The Cuban Villages was in the Amusement Zone along with Florida, and was an authentic recreation of a village from Cuba complete with the Yanego rites dance performed by native Cubans. There was also an exact replica of “Sloppy Joe’s” famous Havana Bar.

Visit the Cuban Village at on the 1939 NY World’s Fair web site.

If you have anything you would like to contribute to the site, contact me.

I found a couple of interesting things about he map. First, it was printed on the back of Orange County official stationery and second, the phone number for the Chamber is 537 … yup, that it, just 3 digits. I don’t imagine that the number works anymore.

You will find more details and photos of the map in the Misc section of the NY World’s Fair web site. I have also made a full-size copy of the map which is available as a PDF download for those of you who like to collect World’s Fair ephemera.

I imagine that many organization and groups produced maps to the Fair but most of the simpler maps like this one have not survived the passage of time. They weren’t meant to last, only to be used and then discarded, which makes this one a real treasure.

Many thanks to Laura and all those who find it in their hearts to send me items like this so I can share it with you.

View a larger image on the 1939 New York World’s Fair Web site.

If you have any ideas as to who they are, what was the occasion, or when it wast taken, please let me know by using the “Contact” link above.

From what I can tell, the Trylon and Perisphere is obvious, in the center in front of the Perisphere is the Gas Industries pavilion. To the far right is the RCA tower. Between the tower and the Gas building is the stature of “The Spirit of Electricty” on top of AT & T Pavilion.

I believe that in front of the Trylon is the back of the Home Building Center, and the houses in the foreground lie outside of the Fair.

Visit the “A Different View” web page for a larger image.

Many thanks to all the people who have submitted photos and stories about the Fair during 2011.

Merry Christmas to all.

“My dad, Elgin Fremont Worthen, had a booth on sound and stereo at the Fair. Word had it that Motorola wanted him to go work for them in Chicago, and my mother wouldn’t budge. That was an argument I’d hear for many years. He later had the first TV (Worthen Labs then) in the State of NH, zooming it up from Channel 4 in Boston. I had corrected both the NH, Manchester Union Leader newspaper, and our local Channel 9, WMUR-TV. For they were NOT the first to have tv here. The Worthen history goes back on our side to the Revolutionary War. My dad was an electronic engineer, and our Ancestor Major Ezekiel Worthen was also an engineer, back before the Revolution broke out.”

I would like to find more information about EF Worthen and Worthen Labs. We are not even sure which pavilion house the booth at the Fair, so you know anything about the man or the Lab, please contact me. I think this would be an interesting addition to the web site. and a wonder bit of American Fair History.

David has allowed me to add his collection to the 1939 New York World’s Fair site in the WF Photos for Sale section  Gallery 7 and Gallery 8.

Visit the Galleries where you will find a link to David’s site where you can purchase the photos in a variety of sizes and formats … including Canvas Prints, Framed Prints, Acrylic Prints, Art Prints, and Greeting Cards.

David Halperin is an internationally recognized photographer, journalist/editor and mixed-media producer. His work has covered a wide range of subjects and media outlets. Photos (and written copy) have appeared in magazines and newspapers, in audiovisual and multimedia presentations, on record covers, and in press releases, public relations campaigns and advertisements.

During the next few weeks, I will incorporate some of David’s Fair photographs into the Tour Pages of the World’s Fair.

Visit David Halperin’s Photography – Media Workshop web site to view additional works.

Wishing everyone a Merry Christmas & A Happy New Year

Our first addition is from Washington High School submitted by Doug Chapman, Sioux Falls, SD.

To read more about the letter visit the “Odds and Ends” page on the web site.

Do you have something you’d like to have added to the web site? Contact me

The label on the reverse side indicates: Buckingham Royal Red Color No. B 951.

Read about King George and Queen Elizabeth’s visit to the Fair on the website, written by Fair Historian, Mr. David Cope.

What a cleaver idea, let visitors take home a piece of history and recover some of the cost of the celebration.

If you have items or stories from the 1939 NY World’s Fair and would like to tell others, contact me and I’ll blog about it and add it to the web site.

Fountain of the Atom by Wayland de Santis Gregory, in the Community Interests Zone
The Hunter by Elfriede Abbe, Communications & Business Zone
The Runner & The Stone Cutter by Joseph E. Renier, Communications & Business Zone
The Crest by Brenda Putnam, Production & Distribution Zone
The Astronomer by Carl Willes, Theme Center
Spirit of Florida by George Etienne Ganiere, Amusement Zone
Sea Maid by Raymond Barger, Food Zone

I am looking for the photos of Fire, Air, and Water that were part of the Fountain of the Atom. If you have them and will share digital copies, please contact me.

This makes a total of 36 of the Fair statues on the site. There are more and as I receive photos of them, they will be added.

A quote from the Biblion home page: “… Experience documents, images, films, audio, and essays directly from the collections — and explore not only what the Fair teaches us about the past, but also the future…”

For all of us who enjoy the ’39-’40 Fair this is a wonderful addition to the information available on the Web. Thank you NYPL!