Art
In 1876, the United States celebrated its centennial with a massive world's fair in Philadelphia. For ordinary Americans, the Exhibition was a rare chance to see the latest inventions, foreign cultures, and their nation's progress all in one place. Millions visited—some traveling by train for the first time.
Art · Full story
You walk through the gates on a warm May afternoon, joining thousands of families in their Sunday best. The air smells of fresh paint and sawdust. Ahead, enormous glass pavilions glitter in the sun, and you hear the distant thump of the massive Corliss steam engine—the fair's beating heart, bigger than anything you've ever seen.
Reflect
What event today brings your community together the way the Centennial did for Americans in 1876?