Ford at the Fair Presentation
12 artifacts in this set
Aerial View of Ford Building, California Pacific International Exposition, 1935
Photographic print
Resembling two engaged gears, Ford's steel, concrete, and glass exhibition building towered above more traditional structures at the 1935 California Pacific International Exposition. The Ford Building -- created in the "Streamline Moderne" architectural style by industrial design pioneer Walter Dorwin Teague -- combined clean curves and sharp lines with modern materials, reflecting technological progress in the new machine age.
Aerial View of Ford Exhibition Building, Century of Progress International Exposition, Chicago, Illinois, 1934
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Chicago's 1933-34 Century of Progress Exposition used the theme of progress to encourage optimism during the depression. The 11-acre Ford Motor Company exhibit became the most talked-about exhibit of 1934, featuring a central Rotunda designed to simulate graduated clusters of gears. After the fair, this building became an attraction at Ford headquarters in Dearborn, Michigan, until it burned down in 1962.
Proof of Safety Exhibit, Ford Building, Century of Progress International Exposition, Chicago, Illinois, 1934
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Chicago's 1933-34 Century of Progress Exposition used the theme of progress to encourage optimism during the depression. The Ford Exhibition Building, which sat on eleven acres at the fair and featured industrial demonstrations and informative displays like this, became the most talked-about exhibit of 1934.
Copper Display, Ford Exposition, New York World's Fair, 1939
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Ford Motor Company poured resources into the 1939-40 New York World's Fair, spending more than $5 million to construct and maintain its elaborate and well-attended exposition space. Ford's massive exhibition building attracted fairgoers with industrial demonstrations and informative displays. The huge, revolving "Ford Cycle of Production" - which explained how raw materials became Ford automobile parts - particularly impressed visitors.
Products Used in Automobile Manufacture Display, Ford Exposition, New York World's Fair, 1939
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Henry Ford viewed national expositions as business opportunities and platforms for public education. During the 1939-40 New York World's Fair, Ford Motor Company spent more than $5 million to build and maintain an elaborate exposition space. Informative displays and manufacturing demonstrations inside Ford's massive fair building offered visitors an in-depth, entertaining, and educational look at industrial processes.
Raw Materials Display, Ford Exhibition Building, Century of Progress International Exposition, Chicago, Illinois, 1934
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Chicago's 1933-34 Century of Progress Exposition used the theme of progress to encourage optimism during the depression. The Ford Exhibition Building, which sat on eleven acres at the fair and featured industrial demonstrations and informative displays like this, became the most talked-about exhibit of 1934.
Soybean Processing for Fiber and Oil, Ford Exposition, New York World's Fair, 1939
Photographic print
Ford Motor Company poured resources into the 1939-40 New York World's Fair, spending more than $5 million to construct and maintain its elaborate and well-attended exposition space. Ford's massive exhibition building attracted fairgoers with industrial demonstrations and informative displays in two main halls. At the "industrialized farm," visitors could learn about soybeans and watch presenters process them into plastics and fibers.
Ford By-Products Exhibit, Ford Exhibition Building, Century of Progress International Exposition, Chicago, Illinois,1934
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Chicago's 1933-34 Century of Progress Exposition used the theme of progress to encourage optimism during the depression. The Ford Exhibition Building, which sat on eleven acres at the fair and featured industrial demonstrations and informative displays like this, became the most talked-about exhibit of 1934.
Henry Ford Trade School Students at Great Lakes Exposition, Cleveland, Ohio, 1936-1937
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Cleveland celebrated its centennial with the Great Lakes Exposition. For two summers during 1936 and 1937, over seven million visitors came through the gates. Fair officials consigned Ford and the other automobile companies to the Automotive Building -- no separate corporate buildings were constructed. Ford supplemented its vehicle displays with other exhibitions, including demonstrations by students from the Henry Ford Trade School.
Filming Television Show with Henry Ford's "Kitchen Sink" Engine, Ford Exposition, New York World's Fair, 1939
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Americans first experienced television in 1939, when RCA telecast the opening ceremonies of the New York World's Fair. Television fit the exposition's "Building the World of Tomorrow" theme, and fairgoers could view manufacturer demonstrations throughout the exposition. Ford Motor Company employed the novel technology, filming shows for viewing in Ford exhibit building lounges.
Crating the Quadricycle for Shipment, Ford Exposition, New York World's Fair, 1939
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Ford Motor Company poured resources into the 1939-40 New York World's Fair, spending more than $5 million to construct and maintain its elaborate and well-attended exposition space. Ford's massive exhibition building attracted fairgoers with industrial demonstrations and informative displays. Henry Ford even sent some historic items. His first automobile, the Quadricycle, was crated and later displayed in the exhibition building's entrance...
DeWitt Clinton Train Replica at Ford Exposition, New York World's Fair, 1939
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The New York Central Railroad built a promotional operating replica of the DeWitt Clinton for the 1893 World's Columbian Exposition. The original locomotive was built in 1831 and operated on the Mohawk & Hudson Railroad, an NYC predecessor. Henry Ford acquired the replica, shown here at Ford Motor Company's 1939-40 New York World's Fair exhibition, in 1935.
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