Woman's World's Fair
The first Woman's World's Fair was held in Chicago in 1925. The idea of the completely women-run fair was to display the progress of ideas, work, and products of twentieth-century women. Description. The first Women's World's Fair was held April 18–25 of 1925 in Chicago at the American Furniture Mart Building and officially opened by First Lady Grace Coolidge. The eight-day fair was the idea of Helen Bennett and Ruth Hanna McCormick. It was run entirely by women and consisted of 280 booths representing some seventy women occupations . The fair drew about 200,000 visitors, earning a net of some $50,000. The fair's purpose was to display women's ideas, work, and products for the twentieth century. At the 1876 Centennial Exposition there had been a Women's Pavilion funded and organized by women and in particular Elizabeth Duane Gillespie. The building was over and it was in the shape of a Maltese cross. The Chicago World's Fair of 1893 demonstrated some women's handicrafts in a sewing exhibit, but this fair was to show the progress women had made in seventy industries since then. A  side benefit of the fair was that it raised money for the women's Republican Party organizations. The exhibits showed women's accomplishments in the arts, literature, science, and industry. These exhibits were also an inspiration to young women in their new careers. One of the exhibitors was Illinois Bell Telephone Company. Others were newspapers, manufacturers, hospitals, banks, and retail stores. Many local enterprises had employment opportunities. Women lawyers, inventors, and artists had booths demonstrating women's contributions in these fields. As an example, American sculptor Harriet Whitney Frishmuth was represented by her 1920 bronze work "Joy of the Waters