Golden Gate International Exposition
| EXPO San Francisco 1940 | |
|---|---|
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A map of the Exposition
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| Overview | |
| BIE-class | Universal exposition |
| Name | Golden Gate International Exposition |
| Area | 160 hectares (400 acres) |
| Location | |
| Country | United States |
| City | San Francisco |
| Venue | Treasure Island |
| Coordinates | 37°49′27″N 122°22′16″W / 37.8242°N 122.3710°WCoordinates: 37°49′27″N 122°22′16″W / 37.8242°N 122.3710°W |
| Timeline | |
| Opening | February 18, 1939 |
| Closure | September 29, 1940 |
| Universal expositions | |
| Previous | 1939 New York World's Fair in New York City |
| Next | Exposição do Mundo Português (1940) in Lisbon |
The Golden Gate International Exposition (GGIE) (1939 and 1940), held at San Francisco's Treasure Island, was a World's Fair celebrating, among other things, the city's two newly built bridges. The San Francisco–Oakland Bay Bridge opened in 1936 and the Golden Gate Bridge in 1937. The exposition opened from February 18, 1939, through October 29, 1939, and from May 25, 1940, through September 29, 1940.
Treasure Island, a flat, geometrically-shaped, artificial island attached to Yerba Buena Island, was built for the Exposition near where the Oakland span and the San Francisco span of the Bay Bridge join. Built by the federal government, Treasure Island was to be an airport for Pan American's transpacific flying boats, like the China Clipper. Due to wartime needs, it was turned into a naval base used by the US Navy from 1941 to 1997.
During the Expo in 1939, Master carver John Wallace (Haida) demonstrated the art of carving totem poles for visitors.
The theme of the exposition was "Pageant of the Pacific", as it showcased the goods of nations bordering the Pacific Ocean. The theme was physically symbolized by "The Tower of the Sun" and a giant, 80-foot statue of Pacifica, goddess of the Pacific ocean.
As the boundaries of human intercourse are widened by giant strides of trade and travel, it is of vital import that the bonds of human understanding be maintained, enlarged and strengthened rapidly. Unity of the Pacific nations is America's concern and responsibility; their onward progress deserves now a recognition that will be a stimulus as well.
Washington is remote from the Pacific. San Francisco stands at the doorway to the sea that roars upon the shores of all these nations, and so to the Golden Gate International Exposition I gladly entrust a solemn duty. May this, America's World's Fair on the Pacific in 1939, truly serve all nations in symbolizing their destinies, one with every other, through the ages to come.
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