Centennial Exposition - Definition and Overview

The Centennial International Exhibition of 1876, the first official world's fair in the United States, was held in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania to celebrate the 100th anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence in Philadelphia. It was officially the International Exhibition of Arts, Manufactures and Products of the Soil and Mine.

It was held in Fairmount Park, along the Schuylkill River. The fairgrounds were designed by Hermann Schwarzmann. About 9 million visitors attended, equivalent to about 20% of the population of the United States at the time (though many were repeat visitors).

The fair's main building is now the Smithsonian Institution's Arts and Industries Building in Washington, DC, adjacent to the Castle building.

New Products

Technologies introduced at the fair include the Corliss Steam Engine. Waltham Watch Company displayed the first automatic screw making machinery and won the Gold Medal in the first international watch precision competition.

Consumer products first displayed to the public include:

• Alexander Graham Bell's telephone
• the Remington typewriter (Typographic Machine)
• Heinz Ketchup
• Hires Root Beer

External link

• Centennial Exhibition (http://libwww.library.phila.gov/CenCol/)
• Centennial exposition described and illustrated (http://fax.libs.uga.edu/T825xB1xI5/), being a concise and graphic description of this grand enterprise commemorative of the first centennary of American independence. Publisher: Philadelphia, Hubbard bros, 1876.