The Idaho Building at the
Louisiana Purchase Exhibition in
St. Louis
St. Louis () is the second-largest city in Missouri, United States. It sits near the confluence of the Mississippi and the Missouri Rivers. In 2020, the city proper had a population of 301,578, while the bi-state metropolitan area, which e ...
,
Missouri
Missouri is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. Ranking List of U.S. states and territories by area, 21st in land area, it is bordered by eight states (tied for the most with Tennessee ...
, in 1904 was a 1-story
hacienda
An ''hacienda'' ( or ; or ) is an estate (or ''finca''), similar to a Roman ''latifundium'', in Spain and the former Spanish Empire. With origins in Andalusia, ''haciendas'' were variously plantations (perhaps including animals or orchards), ...
designed by architect
J. Flood Walker. The building was smallest among the state building exhibits, yet it made a lasting impression on fairgoers. The architect received over 300 requests for architectural drawings of the building in 1904, and the ''St. Louis Globe-Democrat'' said of the building, "This is the ideal ranch house that the St. Louis exposition has created, and if remembered for nothing else by western people, the world's fair will always be recalled by the constantly growing number of houses constructed after the fashion of Idaho's pretty building."
Architecture
The exterior of the 1-story building was 60 feet square with minimal decoration, cream colored walls, with windows six feet above ground. The roof was red clay tile. Inside the building, ten rooms surrounded a small courtyard and fountain. Interior rooms featured paneling and open beam ceilings of wood from Idaho's forests.
Transparency photographs of Idaho scenery hung inside the windows, and Native American artifacts were displayed.
A writer for the ''Omaha Daily Bee'' said that "Idaho's building is a cosy bungalow, with a great smoking room that has polished floors, bearskin rugs and other signs of elegant comfort."
Prizes
The Idaho Building took second place among all state buildings exhibited at the fair.
[
During the exhibition, Idaho received the grand prize for grains and agricultural products. Idaho also received 17 gold medals, 14 silver medals, and 22 bronze medals awarded to agricultural exhibitors. Idaho's fruit exhibit received the gold medal, and fruit exhibitors received 3 gold medals, 28 silver medals, and 26 bronze medals. Idaho's mineral exhibit received the gold medal, and mining and mineral exhibitors received one gold medal and eight silver medals.]
Governor and Mrs. Morrison
Idaho governor John T. Morrison
John Tracy Morrison (December 25, 1860 – December 20, 1915) was the List of Governors of Idaho, sixth governor of Idaho from 1903 until 1905.
Biography
Morrison was born in Jefferson County, Pennsylvania. He was married to Grace Darling Mackey ...
and his wife, Grace (Mackey) Morrison, attended the opening of the Idaho Building on May 14, 1904, and Mrs. Morrison served afternoon tea at the building, returning daily until the end of May.
In 1905, Idaho Building architect J. Flood Walker designed the John T. Morrison House, located in Boise's State Street Historic District. The Morrison House is a chalet
A chalet (pronounced in British English; in American English usually ), also called Swiss chalet, is a type of building or house, typical of the Alpine region in Europe. It is made of wood, with a heavy, gently sloping roof and wide, well-suppo ...
design, smaller yet similar to a former Idaho Building at the 1893 World's Columbian Exposition
The World's Columbian Exposition (also known as the Chicago World's Fair) was a world's fair held in Chicago
(''City in a Garden''); I Will
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in Chicago.
In September, 1904, the Idaho Building was purchased by J.C. Adams who later moved it on rail cars to San Antonio, Texas, where the building eventually became two adjacent houses.
See also
* Idaho Building at the 1893 World's Columbian Exposition
The World's Columbian Exposition (also known as the Chicago World's Fair) was a world's fair held in Chicago
(''City in a Garden''); I Will
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in Chicago
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* Idaho Building at the 1905 Lewis and Clark Centennial Exposition
The Lewis and Clark Centennial Exposition, commonly also known as the Lewis and Clark Exposition, and officially known as the Lewis and Clark Centennial and American Pacific Exposition and Oriental Fair, was a worldwide exposition held in Portlan ...
in Portland
Portland most commonly refers to:
* Portland, Oregon, the largest city in the state of Oregon, in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States
* Portland, Maine, the largest city in the state of Maine, in the New England region of the northeas ...
References
External links
*
Idaho State Building
* Steve Bennett
2 Beacon Hills homes came from 1904 St. Louis World’s Fair
''San Antonio Express-News'', March 29, 2018
Missouri Historical Society
1996
{{coord missing, Missouri
Louisiana Purchase Exposition
Buildings and structures in St. Louis
Buildings and structures in San Antonio
World's fair architecture in Missouri
Former buildings and structures in St. Louis
Idaho culture