The book of the fair; an historical and descriptive presentation of the world's science, art, and industry, as viewed through the Columbian Exposition at Chicago in 1893
The Book of the Fair is a descriptive survey of the 1893 World's Columbian Exposition in Chicago, written by Hubert Howe Bancroft and published by his own company in Chicago and San Francisco for general readers interested in the fair's science, art and industry. Its photographic plates show the fair's buildings, art galleries, exhibit halls and crowds, all rendered in soft grey halftone with simple captions beneath each view. A designer could draw on the ornate neoclassical architecture, the crowded pavilion interiors and the period dress and street scenes for Gilded Age historical material.
