Come to the Fair

The Great Central Fair, in support of the medical mission of the United States Sanitary Commission, was held here in June of 1864.

It was one of thirty such events across the North and (after New York’s fair) the most profitable, raising over one million dollars. The Fair was the most spectacular and dramatic civic event of the war, with average daily attendance of over 29,000 people – more than 250,000 in all. Following a call from the Union League in the winter, leaders of the business community and professional organizations mobilized a vast committee structure to organize the fair. It was a massive outpouring, with over 100 committees involving hundreds of Philadelphians, and McAllister collected all their printed appeals and reports. They held concerts and performances to raise funds. Craftsmen and laborers pledged a day’s wages to support the fair. And merchants and manufacturers donated their wares for sale. The result was a magnificent event of near-international exhibition dimensions. There was an art gallery, restaurant, displays of historic relics, merchandise of all sorts, a horticultural hall, and more – "The most wonderful display of everything under the sun," observed one visitor. Philadelphia’s response was enthusiastic, everyone impressed by the amazing variety of the displays and articles for sale. And a Library Company shareholder came home with a priceless historic artifact.

Click on images for a larger view.

Great Central Sanitary Fair, John Moran, albumen print photograph, (Philadelphia, 1864).

Great Central Sanitary Fair, John Moran, albumen print photograph, (Philadelphia, 1864).

Abraham Lincoln, A Proclamation. Manuscript, 1862.

 

Abraham Lincoln, A Proclamation. Manuscript, 1862.

Abraham Lincoln,  A Proclamation. Manuscript, 1862.

 

This manuscript draft of Lincoln’s Proclamation of July 25, 1862 vowing to confiscate rebel property (a prelude to the Emancipation Proclamation), was auctioned to raise funds at the Fair. The lucky bidder was Library Company member Anne Hampton Brewster, who later donated it to the Library Company.

 

Our Daily Fair. (Philadelphia, 1864).

Our Daily Fair. (Philadelphia, 1864).

 

President Lincoln was one of the thousands of visitors to the Fair on June 16, as reported in this issue of Our Daily Fair, the daily newspaper of the Great Central Fair.

Sanitary Fair Guide (Philadelphia, 1864).

Sanitary Fair Guide (Philadelphia, 1864).
Horticultural Department, A. Watson, albumen print photograph (Philadelphia, 1864).

Horticultural Department, A. Watson, albumen print photograph (Philadelphia, 1864).

Fine Arts Gallery, A. Watson, albumen print photograph, (Philadelphia, 1864).

Fine Arts Gallery, A. Watson, albumen print photograph, (Philadelphia, 1864).
Relics and Curiosities, A. Watson, albumen print photograph, (Philadelphia, 1864).

Relics and Curiosities, A. Watson, albumen print photograph, (Philadelphia, 1864).

These three of many notices on women’s’ committees for the Great Central Fair demonstrate their energy and activism in making the Fair a success.

 

These three of many notices on women’s’ committees for the Great Central Fair demonstrate their energy and activism in making the Fair a success.

 

These three of many notices on women’s’ committees for the Great Central Fair demonstrate their energy and activism in making the Fair a success.

These three of many notices on women’s’ committees for the Great Central Fair demonstrate their energy and activism in making the Fair a success.

Henry Howard Furness, March 1st, 1864. In this printed letter soliciting members to the planning committees for the Great Central Fair Furness urges support from the men by noting the activities of women. “It may well be to state that the Ladies have entered into the project with great ardor and enthusiasm.”

Henry Howard Furness, March 1st, 1864. In this printed letter soliciting members to the planning committees for the Great Central Fair Furness urges support from the men by noting the activities of women.  “It may well be to state that the Ladies have entered into the project with great ardor and enthusiasm.”
Buildings of the Great Central Fair. Chromolithograph, James Fuller Queen (Philadelphia, 1864).

Buildings of the Great Central Fair. Chromolithograph, James Fuller Queen (Philadelphia, 1864).
Committee for a Day’s Labor (Philadelphia, 1864).

Committee for a Day’s Labor (Philadelphia, 1864).

 

“This Committee has a special work, to wit: to obtain a day’s labor, a day’s income and a day’s revenue from every citizen, firm and company.”
The Past and the Future. Chromolithograph after Thomas Nast (Philadelphia, 1864).

The Past and the Future. Chromolithograph after Thomas Nast (Philadelphia, 1864).

 

Thomas Nast’s famous allegory on slavery and emancipation was reprinted in this color version by local printers King & Baird for sale at the Great Central Fair. The original appeared in Harper’s Weekly, January 24, 1863.

 

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