The White City

In 1890, the U.S. Congress chose Chicago as the locale to honor the 400th anniversary of Columbus' discovery of America. The city subsequently established the World's Columbian Exposition Company to finance and oversee the building of the fair. Under the direction of Daniel H. Burnham, and following Frederick Law Olmsted's plan for the fairgrounds, the lakefront swamp of Jackson Park was transformed into a stunning spectacle of neoclassic structures. While still under construction and in the interest of meeting deadlines, Burnham decided that the buildings at the fair would be "perfectly white." He hired Francis Millet, a painter from New York, to accomplish this goal. Millet's idea to create a nozzle from a piece of pipe and attaching it to a hose gave way to the first spray paint. All the buildings were spray-painted completely white, resulting in such brilliance that the fair was nicknamed the "White City," a title for which this World's Fair will always be remembered.