The Time Capsule: Stanton - “Little White City” no more
On March 8, 1956, the article and photo were front-page center in Stanton’s newspaper. A milestone had been achieved. The last hold-out was no more.
Mrs. Wendla Milton had passed away some months earlier; her house went to a daughter, Margaret Lundgren, and Mrs. Lundgren’s sons painted the place. The news was that, for the first time, every home in town was white.
According to local history, the designation “Little White City” was bestowed by CB&Q railroaders in the 1920s. Passing through, they saw a clean, neat town, one in which most buildings were white.
The term was not original, and carried a meaning that went well beyond color. At the time, there were millions of adults with personal memories of the World’s Fair by which other fairs were measured—the great Columbian Exposition of 1893. There never was, or will be, another fair like it. One in four Americans attended (a remarkable percentage) and saw amazing exhibits in a stunning complex known as “The White City.” Those who went, including my grandmother and a good many others from this area, had the experience of a lifetime.
Situated on a part of 600 acres of parks on Chicago’s south side, the World Fair’s “White City” included more than 200 buildings, numerous pavilions and exotic gardens, all in creatively designed surroundings. The spectacle was so grand it inspired “The Emerald City” of “The Wizard of Oz.”
A large pool, called the “Central Basin,” represented the voyage of Columbus to the New World. Westinghouse illuminated streets and boulevards with a brilliant display of lights, the first of their kind many attendees had seen. There were culinary wonders—Juicy Fruit gum, Cream of Wheat cereal, and Pabst Blue Ribbon beer were among the products making their debut.
The “White City” included an Agricultural Building, a Women’s Building, a Liberal Arts Building; a structure was dedicated to machinery, another to inventions. Nikola Tesla demonstrated an array of electrical devices. Matilda Sissierita Joyner Jones drew thousands for her performances. (Ms. Jones sang for four consecutive U.S. presidents. An African-American, she was billed as “The Black Patti,” a comparison to the world-famous Italian opera singer, Adelina Patti.)
Visitors to “The White City” could spend days viewing fine art and towering statues or exploring the reproduction of an
enormous Egyptian temple from the time of the
pyramids.
The fair was a tribute to culture, a symbol of patriotism and the emerging concept of “American Exceptionalism.” Building design and architectural landscaping served as a model for city planners seeking ways to bring open spaces, parks, and elegant public buildings into crowded cities. The “City Beautiful Movement” followed, an era of renovations and rebuilding that greatly improved the aesthetics,
environmental quality and functionality of major U.S. cities—including Washington, D.C.
In the 1920s and ‘30s, being known as the “Little White City” was to be favorably compared to the utopian original—an original that embraced numerous colors and was so called only because “white” was descriptive of the bright, clean, crispness of the place.
Time passes and things change. Those who remembered the Columbian Exposition’s “White City” and the “City Beautiful” movement are no more. “American Exceptionalism” has withered, patriotism is not what it once was and history, much of it, is forgotten. Racial tensions have reached the point that expressions in no way racist are unacceptable because some might perceive otherwise.
There was not a front page article when decision makers chose to separate the town from the term, when internet references to “The White City” became phrased in the past tense, no pictures published when the “Little White City” sign was taken down.
During the recent Stanton Homecoming I heard a comment about this. A current resident’s reply was to the effect that the image was not appropriate and had to go.
If that’s how the community feels, there’s no debate. It does seem, though, that when a small, rural town is unwilling to defend a legacy of association with the “White City” of long ago, it’s probably time to think of another name for “The White House.”
Roy Marshall is a local historian and columnist for the Red Oak Express. He can be contacted at news@redoakexpress.com.