Why Humans Used to Build Entire Cities Just to Flex
(And Why We Should Do It Again)
[Note: This is Part 1 of a 2-part series on bringing back the World’s Fair vibe. Part 2 dives into what America’s 250th Birthday party can do for American Dynamism. If you're already confused about why that's important, this post is definitely for you.]
The other night, while scrolling through pictures of city skylines when I paused at the Space Needle. One day I’ll be visiting Seattle with my family and one of my daughters will ask me why they built that strange tower, and I'll tell her about the 1962 World's Fair.
But that explanation will sound like ancient history to her generation - humans gathering in one place to show off their coolest stuff.
[As I love Marvel films, I couldn’t help but think about Iron Man and the Stark Expo. So you’ll see a lot of references to those films below]
The concept sounds almost bizarre today: Countries spending massive resources to build temporary cities of tomorrow, millions of people traveling just to see new inventions, and civilizations trying to one-up each other not through war but through architectural flexing and technological showing-off.
But that's exactly what the World's Fair was. And we need to talk about why we lost it.
The story of World's Fairs (h/t fellow Write of Passage member
in for the great history lesson) breaks down into three distinct eras, each reflecting humanity's evolving relationship with progress. Let's dive in.Era 1: The "Holy Crap, Look What Humans Can Do" Era (1851-1945)
It all started when Prince Albert, Queen Victoria's husband, had an idea: Let's gather all of human achievement under one roof. The result was London's Crystal Palace Exhibition of 1851 - a massive glass and iron structure that looked like something aliens might build if they were really into greenhouses.
This kicked off nearly 90 years of humans showing off increasingly wild achievements. The Eiffel Tower? Built for the 1889 World's Fair, originally meant to be temporary. The first telephone? Demonstrated at the 1876 Philadelphia fair. Electric light? Showcased at Paris 1881. The Ferris Wheel? Chicago 1893. This era was basically humans speedrunning the future.
As a first-generation Italian-American whose parents came through Ellis Island, I feel a deep connection to how these fairs shaped the American Dream. My parents arrived to cities transformed by World's Fair architecture - concrete symbols of possibility in their new home. That spirit of innovation and progress they witnessed became part of the legacy they passed down to me, and now I'm passing it to my daughters.
Era 2: The "Let's All Get Along and Build Cool Stuff" Era (1946-1987)
After two world wars, the focus shifted. This era was less about showing off current achievements and more about imagining future possibilities. This era gave us the Space Needle, Walt Disney's influence on Epcot, and the Unisphere.
The optimism was contagious. Montreal's Expo 67 theme was "Man and His World." The 1962 Seattle fair literally put space travel center stage. We weren't just showing off anymore - we were collectively dreaming bigger.
Era 3: The "Corporate Branding Exercise" Era (1988-Present)
Something changed as we approached the millennium. World's Fairs became more about nation branding and corporate sponsorships. The wild architectural experiments gave way to more practical concerns. The last major U.S.-hosted expo was in 1984 in New Orleans, which actually lost money and marked the end of an era.
Recent expos like Dubai 2020 (held in 2021) still draw millions, but they lack the raw "anything is possible" energy of their predecessors. When every product launch is streamed globally and virtual reality lets us tour foreign cities from our couches, what's the point of gathering in person?
Why We Lost Our Collective Mind-Blow
The decline isn't just about technology making the world smaller. We lost something more fundamental - our capacity for collective wonder. When the Ferris Wheel debuted in Chicago, it wasn't just a big wheel - it was humanity showing itself what was possible. Each fair built on the last, creating a continuous conversation about progress.
Today's tech reveals happen in livestreamed product launches. Our architectural achievements, while impressive, are more about practicality than pushing boundaries. We've gained efficiency but lost the showmanship, the grandeur, the shared experience of witnessing tomorrow.
Why This Matters Now
As we face global challenges and increasingly retreat into digital bubbles, we've never needed the World's Fair spirit more. These weren't just exhibitions - they were declarations of human potential. They said: Look what we can achieve when we work together. Look what's possible when we dream big.
The temporary cities they built became permanent innovations. The wild ideas they showcased became everyday realities. Most importantly, they gave people something that's rare today - a shared, optimistic vision of the future.
My daughters deserve to experience that kind of wonder. Not through a screen, but in real life - standing next to other humans, looking up at something impossible made possible, feeling that collective "wow" moment that used to define World's Fairs.
Maybe it's time to bring that back. Not just the expos themselves, but the spirit behind them - the belief that humanity's greatest achievements come from showing off to each other in the most ambitious ways possible. Because sometimes, the best way to build the future is to gather everyone together and say: "Check this out."
To be continued in Part 2: How America's 250th Birthday Could Reignite the World's Fair Spirit.
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