World Columbian Exposition

The World Columbian Exposition (also called The Chicago World's Fair), a World's fair, was held in Chicago in 1893 to celebrate the 400th anniversary of Christopher Columbus's discovery of the New World. Chicago had beaten New York City, Washington, D.C. and St. Louis, Missouri for the honor of hosting the fair. The fair had a profound effect on architecture, the arts, Chicago's self image, and American industrial optimism.

Famous firsts at the fair

• Aunt Jemima pancake mix
• Cracker Jack
• Cream of Wheat
• Quaker Oats
• Congress of Mathematicians, precursor to International Congress of Mathematicians
• Diet carbonated soda
• Elongated coins
• Ferris Wheel
• Juicy Fruit gum
• Pabst Blue Ribbon
• Shredded Wheat
• The hamburger was introduced to the United States (others say it was invented at the 1904 World's Fair in St. Louis).
• The United States produced its first commemorative stamp set.
• The United States Postal Service produced its first picture postcards.
• The first exotic dancer: Little Egypt.
• United States Mint offered its first commemorative coins: a quarter, half dollar, and dollar
• The first known serial killer in the United States, H. H. Holmes, murdered an undetermined number (estimated at over 50) of visitors to the Fair.
• The term "midway" came into common use to define an area where park rides, entertainment and fast food booths are concentrated at parks and fairs, after the area of that type located on Chicago's Midway Plaisance at the World Columbian Exposition.
• It is a common misconception that during the competition to win the fair, editor Charles Gibson Dana of the New York Sun dubbed Chicago the "windy city" in regards to the hype of the city's promoters.