The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1897-05-03
THE CENTURY MARK.
Tennessee Is One Hundred Years OF
Age.

Age
Its Centennial Exposition Formally Opened
The Parthenon and Giant see-saw
Are In II.
Nashville, Tenn, May 1.-The Tennes-
see Centennial Exposition was opened
at noon today with. appropriate ceremo-
MES in the presence Of many thousands
of people. The weather was bright and
cool, and at an early hour the streets
were thronged with people assembled to
witness the parade of the Essenio Order
and other societies. The procession
formed on the public square and marched
to the Exposition grounds. The process
sion was headed by detachment Of
mounted police, followed by local divis-
ions Of the Uniform Rank Knights of
Pythias, officers of the Tennessee Essenic
Order. the Legion band of the First Ten
nessee Battalion, Company A Of the First
Tennessee Regiment of Knoxville. Com
pany A of the Ohio National Guard of
Norman, Ohio, the Sponsor of the
Ancient Essenic Order and aids of
honor, arrayed in costumes of white, in a
tally-ho; Senators and Knights of the
local Senate, officers and visiting knights.
Gov. Taylor and his staff in open car
riages went to the grounds later. The
public buildings and hundreds of bust
ness houses and private residences along
tho line of march and every other portion
of the city are handsomely adorned with
the national colors and other decorations
and present a very beautiful appearance.
Arriving at the Exposition grounds
those in the procession joined with the
thousands of other visitors in inspecting
the splendid buildings and the very at
tractive grounds.
AT Nashville. standing on the Rialto, a
counterpart of the famous Venetian
tween two lovely lakes, and looking
directly west, the first object that the
eye rests upon is the colossal statute of
Pallas Athenae and Immediately behind
1T, exactly as it was placed in the Acrop-
oils at ancient Athens, stands the. Parthc-
non, replica of the work Eof Phidias,
in all its ancient glory, a bit of "frozen
music. as has been said, that gladdens
everything within reach of it's influence.
The reproduction of the Parthenon,
which. By the way, is faithful in every
detail Of the original, was the conoep-
tion Of Director General E. c. Lewis,
and in adapting it as the central figure
in the Exposition group he decided that
it should be used as an art gallery, and
in this gallery Mr.. Theo. Coolery, Chief
Of the Fine Arts Department., has brought
together an unr;valed collection of paint
ings and statlary by modern artists
The men VINO conceived the idea of a
Tennessee Centennial Exposition intend
ed merely to celebrate, in fitting man
ner the entrance Of Tennessee into the
Union of States, but the project meeting
at once with general appreciation, in
creased in power and scope and almost
imperceptiiy grew from a state to a
national affair, and thence into an inter-
national event of unusual magnitude.
The Exposition was intended solely to
chow to the world the vast resources of
the state and to show the treasures of
this rich land, whose very 'tstones are
iron and out of whose hills thou mayest
dig Brass Another and very important
feature at Nashville is that each of the
large buildings is sermon in stone. a
legend in architecture and posm in
white.
The principal buildings are as follows:
First, the Pathenon, as originally de-
signed and completed by Phidias ut
Athens; the Erechtheon. or History
building, will be the depository of
valuabls relics; the Commerce building,
known since the Worlds Fair in EXPOSE
tion parlance as the Manufacturers and
Liberal Arts building; the Education
and Hygiene building; Agriculture;
Transportation Negro building; Ma
chinery; Government building; tine
Woman's buildingi Minerals and For
estry, and Others of lesser note, nearly
30 in all.
The Machinery building is considered
one of the finest specimens of pure Greek
architecture In America. The Negro
building Is justly considered one of the
most attractive in the Exposition group,
and has commanding position on Lake
Matauga. 1t will show the progress of the
negro race in America from the old plan
tation days to the present. The Railway
Exhibits and Terminal Station is in the
Renaissance style of architecture, and is
100 feet square.
The midway Plaisanoe'' at Nashville
is called "Vanity Bair," and it has more
than the usual number of first class at
fractions.
In the list is tho Giant See-Saw, In
some respects an improvement on the
Ferris wheel. Sheet the Chute, German
Village, Chinese Village, Chinese ORA
gon Show. Cuban. Village. Cyolorama of
Gettysburg, Caboret du Meant. Edison's
Mirage, Vaudeville Theatre, the Casino,
Old Vienna and Others.