The World's Fair Forestry Fiasco
Grays Harbor lumbermen express outrage over the state's 'shabby' display at the Chicago World's Fair, claiming their industry was ignored and misrepresented.
The story, cleaned up
A cleaned-up reading of the newspaper page: spelling and layout repaired, one story lifted off a crowded page. It follows the original closely but it is not a transcription. The original page is below; read it if a detail matters.
To the Editor: I have noted with a good deal of interest the reports in the Post-Intelligencer from those who have visited the World's Fair. While these reports flatter our farm products and fruits, they all deprecate the meager and shabby showing in our forestry exhibit. To the lumberman in this section, this comes as a surprise and an evidence of bad faith on the part of those who solicited donations of timber from us. In all probability, Chehalis County donated as much or more lumber than any other county for the construction of Washington's building. The lumbermen responded enthusiastically. Now, we had a right to expect a full, complete, and comprehensive exhibit of our forest products. A gentleman who recently returned from Chicago told me he saw a teredo-eaten pile on exhibition. I did not learn if it was in the forestry or fisheries exhibit, or if it was labeled as a species of shellfish that infests Puget Sound. When asked if the teredo was found in Grays Harbor, the person in charge claimed they were, to which a bystander retorted: 'I know a d— sight better. They are not!' I relate this as a sample of how we are getting represented. — A Gray's Harbor Lumberman
“I did not learn whether it was in the forestry or fisheries exhibit... Of what earthly good the exhibit of that shell-encumbered pile can be is not apparent at this distance.”
This 1893 grievance highlights the historical tension between local industry and the state government's boosterism. Just as those lumbermen felt their regional identity was sacrificed for a generic 'Washington' brand in Chicago, modern resource-dependent communities often struggle to ensure their specific economic realities are accurately reflected in state policy and marketing.
From readers
No comments yet. If you know something about this story — a correction, a family memory, a source — it belongs here.