Panama–Pacific International Exposition

Native American culture was a topic of interest during the nine-month-long exposition with multiple attractions dedicated to Native American life. The most popular attraction at the exposition that depicted Native American life is James Earle Fraser's statue, The End of the Trail.[7] Fraser's statue, which showed a Native American man slumped over on a horse, reflected the American idea at the time, that the Native American race was doomed for extinction. The exposition not only celebrated the completion of the Panama Canal, but also advances made by the American people, part of which were the conquests of indigenous people by Americans as well as Europeans.[8] These celebrations over the Native community, can be seen through artworks such as The End of the Trail and The Pioneer or tributes to Francisco Pizarro and Hernán Cortés.[7] In comparison to previous world fairs, the Panama–Pacific International Exposition showcased Native Americans more as nobles rather than savage people, but who were still inevitably destined to become extinct. These ideas were presented in plays, known as pageants, where Native Americans played small roles such as in “Catalonian dragoons, muleteers, and a tribe of Carmel Indians.”[8] While the demise of Native American people was a rhetoric created by fair organizers,scholars have argued that in reality, the Native persona was very present and did not reflect the idea that it was a disappearing civilization. Indians were in fact part of the fair, but attended as visitors, performers, and workers.[8] More recently, scholars have focused on Native representation in San Francisco's 1915 rival world fair, San Diego's 1915 Panama-California Exposition, that showed Native American life in a more anthropological light versus this American ideal.[9]

During the Panama–Pacific International Exposition women were in charge of their own board, known as the Woman's Board of San Francisco's Panama–Pacific International Exposition.[10] The board, also called the Boards of Lady Managers, allowed women to take part in organizing different aspects of the fair and more importantly gave them the opportunity to have a campaigning platform for discussing women's rights and social issues. It was commonly argued that the fair celebrated male dominance over women by not providing a building for women.[10] Also, men and women were depicted differently in artworks advertising the exposition. White women, specifically, were presented as caretakers while men as strong and powerful saviors, such as in the poster “13th Labor of Hercules.”[10]

Pioneer Mother (Charles Grafly)

At the time, there was an idea of a “New Woman” who was more progressive and advanced intellectually as well as sexually.[10] This idea of a “New Woman” related to the overarching theme of the fair, modernity and progress. In efforts to promote the fair and safety of the city, fair organizers used the “New Woman” as an advertising tactic and proof that San Francisco was an evolving and safe environment for tourists.[10] During the fair, women could be seen posing with agriculture from around the state in celebration of California's produce. All the women were young, beautiful white women who were often the highlight of newspaper articles and events. This use of women presented the idea that they were only useful for their beauty but failed to appreciate their intellectual capacity and physical abilities.[10]

One of the most memorable achievements of the Women's Board was the installation of statues that celebrated women, specifically mothers, known as the Pioneer Mother.[11][12][13][14]^:148;151 [15]

Constructed from temporary materials (primarily staff, a combination of plaster and burlap fiber), almost all the fair's various buildings and attractions were pulled down in late 1915. Intended to fall into pieces at the close of the fair (reportedly because the architect believed every great city needed ruins), the only presently-surviving building on the Exposition grounds, Bernard Maybeck's Palace of Fine Arts, remained in place, slowly falling into disrepair.[16] The hall, used to display painting and sculpture during the Fair, was repurposed as a garage for jeeps during World War II.[1] The Palace, including the colonnade with its signature weeping women and rotunda dome, was completely reconstructed in the 1960s and a seismic retrofit was completed in early 2009. The Exploratorium, an interactive science museum, occupied the northern 2/3 of the Palace from 1969 to 2013; the city-owned Palace of Fine Arts Theater, has occupied the southern 1/3 since 1970.

Several other buildings were saved immediately following the Exposition, including the California, Missouri, and Philippine buildings, which were built on government land.[17]

A panorama of the Palace of Fine Arts c.1919. The current building was rebuilt in the 1960s, and then seismically retrofitted after damage from 1989's Loma Prieta earthquake, and again in 2009.

Buildings from the Exposition that still stand today (other than the Palace of Fine Arts) include what is now called the Bill Graham Civic Auditorium at Civic Center Plaza and the Japanese Tea house, which was barged down the Bay to Belmont, California and operated successively as a private residence, speakeasy, and restaurant.[18] In 2020, the present owners of the restaurant retired during the COVID-19 pandemic.[19]

Also surviving are the one-third scale steam locomotives of the Overfair Railroad that operated at the Exposition. They are maintained in working order at the Swanton Pacific Railroad Society located on Cal Poly San Luis Obispo's Swanton Ranch just north of Santa Cruz.[20][21]

The Legion of Honor Museum, in Lincoln Park, was the gift of Alma de Bretteville Spreckels, wife of the sugar magnate and thoroughbred racehorse owner/breeder Adolph B. Spreckels.[22] The building is a full-scale replica of the French Pavilion from the 1915 Panama Pacific International Exposition, which in turn was a three-quarter-scale version of the Palais de la Légion d'Honneur also known as the Hôtel de Salm in Paris by George Applegarth and H. Guillaume. At the close of the exposition, the French government granted Spreckels permission to construct a permanent replica of the French Pavilion, but World War I delayed the groundbreaking until 1921.[23]

The warehouse for the exposition was moved to Fort Hunter Liggett in South Monterey County and the structure, nicknamed the "Tin Barn", has served as the base fire department for the last 30 years. After its move, it initially served as a horse barn, and since then, it has served as a gym, PX and a movie theater for the base.[24][25]

In 2015, the California Historical Society, the Maybeck Foundation, and Innovation Hangar will partner with the City and County of San Francisco to commemorate the centennial of the transformative 1915 Panama Pacific International Exposition.[29]

On June 20, 2015 a commemorative orchestra, chorus and band concert was held at the Palace of Fine Arts to celebrate the 100th anniversary of the fair.

A feature film, When the World Came to San Francisco, which tells the story of the fair, was made by writer and director R. Christian Anderson. It was part of the city's official centennial celebration sanctioned by the California Historical Society. The film had its world premiere at the de Young Fine Arts Museum in Golden Gate Park on October 30, 2015.[30]

• Laura A. Ackley, "San Francisco's Jewel City: The Panama-Pacific International Exposition of 1915." Berkeley, CA: Heyday, 2014.
• Lee Bruno, "Panorama: Tales from San Francisco's 1915 Pan-Pacific International Exposition." Petaluma, CA: Cameron+Company, 2014.
• Abigail M. Markwyn, "Empress San Francisco: The Pacific Rim, the Great West, and California at the Panama-Pacific International Exposition." Lincoln, NE: University of Nebraska Press, 2014.
• Sarah J. Moore, Empire on Display: San Francisco's Panama-Pacific International Exposition of 1915. Norman, OK: University of Oklahoma Press, 2013.