The Crystal Palace Barracks in London, Ontario

London, Ontario

London is a city in Southwestern Ontario, Canada, situated along the Quebec City – Windsor Corridor. The city has a population of 352,395, and the metropolitan area has a population of 457,720, according to the 2006 Canadian census; the metro population in 2009 was estimated at 489,274. The city...

 was the site of the Provincial Exhibition in 1861. The site was chosen at the north end of the military garrison grounds at Wellington Street and Central Avenue. In 1867, the military built an octagonal Crystal Palace, an eight sided white brick building containing eight doors, one on each side. Forty-eight window

Window

A window is a transparent or translucent opening in a wall or door that allows the passage of light and, if not closed or sealed, air and sound. Windows are usually glazed or covered in some other transparent or translucent material like float glass. Windows are held in place by frames, which...

s sided the second floor of the building

Building

In architecture, construction, engineering, real estate development and technology the word building may refer to one of the following:...

.
In 1887, the Western Fair

Western Fair

The Western Fair is a fair held annually in London, Ontario, Canada in early September.The first Western Fair was held in September 1868 in downtown London, northeast of the current location of Victoria Park. Organizers had hoped to use the Crystal Palace Barracks as the main exhibition area...

 moved to its present location at Queen's Park. George Durand, in a competition

Competition

Competition is a contest between individuals, groups, animals, etc. for territory, a niche, or a location of resources. It arises whenever two and only two strive for a goal which cannot be shared. Competition occurs naturally between living organisms which co-exist in the same environment. For...

, won the design

Design

Design as a noun informally refers to a plan or convention for the construction of an object or a system while “to design” refers to making this plan...

 for the new Main Exhibition Building, also known as the Crystal Palace. It borrowed many design features of Joseph Paxton

Joseph Paxton

Sir Joseph Paxton was an English gardener and architect, best known for designing The Crystal Palace.-Early life:...

's Crystal Palace in London

London

London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...

, England

England

England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...

. It featured thirteen high circular arches

Arches

-Places:* Arches National Park in the U.S. state of Utah* Arches, Cantal, a commune of the Cantal département, in France* Arches, Vosges, a commune of the Vosges département, in France-Other:* Arches of the foot...

 and massive windows. At the same time, the Fair Board authorized the construction of one half mile of race track

Race track

A race track is a purpose-built facility for racing of animals , automobiles, motorcycles or athletes. A race track may also feature grandstands or concourses. Some motorsport tracks are called speedways.A racetrack is a permanent facility or building...

.
The Crystal Palace was painted in two shades of terra cotta

Terra cotta

Terracotta, Terra cotta or Terra-cotta is a clay-based unglazed ceramic, although the term can also be applied to glazed ceramics where the fired body is porous and red in color...

 and trimmed in green

Green

Green is a color, the perception of which is evoked by light having a spectrum dominated by energy with a wavelength of roughly 520–570 nanometres. In the subtractive color system, it is not a primary color, but is created out of a mixture of yellow and blue, or yellow and cyan; it is considered...

, brown

Brown

Brown is a color term, denoting a range of composite colors produced by a mixture of orange, red, rose, or yellow with black or gray. The term is from Old English brún, in origin for any dusky or dark shade of color....

, and red

Red

Red is any of a number of similar colors evoked by light consisting predominantly of the longest wavelengths of light discernible by the human eye, in the wavelength range of roughly 630–740 nm. Longer wavelengths than this are called infrared , and cannot be seen by the naked eye...

. The Fair Board felt the building symbolized industry

Industry

Industry refers to the production of an economic good or service within an economy.-Industrial sectors:There are four key industrial economic sectors: the primary sector, largely raw material extraction industries such as mining and farming; the secondary sector, involving refining, construction,...

and progress. The Western Fair Crystal Palace burned to the ground in January 1927. It was replaced with a red brick Confederation Building.

External links

• WFA Official website
• A Celebration of Excellence: The history of the Western Fair Inge Sanmiya WFA

2000 ISBN 0-9687675-0-8