Finding Aids

World’s Fairs and Expositions

Albert, Allen D., Reports on World's Fairs

Typewritten comparative reports regarding financing, expenses, logistics, and publicity of the World's Columbian Exposition (Chicago, 1893), Louisiana Purchase Exhibition (St. Louis, 1904), Panama-California Exposition (San Diego, 1915), and Panama-Pacific Exposition (San Francisco, 1915). Prepared for the Chicago World's Fair Centennial Celebration, 1933.

Buzzell, Edgar A. Collection

The Edgar A. Buzzell Collection consists of glass plate negatives, two photograph albums, newspaper articles, and a painting. The bulk of the collection consists of glass plate negatives of the University of Chicago, Hyde Park, the World’s Columbian Exposition (1893), and downtown Chicago, IL. A smaller portion of the collection is an assortment of collegiate and family photographs. Negatives and photographs from this collection have been digitized and are available as part of the

Century of Progress International Exposition Press Releases

Typed carbon copies of press releases issued by Century of Progress, Publicity Division, Chicago.

Century of Progress International Exposition Publications

Published informational and promotional material produced for the Century of Progress Exhibition, Chicago, Illinois, 1934. Includes guidebooks, pamphlets, and brochures distributed by exhibiting corporations and the national, state, and city concerns, as well as official publications from the Century of Progress Exhibition, Chicago, Illinois.

Century of Progress International Exposition Scrapbook

Contains loose leaves of miscellaneous published material produced for the Century of Progress Exhibition, Chicago, Illinois, 1934. Includes typed copies of administrative reports, newspapers, and promotional brochures.

Century of Progress International Exposition. Collection

Souvenirs and photographs mostly related to the 1933-1934 Century of Progress International Exposition in Chicago, Illinois. The collection also includes an album of color photographs of the University of Chicago and a photograph of the Panama Pacific International Exposition in San Francisco, 1916.

Checklist of the Official Publications of the Century of Progress International Exposition and Its Exhibitors

Typed carbon copy with handwritten annotations, providing checklist of exhibitors at the Century of Progress Exposition.

Cliff, Melissa. Collection

The Melissa Cliff Collection represents a set of items that were collected by the donor and relate to three world’s fairs held in the United States: the 1893 Chicago, 1904 St. Louis and 1933 Chicago fairs. Items include ephemera and memorabilia that were produced during all three fairs, as well as books and some photographic media of grounds and exhibits.

Green, Arnold. Collection

The Arnold Green Collection consists of a single scrapbook that conserves a variety of examples of die-cut, Victorian chromolithograph illustrations.

Lindblad, Andrew. Collection

This collection contains guidebooks and ephemera from the 1893 World's Columbia Exposition and the 1934 World's Fair in Chicago, Illinois. It also includes contemporary magazines and brochures. The collection dates from 1893 to 1937, with the bulk of the material dating from 1933 to 1937.

McDowell, Harold Louis. Collection of the Century of Progress Exposition

Photographs, film canisters, publications, souvenirs, and correspondence related to the Century of Progress International Exposition held in Chicago from 1933-1934. Harold Louis McDowell was hired by the exposition’s Department of Works in 1930 for architectural drafting, designing and rendering, holding the position until the end of the event in 1934.

Monroe, Harriet. Papers

Harriet Monroe (1860-1936), poet and editor and founder of Poetry: A Magazine of Verse. Contains correspondence; manuscripts; diaries; legal documents; memorabilia, photographs; and news clippings documenting Monroe's life and career. Correspondents include Jane Addams, Daniel French, Herbert Adams, Carter Harrison, Maude Elliott, Minnie Maddern Fiske, Eugene Field, E.C. Stedman, Louis Sullivan, Rebecca West, William Allen White, Kate Douglas Wiggin, Charles Zueblin, and William Vaughn Moody.

Sanders, Edgar. Papers

Edgar Sanders (1827-1907) was a horticulturist who opened Chicago's first permanent flower store in 1864. This collection contains correspondence, diaries, essays, photographs, and a scrapbook. Material spans 1845-1898.

Scammon, Arianna E. Collection

The Arianna E. Scammon Collection contains two scrapbooks of newspaper articles and illustrations from the 1893 World’s Columbian Exposition in Chicago.

World’s Columbian Exposition of 1893. Collection

The World’s Columbian Exposition of 1893 Collection gathers together a range of materials produced during and after the fair. Held in Chicago’s Jackson Park, the World’s Columbian Exposition was organized to commemorate the 400th anniversary of Columbus’s arrival in America and both the nation’s and “civilization’s progress” since then. The Collection’s materials cover the years 1892 to 1930 (bulk 1892-1894) and contain a noteworthy gathering of photographs, illustrations and newspaper articles on the fair. Users will also find tickets, event programs, guides and memorabilia.