Subject: Columbian Exposition hemp (1892)
Sent: 01/20 10:57 AM
Received: 01/20 10:02 PM
From: Eric Skidmore, 104413.3573@compuserve.com
To: Karpinski, Len, anc4hemp@alaska.net

Did you know that industrial hemp was used as a building material in the
1892-3 Columbian World's Exposition held in Chicago? This was reported in
an article in the 1993 "Old Farmer's Almanac," written by Jamie Kageleiry
called "One Day at the Chicago World's Fair." On page 166 we read, "David
Burnham, [chairman of the fair] ...had decreed that all buildings in his
envisioned city be made of dazzling white artificial marble (called staff,
it was a mixture of plaster of Paris and hemp) and that all cornice heights
be exactly the same."


To my knowledge this is one of the first examples of hemp being used as a
building material in the United States. If anyone can dig up any more
information on this it would be appreciated.

Was this staff material 'true' hemp or the common misuse of the generic
term of the time to include manila, sisal, jute, etc??


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