1885 World’s Industrial And Cotton Centennial Exposition
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The World Cotton Centennial (also known as the World's Industrial and Cotton Centennial Exposition) was a
World's Fair A world's fair, also known as a universal exhibition or an expo, is a large international exhibition designed to showcase the achievements of nations. These exhibitions vary in character and are held in different parts of the world at a specif ...
held in
New Orleans New Orleans ( , ,New Orleans
Merriam-Webster.
; french: La Nouvelle-Orléans , es, Nuev ...
,
Louisiana Louisiana , group=pronunciation (French: ''La Louisiane'') is a state in the Deep South and South Central regions of the United States. It is the 20th-smallest by area and the 25th most populous of the 50 U.S. states. Louisiana is borde ...
,
United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...
in 1884. At a time when nearly one third of all
cotton Cotton is a soft, fluffy staple fiber that grows in a boll, or protective case, around the seeds of the cotton plants of the genus ''Gossypium'' in the mallow family Malvaceae. The fiber is almost pure cellulose, and can contain minor perce ...
produced in the United States was handled in New Orleans and the city was home to the
New Orleans Cotton Exchange The New Orleans Cotton Exchange was established in New Orleans, Louisiana, in 1871 as a centralized forum for the trade of cotton. It operated in New Orleans until closing in 1964. Occupying several buildings over its history, its final locatio ...
, the idea for the fair was first advanced by the Cotton Planters Association. The name "World Cotton Centennial" referred to the earliest-surviving record of export of a shipment of cotton from the U.S. to England in 1784.


History

The U.S. Congress lent $1 million to the fair's directors and gave $300,000 for the construction of a large U.S. Government & State Exhibits Hall on the site. However, the planning and construction of the fair was marked by corruption and scandals, and state treasurer
Edward A. Burke Edward Austin Burke or Burk (September 13, 1839 – September 24, 1928), was the Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Louisiana State Treasurer, State Treasurer of Louisiana following Reconstruction era of the United States, Reconstruct ...
absconded abroad with some $1,777,000 dollars of state money including most of the fair's budget. Despite such serious financial difficulties, the Fair succeeded in offering many attractions to visitors. The Centennial covered , stretching from
St. Charles Avenue St. Charles Avenue (french: avenue Saint-Charles) is a thoroughfare in New Orleans, Louisiana, U.S. and the route of the St. Charles Streetcar Line. It is also famous for the dozens of mansions that adorn the tree-lined boulevard for much of the ...
to the
Mississippi River The Mississippi River is the second-longest river and chief river of the second-largest drainage system in North America, second only to the Hudson Bay drainage system. From its traditional source of Lake Itasca in northern Minnesota, it f ...
, and was notable in that it could be entered directly by railway, steamboat, or ocean-going ship. The main building enclosed and was the largest roofed structure constructed up to that time. It was illuminated with 5,000 electric lights (still a novelty at the time, and said to be ten times the number then existing in New Orleans outside of the fairgrounds). There was also a Horticultural Hall, an observation tower with electric elevators, and working examples of multiple designs of experimental electric street-cars. The
Mexican Mexican may refer to: Mexico and its culture *Being related to, from, or connected to the country of Mexico, in North America ** People *** Mexicans, inhabitants of the country Mexico and their descendants *** Mexica, ancient indigenous people ...
exhibit was particularly lavish and popular, constructed at a cost of $200,000, and featuring a huge brass band that was a great hit locally. On December 16, 1884,
U.S. President The president of the United States (POTUS) is the head of state and head of government of the United States of America. The president directs the executive branch of the federal government and is the commander-in-chief of the United States ...
Chester Arthur Chester Alan Arthur (October 5, 1829 – November 18, 1886) was an American lawyer and politician who served as the 21st president of the United States from 1881 to 1885. He previously served as the 20th U.S. vice president, vice president un ...
opened the fair via
telegraph Telegraphy is the long-distance transmission of messages where the sender uses symbolic codes, known to the recipient, rather than a physical exchange of an object bearing the message. Thus flag semaphore is a method of telegraphy, whereas p ...
(two weeks behind schedule). It closed on June 2, 1885. In an unsuccessful attempt to recover some of the financial losses from the Fair, the grounds and structures were reused for the North Central & South American Exposition from November 10, 1885, to March 31, 1886, with little success. After this the structures were publicly auctioned off, most going only for their worth in scrap. The site today is Audubon Park and
Audubon Zoo Audubon Zoo is an American zoo located in New Orleans, Louisiana. It is part of the Audubon Nature Institute which also manages Audubon Aquarium of the Americas, Audubon Louisiana Nature Center, Freeport-McMoran Species Survival Center, Audubon Pa ...
in Uptown New Orleans.


References


External links


The World's Cotton Centennial Exposition
Book chapter * *
World's Industrial and Cotton Centennial Exposition Collection
a
The Historic New Orleans Collection
{{List of world's fairs in The United States of America World's fairs in Louisiana 19th century in New Orleans 1884 in Louisiana 1884 festivals Cotton industry in the United States Centennial anniversaries Events in New Orleans