Armstrong Goes to the (World’s) Fair, An Addendum

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Armstrong Goes to the (World’s) Fair, An Addendum

Posted on July 16, 2021July 16, 2021 by Dr. James McMahon

The 1915 Panama-Pacific International Exposition & 1929 Ibero-American Exposition

My name is James McMahon and I am a project archivist for LancasterHistory. My responsibilities include cataloguing and digitizing a vast collection of archival materials that document the significant role of the cork industry in the local economy. Recently, I wrote two blogs documenting Armstrong’s participation in three different twentieth century world’s fairs—the 1939 New York World’s Fair, 1939 Golden Gate Exposition held at San Francisco’s Treasure Island, and 1964 New York World’s Fair. As so often happens when working with a large collection of photographs and documents, I have since discovered that Armstrong also participated in two earlier twentieth century fairs – the 1915 Panama-Pacific International Exposition and the 1929-1930 Ibero-American Exposition – and that in each instance, Armstrong came away with honors for their work!

Click on any of the photographs below to view an enlarged image.

Historic photo of the Armstrong Cork Company's exhibit display. The grand prize banner is next to the title of the exhibit. Armstrong won grand prize for cork and cork specialties, heat insulating materials, and linoleum in 1915. — *Grand Prize banner for Cork and Cork Specialties, Heat Insulating Materials, and Linoleum, 1915. LancasterHistory, Armstrong Archive.*

Historic photograph of a certificate acknowledging Armstrong Cork Company as the recipient of a gold medal for its linoleum exhibit in 1930. The certificate is very decorative, with lots of illustrated flourishes and illustrations of buildings and landscapes. — *Certificate acknowledging Armstrong Cork Company as the recipient of a gold medal for its linoleum exhibit, 1930. LancasterHistory, Armstrong Archive.*

The 1915 Panama-Pacific International Exposition

An official World’s Fair as designated by the Bureau of International Expositions (BIE), the Panama-Pacific International Exposition was held in San Francisco between February 20 and December 4, 1915. The fair celebrated the completion of the Panama Canal less than a year earlier and the successful reconstruction of the city of San Francisco following the devastating earthquake of 1906. As with all world’s fairs, the event celebrated scientific and technological advancement. Over 18 million people visited the fair.

The Armstrong Cork Company pavilion highlighted cork and cork-based products and included examples of insulating board and other insulating materials, models, packaging closures, and gaskets, linoleum and related flooring materials and an actual cork tree. The floor of the pavilion was laid with Armstrong’s Linotile, “The Floor That’s Built to Fit the Room.” The exhibit also featured a variety of photographs showing the growing, harvesting and processing of cork from corkwood trees grown in the Mediterranean area, primarily from Spain.

A historic image of the Armstrong Pavilion . The pavilion features a latticed roof, looking almost like a gazebo or lattice, with columns surrounding it. Inside are display boards and display materials. — *The Armstrong pavilion noted the location of the company as Pittsburgh. The company moved its headquarters from Pittsburgh to Lancaster in 1929. LancasterHistory, Armstrong Archive.*

A historic photograph of the interior of the Armstrong Pavilion. Ionic columns flank the entrance with a sign saying "Armstrong Cork Company, Pittsburgh, PA." The interior features different displays and wood furnishings. — *The interior of the Armstrong pavilion with corkwood tree in foreground, flooring examples to the right, and insulating materials to the left. LancasterHistory, Armstrong Archive.*

A historic photograph of the Armstrong Pavilion. This photo shows numerous items on display. In the background is a large structure that almost looks like a bookcase but is in fact a model of the interior of a "typical cold storage plant." This is so Armstrong can show how nonpareil-heat insulating materials are used. — *The interior of the Armstrong pavilion showing the insulation properties of Armstrong materials. LancasterHistory, Armstrong Archive.*

The 1929 Ibero-American Exposition

An official World’s Fair as designated by the Bureau of International Expositions (BIE), the Ibero-American Exposition was held in Seville, Spain from May 9, 1929 until June 21, 1930. The fair highlighted the historical ties between Spain and many countries of the world and sought to improve relations between Spain and all countries in attendance. By 1929, Armstrong already had a long association with the city of Seville. Beginning in the late nineteenth century, Armstrong used the city as a base of operation for purchasing, processing, and shipping cork. By the time of the exposition, Armstrong had offices, warehouses, and specialized manufacturing facilities in Seville.

A historic photo of a Seville factory processing cork. Uniformed men are standing at raised, wooden stations with large grinding wheels. Large glass windows in the background illuminate the space. — *Processing cork in the Seville factory, circa 1930s. LancasterHistory, Armstrong Archive.*

A historic photograph that shows workers paused at work baling cork in a Seville factory. Interior has a tall, wooden roof with many supporting columns. On the right side of the picture, cork lays baled in piles many feet tall. — *Baling cork in the Seville factory, circa 1930s. LancasterHistory, Armstrong Archive.*

A historic photograph of a ship at dock loading cork from the Seville pier. — *Loading cork for shipment from the Seville pier, circa 1930s. LancasterHistory, Armstrong Archive.*

From Archives Blog

The 1915 Panama-Pacific International Exposition & 1929 Ibero-American Exposition

The 1915 Panama-Pacific International Exposition

The 1929 Ibero-American Exposition

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