World’s FairsFound, not built?
FairsPortland 1905
Lewis and Clark Centennial Exposition
1 Clue

Photo: International Stereograph Co., copyrighted by C.L. Wasson · Public domain · via Library of Congress via Wikimedia Commons

1905 · Portland, United States

Lewis and Clark Centennial Exposition

On the globe
See full fair gallery (6)
Investigate this fair · 5 cluesPortland's Forestry Building logs point to an old-growth scale of timber, and the filled lake and the 1964 fire left little to check.Open the case file →
Dates
1 Jun – 15 Oct 1905
Site
Guild's Lake, northwest Portland
Declared purpose
A fair marking 100 years since the Lewis and Clark expedition, and promoting trade across the Pacific.
Fate
The Forestry Building, a giant log hall, stood until it burned on 17 Aug 1964. The lake was filled in for industry.

Hidden history

Found, Not Built

A white city around a lake, then the lake itself disappears under fill. What the photos show is a 'log cabin' with columns of whole trees that are hard to imagine anyone felling today.

  1. Giant logs

    The Forestry Building used whole old-growth logs several feet thick. Researchers ask where trees that size came from and how they were raised.

  2. A lake filled in

    After the fair, Guild's Lake was filled and built over for industry. The question: what lies under the fill?

  3. Burned in 1964

    The one big survivor burned in a single night, like so many others in this app.

Questions worth asking

  • How were logs that size moved and stood up in 1905?
  • Why fill in the lake the fair was built around?
  • What do the 1905 photos show at the edges of the grounds?

Possible original uses

  • A meeting or trade hall
  • A lakeside resort
  • A timber or forestry centre

Clues in the photos

ScaleLogs several feet acrossWhere did trees that size come from, and how were they moved and raised with 1905 equipment?Other detailsThe lake at nightWhy fill in the lake the fair was built around, and what lies under the fill?Other detailsBurned in 1964Why do so many of the survivors end in fire?Other detailsA plan printed before the openingDo the plans match what was built, and are the plans for the big palaces as easy to find?Other detailsA balloon at the entranceWhat do the edges of the grounds show, and what was there before 1905?

The buildings

Tap a building for its photos and credits.

  • Lost building page ›
  • Lost building page ›
  • Lost building page ›

Further viewing

Episodes from My Lunch Break (Michael Kruse), the main lens for this app. They open on YouTube.