A Whale of a Wheel
In 1889, France hosted the first Exposition Universelle, or World's Fair, in Paris.
In every way, the Exposition was so big, so glamorous, so exotic that no one believed anything could ever surpass it.
The city of Chicago, Illinois, decided to try.
The chicago World's Fair was held in 1893, but planning and building started much sooner.
The Fair's organizers wanted to show the world that the United States, and specifically Chicago, was just as capable of gfand artistic and technological wonders as France.
The centerpiece of the Paris Exposition was en elegent tower of steel tapering up to the sky.
It was designed by Gustav Eiffel and gave daring visitor a view of Paris that took their breath away.
The organizers of the Chicago World's Fair had to come up with something even more magnificent.
Finding a suitable design to rival the Eifeel Tower proved difficult.
Architect Daniel H.Burnham was in charge of the project for the Chicago World's Fair.
He received dozens of proposals from engineers and architects around the country to build various kinds of towers.
One day, he received a brief proposal and rough draft of plans for something more unbelievable and outrageous than any prior porpsal.
The author of this proposal was George Washington Gale Ferris Jr.