An established lawn and potted palms
The Administration Building stands over a lawn that looks established, with palms in tubs at the base.
The questionWas the ground freshly made, or already settled?
Investigate · Chicago 1893
Administration Building — Official Views Of The World's Columbian Exposition — 23
1 clue in this photo
Photo: C. D. Arnold (1844-1927); H. D. Higinbotham · Public domain · via Wikimedia Commons
Same kind of clue, elsewhere
Dark streaks on the surviving corniceHow long does weathering like this take, and does any of it predate 1876?
Mature trees on a former swampHow do you get a mature woodland on a swamp in two years?
A weathered grotto overgrown with vinesHow does a grotto look this overgrown at a fair that had just opened?
Young, thin trees: a contrary detailIf the planting was new, was the ground new too, or was an older site cleared and replanted?
Mature trees around the survivorWas the park landscape older than the fair, and was the building too?
Full canopy along the Grand BasinHow many mature trees were moved, and from where?