Every year, millions of people around the world head to Disneyland, Universal Studios, and other theme parks to see the sights and experience the rides. It’s easy to think that these theme parks are a product of recent times, but they actually have a long and impressive history!
For centuries, traveling fairs went from city to city to entertain people with acrobats, musicians, puppet shows, and more. In Europe, public “pleasure gardens” were created as a place for people to walk around and enjoy various kinds of performances. In 1791, the first World’s Fair, organized in Prague, would combine these two traditions in Europe. Later, the first official World Expowould be held in London’s Hyde Park.
These fun and educationalexhibitions attracted crowds from all over the world to come and admire new inventionsand artisticdisplays. The Ferris wheel was one of these inventions; it first appeared at the Chicago World’s Fair in 1893.
In the late 1800s and early 1900s, the United States’economygrew rapidly thanks to the Industrial Revolution. Americans were earning more and more money and had more free time to spend it. This led to permanent amusement parks, which could provide entertainment throughout the whole year.
