The Pan-American Exposition Buffalo, NY 1901
The Pan-American Exposition was held in Buffalo, NY from May 1 to November 2, 1901 on a 342 acre site between Delaware Park Lake on the south, the New York Central railroad tracks on the north, Delaware Avenue on the east, and Elmwood Avenue on the west. 

 

The fair featured the latest technologies, including electricity, and attracted nearly 8 million people. 

 

A midway provided rides and other entertainment; athletic events took place at a specially constructed stadium. 

 

The African, Eskimo and Mexican Villages were among the attractions. 

 

Some states as well as South and Central American countries had their own buildings. 

 

The Electric Tower was illuminated nightly by thousands of colored bulbs and floodlights. 

 

On September 6, President William McKinley was shot outside the Temple of Music. He died eight days later at the home of John Milburn on Delaware Avenue. Theodore Roosevelt was inaugurated President at the Wilcox House on September 14, 1901

 

The above information is from the web site of the Buffalo Free-Net Library

The Buffalo Police Department designed and issued unique uniforms and badges to be worn by officers assigned to the Exposition.

Pan-American Exposition Grounds, in Buffalo, NY 1901

Pan-American Exposition Map, in Buffalo, NY 1901

William McKinley, 25th president, Republican, was born on Jan. 29, 1843, in Niles, OH, the son of William and Nancy Allison McKinley. 

 

McKinley briefly attended Allegheny College. When the Civil War broke out in 1861, he enlisted and served for the duration. 

 

He rose to captain and in 1865 was made brevet major. 

 

After studying law in Albany, NY, he opened (1867) a law office in Canton, OH. 

 

He served twice in the U.S. House of Representatives (1877-83; 1885-91) and led the fight there for the McKinley Tariff, which was passed in 1890. However, he was not reelected to the House as a result. 

 

He served two terms (1892-96) as governor of Ohio. 

 

In 1896 he was elected president as a proponent of a protective tariff and sound money (gold standard), over William Jennings Bryan, the Democrat and a proponent of free silver. 

 

McKinley was reluctant to intervene in Cuba, but the loss of the battleship Maine at Havana crystallized opinion. He demanded Spain’s withdrawal from Cuba; Spain made some concessions, but Congress announced a state of war as of Apr. 21, 1898. 

 

He was reelected in the 1900 campaign, defeating Bryan’s anti-imperialist arguments with the promise of a "full dinner pail." McKinley was respected for his conciliatory nature and for his conservative stance on business issues. 

 

On Sept. 6, 1901, while welcoming citizens at the Pan-American Exposition, in Buffalo, NY, he was shot by Leon Czolgosz, an anarchist. He died Sept. 14.

 

The Assassination 

On the afternoon of September 6, 1901, at a public reception in Buffalo, New York, President McKinley was happily shaking hands with his many admirers. 

 

Suddenly a man walked up to the President with a handkerchief-covered revolver in his outstretched hand. Two shots rang out, striking McKinley at point-blank range. While being carried to an ambulance, he pleaded with police not to beat the assassin.

Eight days later McKinley died, and Vice President Theodore Roosevelt was sworn in as 26th president. 

 

The assassin, Leon F. Czolgosz, was an anarchist--one who rebels against governmental authority. 

 

He was speedily brought to trial and sentenced to death on September 26. Czolgosz was executed in the prison at Auburn, New York, on October 29. By Andrew Bryce Author, Narrative History of the United States

 

 

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