The Columbian. [volume] (Bloomsburg, Pa.) 1866-1910, 1884-07-11
The State Fair Grounds.


The work i, progressing rapidly on
the main building of the State agricul
tural Society at Broad street and Lc-
high avenue, Philadelphia. The other
buildings, which are four in number,
are rapidly approaching completion.
The stables and cattle pens have been
finished for some time. The Contrac-
tor J. b, Doyle, who is in charge of
the work, reported to the building COM
mittee that lie would have no difficulty
In turning over the work on August l,
as stipulated. From that time to
September s, the date of the opening
of the fair, the work of receiving en-
tries and alotting space can go on
without hitch.
NThe great autumn Il exhibition, for
which the grounds were planned, has
been a wanderer throughout the State
for the most part of its thirty years of
existence 1t has, however, long been
the desire of the society to have PET
manent ground and this spriny the
time was ripe. $4,000 was the amount
required for the building. Part of this
sum the society had in hand. Their
friends the two great railroad conpan-
les which are to be benefited by the
enterprise made up the rest and the
site was selected.
The plot of rolling ground on which
the buildings are being put up is thirty
six acres in extent and belongs to Will
liam Weightman, of the firm of Powers
tS Weightman. The only consideration
for the ten-year lease which he gave to
the society was that they should pay
the taxes. The Sixteenth Street Sta
tiou of both railroads is close at hand
and the terminus of The Thirteenth and
Fifteenth Street Passenger Railway is
just outside of the bounds. The tracks
of this line and those of the Reading
Railroad Company will enter the
grounds at the southeast corner. The
PENNSYLVANIA Railroad is to have
special station at the northeast entrance,
while the main access, where a gate
house is now nearly finished, is at the
Seventeenth street entrance on the
south side of the grounds. The society
proposes to plant trees and do great
deal of grading in the autumn. For
the present, the only improvement will
be about the buildings. The latter will
fairly fill the great enclosure when fin
ished. The stables, which are com.
pleted, run all along the north side of
the grounds They will bold one hum
dred and twenty-five horses. AT the
western end of the grounds, and also
in complete readiness, are the sheep
and the cattle sheds. There are five
long pens, which will accommodate in
all six hundred and eighty animals.
The great main building, which is to
occupy the middle of the grounds, will
be 800 feet long by $50 feet wide. Its
height is to be 65 feet. The seed house,
which is next in size to the main build
ing stands beside the poultry house,
in the northeast corner of the grounds.
Its length is 200 and its breadth 60
feet. The poultry house is $50 by so
feet. Both face east and west. Floral
Hall, which also stands to the east of
the main building, is 100 by 60 feet in
dimensions. For the convenience of
visitors to the grounds there is large
restaurant in course of construction to
the west of the main building.
All the work so far accomplished has
been done since May l. A force of
one hundred and forty men was en-
ployed. The buildings are of yell
low pine and hemlock. Considering
the materials, they are unusually sub
tantial. Fawn color is to be the
prevailing tone in the decoration Of
all the structures.