Around the world, between 1851 and 1915, there were at least 15 major world fairs and dozens of smaller expositions. They were spectacular constructions that seemed to have sprung up overnight and then disappeared just as suddenly.

Here's an example of one. Pay particular attention to the scale and complexity of the project, the speed, and the horse and wagon time in which it occurred.
 
 
THE BUFFALO WORLD'S FAIR
In 1898, a 350--acre site in Buffalo, New York, was selected for the Pan--American Exposition World's Fair. Construction began around 1900, continuing up to the opening on May 1, 1901.
 
The fair showcased gardens, navigable canals, waterworks, bridges, boulevards, electric lighting, sewers, domes, arches, dozens of monumental neoclassical buildings rivaling the great palaces of Europe, and breathtaking architectural, industrial, technological, cultural, and artistic achievements.

Buffalo World Fair site plan

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Dozens of massive, ornate, neoclassical buildings appeared--temples, palaces, and halls of learning and industry. They were lit by 200,000 electric lamps requiring thousands of tons of wiring, transformers, feeder panels, and fixtures.
 
In total, there were about 90 major buildings, some with 75,000 square feet of interior space. In addition, there were many smaller exhibit halls, annexes, and midways covering the 350 acres. Grand boulevards, canals, bridges, gardens, fountains, and waterworks were laid out. Sewerage, water plumbing, and rail lines were installed. The total estimated construction footprint was 1,500,000 ft2.
 
The Electric Tower was a centerpiece. It was almost 400 ft. tall with steel support, elevators to about 252 ft, then a staircase to a cupola, plus a statue atop. At night, it dazzled with 40,000 electric lamps.
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Electric tower

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​This is typical of the many buildings in the fair that rivaled the ornate complexity of the largest castles and cathedrals ever built, which took centuries to complete. One castle in Milan took 500 years. Even today, with CAD, trucks, bulldozers, cranes, reinforced concrete, and speedy material delivery, a single major civic building can take a decade.

A Buffalo fair bridge

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Horticulture and Temple of Music buildings

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Detail of Temple of Music

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Machinery Building

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Sculptures were everywhere

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More pictures available here: The Library of Congress
 
All of this is reported to have been constructed in about one and a half years, at a time when the main mode of transportation and hauling was horses. None of the powerful construction machinery we have today was present.
 
The mystery of how this could have been accomplished is like the claims that the great pyramids were built with copper hand tools and that stones weighing as much as 15 tons were pulled into place by people using ropes made of plant fibers.
 
Over a million tons of wood/stone/concrete/steel needed to be found for the Buffalo fair. It had to be harvested, quarried, and manufactured from as far as hundreds of miles away, and then moved by rail, ship, and horse and wagon. Years of continuous work would be needed, just for material creation, movement, and handling.
 
An estimated 3--4 thousand horses would be required, needing tending by thousands of veterinarians, farriers, blacksmiths, and caretakers. Thousands of tons of hay & grain would be needed, producing about 80 tons of manure a day, which would have to be removed. There would be hundreds of horse--pulled wagons clattering through Buffalo’s streets.
 
About 12,000 workers at 10 hours per day would be required, along with shelter, bedding, and tons of food.
 
That only touches on the enormous activity and needs of such a venture.
 
After all that incredible construction, the fair ended in a few months, and the buildings were demolished. The grounds were cleared, canals filled in, and the land then subdivided into residential streets, homes, commercial areas, etc.
 
(Note: In searching for photos of the actual construction, none could be found. With the thousands of horses and men, scaffolding hundreds of feet in the air, and the tons of materials stockpiled and moving about, why would this not have been memorialized with photos?)
 
 
THE ONLY SURVIVOR
Only one building from the original fair remains -- the Buffalo History Museum.
 
Its 31,803 square feet is designed to evoke the Parthenon in Athens. Its grand halls include white, gold, and black marble elements. It is not of wood and plaster, like stage props, as it is said that the fair buildings were made. It's clearly stone and built to stand for centuries.

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​The official story is that this one building of stone and marble was unique. All the other fair buildings were said to be just temporary wood, plaster, and lathe, essentially papier--mâché stage sets to be demolished to make room for housing.
 
But they all appear to look like solid stone structures, just like the museum.
 
Even if they were wood-lath-plaster, the feat of creating such massive and ornate buildings in such a short time would still be astonishing and raise questions.
 
It would seem, rather than demolition, that they could have served as tourist attractions, providing great financial benefit to the city of Buffalo.
 
 
QUESTIONS REMAIN
The Buffalo World Fair was scaled to that of a permanent city, not a six--month carnival. To claim it was all built "from scratch" in months with hand tools, and horse--and--wagon transport strains credibility. 
 
The fair fit the narrative of rapid progress and American unlimited capabilities -- able to conjure an entire classical city overnight and make it disappear just as quickly. Perhaps that justified tearing it all down rather than preserving it. Or perhaps it helped erase inconvenient questions about where such architecture truly came from.
 
Whatever the reasons, what remains today is a puzzle: the grandeur and scale shown in photos of the finished project, the absence of photos of the herculean construction, logistical, speed, and capability questions, the demolition, the structure and permanence of the surviving museum ... and an official explanation that leaves us wondering if there is more to the story.
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Words of Wisdom:
"The past was erased, the erasure was forgotten, the lie became the truth."--George Orwell.
 
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