FDR Opening the Fair

On April 30th 1939 three months before World War II broke out the New York World Fair opened. It was all about the bright future that awaited the world. Unfortunately millions would never live to see that bright future.

On April 30th President Roosevelt officially opened the New York World Fair, in Flushing Meadow, New York. The World’s Fair, which had been under construction for three years, was a testament to Americans’ hope for the future. A key section of the fair was named: “The World of Tomorrow”. The fair displayed a vision of the future (predicted to take place in the 1960’s), which projected the limitless power of technology. At the center of the “Tomorrowland” was the Trylon that extended 700 feet into the air. Next to Trylon, was the Perisphere, the largest perfect sphere. The Trylon was home to the two longest escalators in the world. These escalators took visitors across a bridge to the Perisphere. From there, they could see a model of the perfect city of the future– “Democracity”.  Even more impressive was “Futurama”, an exhibit by General Motors. “Futurama” was a model city, built at the cost of $7 million. It included 500,000 buildings, and 50,000 cars, (10,000 of which were moving). The other key section in the “World of Tomorrow” was “The Court of Peace”. The Court of Peace was an area where different nations built lavish buildings. All of the major nations of the world were represented– with the exception of China, Spain and Germany.  Czechoslovakia and Albania, (two countries that had already been occupied by the time the fair started) flew their flags at half mask. Within a few months of its opening, the Polish flag would join those of Czechoslovakia and Albania.