On September 18th 1876, 1,300 citizens of Milton visited the Centennial in Philadelphia Seven hundred left on the P.&E.R.R, and six hundred on the P.R.E.
Danville however, ended up with the largest souvenir from the 6 month long celebration. A train station that had been built to accommodate the large Centennial crowds in Philadelphia in 1876, today stands in Danville Pa. It was dismantled after the end of the centennial, and rebuilt at 502 Railroad St, Danville Pa. (The Please Touch Museum in Philadelphia PA is another remaining buildings from that 1876 celebration - most of which were torn down shortly after the event.)
The centennial, the anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence, was the first official World's Fair to be held in the United States. The even, held in Fairmount Park in Philadelphia, was six months long, lasting from May 10 to November 10th.
Officially named the International Exhibition of Arts, Manufactures, and Products of the Soil and Mine, it is considered the 7th World's Fair.
Nearly 10 million visitors attended the exposition.
The average daily salary of an American worker in 1876 was $1.21. Most workers worked 10 hour days, 6 days a week. The centennial was not open on Sundays, nor in the evenings, so many of those attending would have to miss work to attend.
Train fare from Williamsport was around $5, from Lewisburg, it was around $7.00
Most of the hotels charged from $2.50 to $5.00 per day. The higher rates usually reflected the "American plan", which included four meals per day: "breakfast, dinner, tea, and supper."
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| The Lewisburg Chronicle, Nov. 1876 |
Hi Heather, I'm researching the buildings of the Philadelphia Centennial Exhibition and was interested to find your post. I've seen the attribution that the Danville Reading RR Station was from the Centennial, but it remains something of a mystery as I have found no actual photos of it in Philadelphia. There is a sketch of the Reading Centennial Station that was published in a guidebook of the exhibition that shows a building of similar dimensions but somewhat different architectural details to the Danville Station. However it seems not to be unusual for these guidebooks to have published preliminary sketches. I am curious whether you have heard any local information corroborating the Danville Station having been the Reading Centennial Station?
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