The 1939–40 New York World’s Fair was a world’s fair held at Flushing Meadows–Corona Park in Queens, New York, United States. It was the second-most expensive American world’s fair of all time, exceeded only by St. Louis’s Louisiana Purchase Exposition of 1904.
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| 1939 New York World’s Fair |
Many countries around the world participated in it, and over 44 million people attended its exhibits in two seasons. It was the first exposition to be based on the future, with an opening slogan of “Dawn of a New Day”, and it allowed all visitors to take a look at “the world of tomorrow”.
When World War II began four months into the 1939 World’s Fair, many exhibits were affected, especially those on display in the pavilions of countries under Axis occupation. After the close of the fair in 1940, many exhibits were demolished or removed, though some buildings were retained for the 1964–1965 New York World’s Fair, held at the same site.
These beautiful Kodachrome slides from ELCA Archives were taken by E. Theodore “Ted” Bachmann (1911-1995) when he and family visited the New York World’s Fair in 1939.
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| Amphitheater and Billy Rose Aquacade, 1939 New York World's Fair |
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| Amphitheater and Billy Rose Aquacade, 1939 New York World's Fair |
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| Amphitheater and Billy Rose Aquacade, 1939 New York World's Fair |
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| Amphitheater and Billy Rose Aquacade, 1939 New York World's Fair |
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| Amphitheater and Billy Rose Aquacade, 1939 New York World's Fair |
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| Amphitheater and Billy Rose Aquacade, 1939 New York World's Fair |
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| Ballantine Inn, 1939 New York World's Fair |
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| French Pavilion on the Court of Peace with Trylon and Perisphere, 1939 New York World's Fair |
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| French Pavilion on the Court of Peace, 1939 New York World's Fair |
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| George Washington statue behind "Time and Fates of Man," sundial, with the United States Federal Building in the background, 1939 New York World's Fair |
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| Globe along the Court of States, in front of the West Virginia and Georgia buildings with tower of the USSR (Soviet) Pavilion above, 1939 New York World's Fair |
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| The Avenue of Pioneers, looking toward the Schaefer Center, 1939 New York World's Fair |
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| The Japan Pavilion next to the USSR (Soviet) Pavilion, 1939 New York World's Fair |
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| The Lagoon of Nations with the Italian Pavilion in the rear, 1939 New York World's Fair |
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| The New Jersey Building along the Court of States, 1939 New York World's Fair |
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| The Pennsylvania Building along the Court of States with tower of the USSR (Soviet) Pavilion above, 1939 New York World's Fair |
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| The Pennsylvania Building along the Court of States with tower of the USSR (Soviet) Pavilion above, 1939 New York World's Fair |
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| The USSR (Soviet) Pavilion, 1939 New York World's Fair |
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| Trylon, Perisphere and Helicline, 1939 New York World's Fair |
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| U.S. Marine Corps marching in front of the USSR (Soviet) Pavilion, 1939 New York World's Fair |