|
Among the 13 million visitors
to the Wisconsin Pavilion during the two year run of the New
York World's Fair was Ivan C. Wilcox, a blacksmith from the small
southwestern Wisconsin farming community of Boscobel. Mr. Wilcox was impressed with
the Fair and liked the Wisconsin Pavilion. Inquiring what was
to become of the structure at the close of the Fair, he was told
the state planned to demolish the Pavilion and sell it for scrap.
Mr. Wilcox was interested
in purchasing the U-shaped exhibition building thinking it would
make an excellent workshop. He was told that that portion of
the exhibition building had already been sold but the Tee-pee
shaped Rotunda was still available.
At the close of the Fair Wilcox offered the state a certified check for $5000.00 to buy the Rotunda structure and the state accepted the offer. Before union clearance problems could arise, his crew (including members of his family) had dismantled the Rotunda and had it on four flatbed trucks en route to Boscobel. Only 80 miles from Boscobel, the flatbed carrying
the blue and gold glass panels that formed the giant "W"
at the top of the Rotunda hit the underside of an overpass on
the outskirts of Madison, Wisconsin and broke off the top 12"
of every glass panel! Wilcox had to replace all of the glass
prior to any reconstruction! By the time he got the pavilion
home his total cost had risen to $12,000.00.
However he was confident
that local support could be found in Boscobel to re-erect the
pavilion and use it as a tourist attraction for the area. That
local support never materialized and Wilcox was left holding
the bag containing a white elephant World's Fair pavilion and
$12,000.00 in expenses!
Wilcox put the pavilion
up for sale with the condition that the structure had to remain
in Wisconsin in its entirety. He eventually turned down several
offers to purchase parts of the pavilion including one for $8,000.00
for the mosaic tile and Indian inscription legends surrounding
the base of the Rotunda.
Central Wisconsin Broadcasting
gets a new home
Finally, in 1966, Central
Wisconsin Broadcasting, Inc. offered to buy the pavilion for
$41,000.00. This price included construction of the pavilion
Rotunda as it appeared at the Fair in New York. Wilcox accepted
the offer and in June 1967 the Wisconsin Pavilion Rotunda was
re-constructed on a hill alongside State Highway 10, just to
the east of the west-central Wisconsin town of Neillsville. The pavilion became the home
of WCCN AM-FM Radio and a gift shop featuring "The World's Fairest
Gifts." Billboards for miles around told motorists to "Visit
WCCN's Wisconsin Pavilion from the New York World's Fair."
The Wisconsin Pavilion
today
Those billboards have faded
over the years as have the memories of the 1964/1965 New York
World's Fair for today's drivers. Most not familiar with the
area wonder what the big, odd-shaped, yellow building is off
in the distance when approaching Neillsville from the east on
Highway 10. It's only as they get close to the driveway to the
building that they see the sign that says "Wisconsin Pavilion
- N.Y. World's Fair."
 WCCN's Wisconsin Pavilion has changed only slightly
since it was set on this spot in 1967. A low rectangular building
housing new studios was added several years ago. A cardboard
replica of the 17 1/4 ton cheese (the original cheese is long
gone having been cut up and sold at a charity auction in Eau
Claire, Wisconsin in early 1966), along with the story of how
it was made for the Fair, was displayed for many years inside
the specially constructed van used to transport and display The World's Largest Cheese at the Fair and on its tours around the country
during the Fair's off-season. Forty years of exposure to Wisconsin's
weather resulted in major deterioration of the tractor and trailer.
They were sold in 2005 to a collector with plans to restore them.
Inside the pavilion is
a gift shop featuring quality items made in Wisconsin -- jams,
honey, Tee and Sweatshirts along with a variety of Wisconsin
cheeses. You'll be able to purchase a post card or two of the
pavilion. Elsewhere in the building you'll find the original
scale model constructed in 1963 to sell the pavilion to potential
exhibitors. And, in the lower level, you can view a private collection
of New York World's Fair memorabilia.
How to find the pavilion
Neillsville is a small farming community located in the beautiful west-central portion of the state of Wisconsin. It is situated almost half-way between Minneapolis/St.
Paul, Minnesota and Madison, Wisconsin, and approximately 35
miles east of the Highway 10 exit on Interstate I-94. The current
owners, Kevin and Peggy Grapp, are most gracious hosts and are
happy to share their knowledge of the building, it's rich World's
Fair history and its legacy to the community.
|
