Clara Meer which was originally a pond but was expanded to 11.5 acres (46,538.9 m²) for the event. Today, the stone balustrades scattered around the park are the only part of the enormous main building. The park remains largely as Joseph Forsyth Johnson
designed it for the exposition.
The exposition was designed to promote the region to the world and showcase products and new technologies as well as to encourage trade with Latin America. The Cotton States and International Exposition featured exhibits from several states including various innovations in agriculture and technology. President Grover Cleveland
presided over the opening of the exposition. The supervising architect for the entire fair was Bradford Gilbert
.
In late September Charles Francis Jenkins
demonstrated an early movie projector called the Phantascope
.
December 26, 1895 was Negro Day at the Expo. Famed African American quilter Harriet Powers
also attended this day and met with Irvine Garland Penn, the chief of the Negro Building at the Expo.
The great American band master John Phillip Sousa composed his famous march, King Cotton
, for the exposition, and dedicated it to the people of the state of Georgia
.
Future politician and historian, Walter McElreath, described it in his memoirs:
The exposition included many exhibits in the categories of Minerals and Forestry, Agriculture, Food and Accessories, Machinery and Appliances, Horticulture, Machinery, Manufactures, Electricity, Fine Arts, Painting and Sculpture, Liberal Arts, Education and Literature. About six thousand exhibits were examined and beautifully designed medals were awarded. The Awards Committee awarded a total of 1,573 medals: Gold medals 634 - Silver medals 444 - Bronze medals 495 .
Nearly 800,000 visitors attended the event in the fall of 1895. After the exposition, the grounds were purchased by the City of Atlanta and became Piedmont Park.
Piedmont Park
Piedmont Park is a urban park in Atlanta, Georgia, located about northeast of Downtown, between the Midtown and Virginia Highland neighborhoods. Originally the land was owned by Dr. Benjamin Walker, who used it as his out-of-town gentleman's farm and residence...
in Atlanta, Georgia
Atlanta, Georgia
Atlanta is the capital and most populous city in the U.S. state of Georgia. According to the 2010 census, Atlanta's population is 420,003. Atlanta is the cultural and economic center of the Atlanta metropolitan area, which is home to 5,268,860 people and is the ninth largest metropolitan area in...
. It is most remembered for the speech given by Booker T. Washington
Booker T. Washington
Booker Taliaferro Washington was an American educator, author, orator, and political leader. He was the dominant figure in the African-American community in the United States from 1890 to 1915...
on September 18, 1895.
The Exposition was open for 100 days, beginning on September 18, 1895 and ending December 31, 1895, attracted visitors from the U.S. and 13 countries. Over $2,000,000 was spent on the transformation of Piedmont Park. The government allocated $250,000 for the construction of a government building and many states and countries such as Argentina
Argentina
Argentina , officially the Argentine Republic , is the second largest country in South America by land area, after Brazil. It is constituted as a federation of 23 provinces and an autonomous city, Buenos Aires...
also had their own buildings. Also constructed for the fair were the Tropical gardens, now known as the Atlanta Botanical Garden
Atlanta Botanical Garden
The Atlanta Botanical Garden is a botanical garden located adjacent to Piedmont Park in Midtown Atlanta, Georgia, USA. Incorporated in 1976, the garden's mission is to "develop and maintain plant collections for the purposes of display, education, conservation, research and...
, and Lake Clara Meer which was originally a pond but was expanded to 11.5 acres (46,538.9 m²) for the event. Today, the stone balustrades scattered around the park are the only part of the enormous main building. The park remains largely as Joseph Forsyth Johnson
Joseph Forsyth Johnson
Joseph Forsyth Johnson was an English landscape architect and disciple of John Ruskin.-Early life and career:thumb|left|Piedmont Park in Atlanta, Georgia, where Johnson's work was hugely acclaimed....
designed it for the exposition.
The exposition was designed to promote the region to the world and showcase products and new technologies as well as to encourage trade with Latin America. The Cotton States and International Exposition featured exhibits from several states including various innovations in agriculture and technology. President Grover Cleveland
Grover Cleveland
Stephen Grover Cleveland was the 22nd and 24th president of the United States. Cleveland is the only president to serve two non-consecutive terms and therefore is the only individual to be counted twice in the numbering of the presidents...
presided over the opening of the exposition. The supervising architect for the entire fair was Bradford Gilbert
Bradford Gilbert
Bradford Lee Gilbert was a nationally-active architect based in New York City.Gilbert is best known for designing the first steel-framed curtain wall building, the Tower Building, which opened at 50 Broadway in 1889. The Tower Building is considered New York City's first skyscraper...
.
In late September Charles Francis Jenkins
Charles Francis Jenkins
Charles Francis Jenkins was an American pioneer of early cinema and one of the inventors of television, though he used mechanical rather than electronic technologies...
demonstrated an early movie projector called the Phantascope
Phantascope
The Phantoscope was a film projection machine, a creation of Charles Francis Jenkins. Created in the early 1890s, he projected the first motion picture before an audience in his hometown of Richmond, Indiana on June 6, 1894. He later met Thomas Armat who provided financial backing for necessary...
.
December 26, 1895 was Negro Day at the Expo. Famed African American quilter Harriet Powers
Harriet Powers
Harriet Powers was an African American slave, folk artist and quilt maker from rural Georgia. She used traditional appliqué techniques to record local legends, Bible stories, and astronomical events on her quilts...
also attended this day and met with Irvine Garland Penn, the chief of the Negro Building at the Expo.
The great American band master John Phillip Sousa composed his famous march, King Cotton
King Cotton
King Cotton was a slogan used by southerners to support secession from the United States by arguing cotton exports would make an independent Confederacy economically prosperous, and—more important—would force Great Britain and France to support the Confederacy because their industrial economy...
, for the exposition, and dedicated it to the people of the state of Georgia
Georgia (U.S. state)
Georgia is a state located in the southeastern United States. It was established in 1732, the last of the original Thirteen Colonies. The state is named after King George II of Great Britain. Georgia was the fourth state to ratify the United States Constitution, on January 2, 1788...
.
Future politician and historian, Walter McElreath, described it in his memoirs:
The railroad yards were jammed every morning with trains that brought enormous crowds.
The streets were crowded all day long.
Every conceivable kind of fakirFakirThe fakir or faqir ; ) Derived from faqr is a Muslim Sufi ascetic in Middle East and South Asia. The Faqirs were wandering Dervishes teaching Islam and living on alms....
bartered his wares.
Dime museums flourished on every street....
Vast stucco hotels stood on Fourteenth Street....
I spent a great deal of time on the streets looking at the strange crowds -- American Indians, Circassians, Hindus, Japanese, and people from every corner of the globe -- who had come as professional midway entertainers or fakirs.
The exposition included many exhibits in the categories of Minerals and Forestry, Agriculture, Food and Accessories, Machinery and Appliances, Horticulture, Machinery, Manufactures, Electricity, Fine Arts, Painting and Sculpture, Liberal Arts, Education and Literature. About six thousand exhibits were examined and beautifully designed medals were awarded. The Awards Committee awarded a total of 1,573 medals: Gold medals 634 - Silver medals 444 - Bronze medals 495 .
Nearly 800,000 visitors attended the event in the fall of 1895. After the exposition, the grounds were purchased by the City of Atlanta and became Piedmont Park.