davidaulloa/AmericanStories huggingface dataset:
The herald and mail. [volume] (Columbia, Tenn.) 1873-188?, 1876-05-26

above it the central dome shows to great
advantage. The rear or north front of
the building is of the same general
character as the main front, but, in
place of the arcade, has a series of arched
windows, twelve in number, with the
entrance in the center. Between the
pavilions is the grand balcony, a prom
enade two hundred and seventy-five feet
long and forty-five feet wide, elevated
forty feet above the ground, and over
looking to the northward the beautiful
grounds of the park. On each front of
the buildings the entrances open into
halls eighty-two feet long, sixty feet
wide and fifty-three feet high, decorated
in modern renaissance. These, in turn,
open into the center hall, eighty-three
feet square, the ceiling rising over eighty
feet in height. From the east and west
sides of this center hall extend the gal
lerics, each inety-eight feet long, forty
eight feet wide and thirty-live feet high.
These galleries admit of temporary di-
visions for the better display of paint
ings, and with the center hall form a
grand hall two hundred and eighty-seven
feet long and eighty-three feet wide,
capable of comfortably accommodating
eight thousand persons This is nearly
twice the dimensions of the largest hall
in the United States. From the gal
leries doorways open into two smaller
galleries, eighty-nine feet long and
twenty-eight feet wide. These open
north and south into private apartments
connecting with the paviiiOn-rOOms, and
forming two side galleries two hundred
and ten feet long. Along the whole
length of the north side of the main
galleries and central hall extends a cor
ridor fourteen feet high, opening on its
north line into series of private rooms
twenty-three in number designed for
studies and smaller exhibition rooms.
All the galleries and the central hall are
lighted from above; the pavilion and
studios from the sides. The pavilions
and central hall are designed especially
for the exhibition of sculpture. This
fine building gives seventy-five thousand
square feet of wall space for paintings,
and twenty thousand square feet of floor
space for statues, etc. The skylights
throughout are double, the upper being
of clear glass and the under of ground
glass.
Great as is the space afforded in the
memorial hall, the applications from
American and foreign artists have proved
so greatly in excess of its capacity as to
require the erection of much more
spacious building. This, only of brick,
harmonizes architecturally with the me-
The herald and mail. [volume] (Columbia, Tenn.) 1873-188?, 1876-05-26

wide, and fourteen feet high. Running
entirely around this conservatory, at a
height of twenty feet from the floor, is a
gallery five feet wide.
On the north and south sides of this
principal room are four forcing houses
for the propagation of young plants,
each of them one hundred feet by thirty
feet, and covered by curved roofs of iron
and glass, which, appearing upon the eX-
terror of the building, present very fine
feature. A vestibule thirty feet square
separates the two forcing houses on each
side, and there are similar vestibules at
the center of the east and west ends, on
either side of which are apartments for
ception rooms, offices, etc. Orna-
mental stairways lead from these vesti-
bules to the internal galleries of the con-
servatory, as well as four external gal
leries, each one hundred feet long and
ten feet wide, which surmOunt the roofs
of the forcing houses. These external
galleries are connected with grand
promenade, formed by the roofs of the
rooms on the lower floor, giving a su-
perficial area of about seventeen thou
sanG square feet.
The east and west entrances TO the
horticultural building are approached by
flights of blue marble steps, from ter
races eighty feet by twenty feet, in the
center of each of which stands an open
kiosque twenty feet in diameter. Each
entrance is beautified bv ornamental tile
and marble work, and the angles of the
main conservatory are adorned with
eight attractive fountains. The corri-
dOrs connecting the conservatory with
the surrounding apartments open fine
vistas in every direction, and the beau
ties of the surrounding park, with the
river flowing in front and more than one
hundred feet beneath the building, add
to the attractions. Extensive heating
arrangements are provided in the base
ment, which is of fireproof construction.
Surrounding this building there arc
thirty-fve acres of ground, which are
devoted to horticultural purposes, and
have been suitably planted. In this
plot there is an extensive series of
sunken gardens.
The herald and mail. [volume] (Columbia, Tenn.) 1873-188?, 1876-05-26
The Art Gallery.

The most imposing and ornate of all
the structures is memorial hail, built at
cost of $1,5OO,OO0, by the state OF
Pennsylvania and the city of Philadel-
phia. This is placed at the disposal OF
the centennial commission, to be used
during the exhibition as an art gallery,
after which it is designed to make it the
receptacle of an industrial and art col
lection similar to the famous south Ken
sington museum, at London. 1t stands
on line parallel with, and a short dis
tance northward of, the main building,
and is in a commanding position, looking
southwark across the Schuylkilf over
Philadelphia. 1t stands upon a terrace
one hundred and twenty-five feet above
the level of the Schuylkill. Being de-
signed for an absolutely freproof struc-
ture, nothing combustible has been used.
The design is modern Renaissance. 1t
covers an acre and a half, and is three
hundred and sixty-ive feet long, two
The herald and mail. [volume] (Columbia, Tenn.) 1873-188?, 1876-05-26

Gully q continuation of that edifice, the
two presenting a frontage of three thou
sand eight hundred and twenty-four feet
from their eastern to their western
ends, upon the principal avenue within
the grounds. This building consits of a
main hall, one thousand four hundred
and two feet long and three hundred and
sixty feet wide, with an annex on the
southern side two hundred and eight
feet by two hundred and ten feet. The
entire area covered is five hundred and
| fifty-eight thousand four hundred and
forty square feet, or nearly thirteen
acres, and the floor space afforded is
about fourteen acres. The chief portion
of the building is one story in height,
the main cOrnice upon the outside being
| forty feet from the ground, and the in
terror height to the top of the ventilators
| in the avenues seventy feet, an1 in the
aisles forty feet. To break the long lines
of the exterior, projections have been in
trOduced upon the four sides, and the
main entrances are furnished with
racades extending to seventy-eight feet
in height. The eastern entrance is the
principal approach from railways and
from the main exhibition building.
! Along the southern side are placed the
boiler houses, and such other buildings
for special kinds of machinery as may be
required.
The plan of the machinery building
shows two main avenues ninety feet
wide, with a central aisle between and
an aisle on either side, these being sixty
feet in width. These avenues and aisles
together have three hundred and sixty
feet width, and each of them is one thou
sand three hundred and sixty feet long.
At the center of the building there is a
transept ninety feet in width, which at
the south end is prolonged beyond the
building. This extended transept, be-
ginning at thirty feet from the building
and extending to two hundred and eight
feet, is fanked on either side by aisles
sixty feet wide, and forms an annex for
hydraulic machines. The prOmenades
are: In the avenue fifteen feet wide, in
the aisles ten feet, and in the transept
twenty-five feet. The walks extending
across the building are all ten feet wide,
and lead at either end to exit doors |
The foundations of this building are piers
of masonry, the superstructure consist
ing of solid timber columns supporting |
roof trusses, constructed of straight |
wooden principal beams and wrought |
iron ties and struts. The columns are |
placed in longitudinal lines, and in
these rows stand sixteen feet apart. |
The columns are forty feet high, and
support respectively the ninety-feet
roof-spans over the avenues at a height
of forty feet, and the sixty feet roof
spans over the aisles at height of
twenty feet. The outer walls are built
of masonry to a height of five feet, and
above that are composed of glazed sash
between the columns. Portions of these
sashes are movable for ventilation, and
Louvre ventilatOrs are introduced in
continuous lengths over both the ave-
nues and the aisles. The building is en-
tirely lighted by side light from the
north and south. Space in machinery
hall has been allotted as follows:
The herald and mail. [volume] (Columbia, Tenn.) 1873-188?, 1876-05-26

| hundred and ten feet wide, and fifty
nine feet high, over a spacious basement
| twelve feet high. A dome, rising one
hundred feet above the ground, sur
mounts the center, capped by a colossal
ball, from which rises the figure of Co
lumbia. The main front of this build
ing looks southwark, displaying a main
entrance in the center consisting of three
enormous arched doorways a pavilion on
each end, and two arcades connecting
the paviliOns with the center. The en-
trance is seventy feet wide, TO which
there is rise of thirteen steps. Each
of the huge doorways is forty feet high
and fifteen feet wide, opening into a
hall. Between the arches of the door
waysare clusters of columns, terminating
in emblematic designs illustrative of
science and art. The doors are of iron,
relieved by bronze panels, displaying the
coats of arms of all the states and ter
ritOries. The United States coat of arms
is in the center of the main frieze. The
dome is of glass and iron, of unique de-
sign. While Columbia rises at the top,
colossal figure stands at each corner of
tie base OF the dome, typifying the four
quarters of the globe.
LII edCH pdVlllOn Inere IS Il large VIII
dow, twelve and one-half feet by thirty
four feet. There are altogether eight of
these windows, used for the display of
stained glass paintings, etc. The arcades
designed to screen the long walls of the
galleries each consist of five groined
arches, and form promenades looking
outward over the grounds and inward
over gardens extending back to the main
wall of the building. These garden plots
are each ninety feet by thirty six feet, Or
namented in the center with fountains,
and intended to display statuary. The
arcades are highly ornanented, and the
balustrades of them and of the stairways
are also designed for statuary. The
walls of the east and west sides of the
structure display the pavilions and the
walls of the picture galleries, and are
relieved by inches designed for statues.
The frieze is richly Ornamented, and
The herald and mail. [volume] (Columbia, Tenn.) 1873-188?, 1876-05-26

the building sma ller aisles of twenty-fonT
feet width. To break the great length
of the rOoi-lineS three transepts have
been introduced, of the same widths and
in the same relative positions to each
other as the longitudinal avenues These
cross the building, and are four hundred
and sixteen feetin length. The inter
sections of these various avenues make
at the center of the building nine spaces,
free from supports, which are from one
hundred to one hundred and twenty feet
square, and which aggregate four hun
dred and sixteen feet square. The GEN
eral elevation of the roofs of all these
avenues varies from fortv-fve feet to
seventy feet.
The building rests upon the ground,
the land having been thoroughly graded
and prepared. The foundations consist
of piers of masonry, the superstructure
being composed of wrought iron columns
placed twenty-four feet apart, which sup
port wrought iron roof trusses. There
are six hundred and seventy-two of these
columns in the entire structure, the
shortest being twenty-three feet and the
longest one hundred and twenty-five feet
long. Their aggregate weight is two mill
lions two hundre ID thousand pounds. The
roof trusses and girders weigh five mil
lions of pounds. The sides of the build
ing, to seven feet above the ground, are
finished with HrickwOrk in panels be-
The herald and mail. [volume] (Columbia, Tenn.) 1873-188?, 1876-05-26
Square feet.
Great Britain
The United States occupies three hun
dred thousand square feet,

The United States occupies three hun
dred thousand square feet,
This machinery building has very su-
perior facilities for shafting and double
lines are. introduced into each avenue
and aisle at a height of about twenty
feet. A COrliss steam engine of one
thousand four hundred horse power
drives the main shafting. There are
also to be cOunter-lines of shafting in the
aisles and special steam power furnished
where necessary. Steam power is to be
furnished free to exhibitors. In the an
mex for hydraulic machines there is a
tank sixty feet by one hundred and sixty
feet, with ten feet depth of water. 1t is
intended to exibit all sorts of hydraulic
machinery in full operation, and at the
southern end of the tank there is wa
ter-fall thirty-five feet high by forty feet
wide, supplied from the tank by the
pumps on exhibition. There will prob
ably be a larger exhibition at Philadel-
phia of processes of manufacture than at
any previous exhibition
The applications for space have been so
numerous as to require the addition of
three anneXes, covering two and one
half acres, while numerous private cX-
hibitors have put up buildings for their
Ownuse. The machinery hall proper con-
tains above one thousand two hundred
American exhibitors, having an average
space of two hundred and seventy square
feet each-a more compact arrangement
than has been accomplished previously,
since at Vienna there were nine hundred
and fifty-nine exhibitors of machinery,
with an average floor space of three hun
dred and three square feet.
The herald and mail. [volume] (Columbia, Tenn.) 1873-188?, 1876-05-26
The CENTENNIAL.
The Great Anniversary Exhibition
in Philadelphia.
Views of the Exhibition Build
ings and Full Descriptions
Of the Various De-
partments.
Arrangements for the Centennial,

The act Of congress which provides 70
celebrating the one hundredth anniver
sary of American independence, by hold
ing an international exhibition of arts
manufactures, and products of the sol
and miue," authorized the creation o
the United States centennial commission
and intrusted to it the management o
the exhibition. This body is composed o
two commissioners from each state and
territory, nominated by the respective
governors, and commissioned by tie
president of the United States. The en-
terprise, therefore, is distinctly nation
al one, and not. as has sometimes been
stated, the work of private corpora
ton.
The exhibition will be opened on May
10th, 1876, and remain open until No
vember 10th. There will be a fixed
price of fifty cents for admission to all
the buildings and grounds.
The centennial grounds are situated on
the western bank of the Schuylkill river,
and within FairmOunt Park, the largest
public park in proximity to a great city
in the world, and one of the most beau
tiful in the country. The park contains
three thousand one hundred and sixty
acres, four hundred and fifty of which
nave Decn enclosed Tor Jne eXnlDltlOn.
Besides this tract, there are large yards
near by for the exhibition of stock, and
a farm of forty-two acres is already suit
ably planted for the tests of plOws,
mowers, rcapers, and other agricultural
machinery
The exhibition buildings are ap-
preached by eight lines of street cars
which connect with all the other lines in
the city, and by the Pennsylvania and
Reading railroads, over the tracks of
which trains also run from the North
Pennsylvania and Philadelphia, Will
mingtOn, and Baltimore railroads. Thus
the exhibition is in immediate connec-
ton with the entire railroad system of
the country, and any one within ninety
miles of Philadelphia can visit it at no
greater cost than that of carriage hire at
the Paris or Vienna exhibition.
An important special exhibition is
made by the United States government,
and is prepared under the supervision of
Il board of officers representing the sew
eral executive departments of the gov
ernment. A fine building of four and
a half acres is provided for the purpose
space in which is occupied by the war,
treasury, navy, interior, post-Office, and |
agricultural departments and the Smith
sOnian institution.
The herald and mail. [volume] (Columbia, Tenn.) 1873-188?, 1876-05-26

date the hydraulic machinery, the steam
hammers, forges, hoisting engines, boil
Crs, plumbers carpenters, etc.
Power in the machinery hall is chiefly
supplied by pair of monster Corliss en-
cincs. Each cylinder is forty inches in
diameter, with a stroke of ten feet the
fly-wheel is thirty-one feet in diameter,
and weighs fifty-five tons; the horse
power is fourteen; and the number of
boilers is twenty. This engine drives
about a mile of shafting.
For the art exhibition, the most cmi-
nent American artists have sent speci-
mems, AMI it may be confidently stated
that, especially in the department of
landscape painting, the United States
presents finer display than the public
has been led 10 expect. Quite aside from
the contributions OF American artists,
applications from abroad call for more
than four times the exhibiting space
afforded by the great Memorial Hall.
Provision for the surplus has been made
in temporary fire-proOf buildings, though
all exhibiting nations will be represented
in the central art gallery.
The secretary of the navy has arranged
that a United States vessel shall call Mt
convenient European ports, to collect
and transport hither to the exhibition
the works of American artists resident
in Europe. Among the ports thus far
designated, are southampton for Eng
The herald and mail. [volume] (Columbia, Tenn.) 1873-188?, 1876-05-26
The Agricultural Building

stands north of the Horticultural building,
being separated from It by romantic
ravine, and has commanding view of
| the Schuylkill river and the northwestern
suburbs of Philadelphia beyond. This
building illustrates novel combination
of materials, mainly wood and glass, and
consists of a long nave crossed by three
transepts, each being composed of truss
arches of Gothic form. The nave is eight
hundred and twenty feet long by one
hundred and twenty five feet in width,
with height of seventv-fve feet from
the floor to the point of the arch, the GEN.
trail transept one hundred feet wide and
seventy-fve feet high, and the two end
transepts eighty feet wide and seventy
feet high. Its interior appearance re-
sembles that of great cathedral, and in
looking from transept to transept, the
vista is extremely imposing. A portion
of this building is supplied with steam
power for the use of agricultural machin-
cry. The four courts inclosed by the
nave and transepts, and also the four
spaces at the corners of the building,
having the nave and end transepts for
two of their sides, are rooted, and form
valuable space for exhibits. The ground
plan of the building is parallelOgram five
hundred and forty feet by eight hundred
and twenty feet, covering about ten and
One-quarter acres. Sixteen foreign ma
tions have space in this building, and in
the one hundred and forty-seven thou
sands five hundred and seventy-two
square feet which remain, more than one
thousand American exhibitors are ac-
cOmmOdated. This necessitates special
buildings .for the collective exhibits OF
their natural resources provided by the
different states.
In addition to the grounds within the
inclOsure, an eligibly located stockyard,
twenty two acres in extent, has been pro-
vided for the display of live stock, which |
will be exhibited in series of shows |
during the months of September, Octo- |
Der, aud November. Two farms, more |
over, of about fifty acres each, have been |
planted for the trials of agricul- |
tural machinery.
The herald and mail. [volume] (Columbia, Tenn.) 1873-188?, 1876-05-26
Main Building.

This is parallelogram, running east
and west one thousand eight hundred
and seventy-aiX feet long, and north and
south four hundred and siXty-four feet
wide. The larger portion is one story
high, the interior height being seventy
feet, and the cornice on the outside for
ty-eight feet from the ground. At the
center of the longer sides are projections
four hundred and six feet in length, and
on the ends of the building projections
two hundred and sixteen feet in length.
In these, which are in the center of the
four sides, are located the main en-
frances, which are provided with
arcades upon the ground floor, and cen
trail facades ninety feet high. The
east entrance forms the principal ap-
proach for carriages, visitors alighting at
the doors of the building under cover of
the arcade. The south entrance is the
principal approach from railway cars.
The west entrance opens upon the main
passage-way to two principal buildings
the machinery and agricultural halls, and
the north entrance to memorial hall Cart
gallery. Towers seventy-five feet in
height rise at each corner of the building
In order to obtain a central feature, the
roof for one hundred and eighty-four feet
square at the center has been raised above
the surrounding portion, and four towers
forty-eight feet square, rising to one hun
dred and twenty feet high, are intro
duced into the corners of this elevated
roof. This gives ventilation as well as
ornament. The main building has nine
hundred and thirty-six thousand and
eight square feet of surface, or nearly
twenty-one and half acres. Its ground
plan shows central avenue one hundred
and twenty feet in width, and one thou
sand eight hundred and thirty-two feet
in length, which is the longest avenue of
that width ever introduced into an exhi-
bition building. On either side of this
is another avenue of equal length, and
one hundred feet wide. Between the
central and side avenues are aisles forty
eight feet wide, and on the outer sides of
The herald and mail. [volume] (Columbia, Tenn.) 1873-188?, 1876-05-26
By HORSLEY & co.

land, Havre for Franco, Bremen for Ger
many, and LeghOrn for Italy. The ar
rival of this vessel is expected daily.
Mr.. Bell, the eminent English sculp
tor, who designed the groups for the
plinth for the great Albert memorial il
Hyde Park, London, has reproduced il
terra Gotta, at the celebrated works III
! Lambeth, the one which symbolizes
America. The figures in this group are
colossal, covering ground space of fif
teen feet square. 1t is placed in the
great central art gallery, opposite the
! principal entrance.
The art exhibition includes, in addition
TO the works of contemporary artists,
representative productions of the past
century of American art-thOse, for in
stance, of stuart, Copley, Trumbull,
West, AlstOn, Sully, Neagle, Elliot,
Kensett, Cole. These, as well as the
works offered by living artists, have been
passed upon by the committee of selec-
ton, who visited, for the purpose, New
York, Boston, Chicago, and other leading
cities, in order to prevent the needless
transportation to Philadelphia of works
of art not up to the standard Of admis-
sion.
A large number of orders and frater-
mites have signified their intention to
hold gatherings at Philadelphia during
the period of the exhibition. Among these
which may now be enumerated, are the
Grand Lodge of Pennsylvania, Inde-
pendent Order of Odd Fellows; the
Grand Encampment, Independent Order
of Odd Fellows; Grand Lodge, United
States, Independent Order of Odd Eel
lows; Grand Commandely Knights
Templar; Grand Army of the Republic;
Presbyterian Synod; Caledonian Club
Portland Mechanic Blues; Welsh Ma
tiOnal Eistedfodd Patriotic Order Sons
of America California ZOuaves of San
Francisco; an International Regatta;
the Life Insurance Companies; National
Board of Underwriters; State Agricul-
tural Society; Second Infantry, n. G.
of California; Philadelphia Conference,
Methodist Episcopal Church Cincinnati
Society; California Pioneer Society
American Dental Convention; Catholic
Total Abstinence Union of America
Independent Order of B'nai Birth;
National Alumni Association Sales
mems Association Fifth Maryland
Regiment; Seventh New York Regi-
ment; American Pathological Society
Masters Association of the United
States; Army of the Cumberland
Humboldt Monument Association;
Christopher Columbus Monument AssO-
citation; Board of Trade Convention