A Revolver at the Fair: Oregon's Superintendent Holds Off the A.-Y.-P. Guards
When exposition officials tried to put a refreshment booth on Oregon's lawn, the Oregon building superintendent met them with a revolver and 35 men in reserve.
Seattle — Armed with a revolver and with 35 men held in reserve, F. J. Smith, superintendent of the Oregon building at the A.-Y.-P. Exposition last week stood off the workmen sent by Frank P. Allen, Jr., director of works at the exposition, to place a selling booth on the lawn in front of that building. Director of Works Allen has planned to place 100 booths about the grounds, where refreshments may be sold. Among the locations selected were four sites on the lawn at the Oregon building. When it was learned that the Oregon commission refused to allow the booths on the ground under its control, Director Allen threatened to use the exposition guards to enforce his orders.
“Armed with a revolver and with 35 men held in reserve...”
The Alaska-Yukon-Pacific Exposition was Seattle's booster showcase, built to sell the city to the world. The armed standoff over a refreshment booth is a reminder that civic spectacle is also a fight over turf, revenue, and who gets to control public space.
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