Giant wheel
The very first Ferris wheel was erected at the World’s Columbian Exposition, which was held in Chicago in 1893 to commemorate the 400th anniversary of Columbus’ landing in America. George Ferris had to use all his powers of persuasion to get permission from the directors of the fair to erect the wheel. The directors thought it was a wild idea that would fail and give the fair a bad name. But at the same time they wanted to showcase a feat of engineering or architecture that would rival the Eiffel Tower, which was built for the World’s Fair of 1889, in Paris. So finally Ferris got the nod.
As it turned out, the giant wheel became the chief attraction of the fair. From the day of its inauguration on 21 June 1893, the rich and the famous and dignitaries from all walks of life queued up patiently each evening for the thrill and the privilege of being wheeled high into the air (the wheel had a diameter of 76 metres) for a breathtaking view of the city below. The wheel had 36 cars and each of them could seat 60 people, so there were 2,160 riders at any given time. While the women squealed and sometimes screamed in terror as the wheel slowly began its rotation, the men puffed at cigars and sipped champagne to cover their nervousness. But to Ferris’ credit, the wheel never gave any trouble and no one was ever hurt. It worked flawlessly till the end of the fair in November, raking in huge profits for all those associated with it.
Today, no country fair is complete without a Ferris wheel or a ‘giant wheel’ as we call it in India.
