Collector's edition: Dennis Gardner gathers, displays 1904 World’s Fair antiques

Standing before his private collection of 1904 World's Fair in St. Louis relics -- paperweights, glassware, trinkets, coins and prints -- Dennis Gardner said he hasn't counted how many pieces of history he's obtained through the years.

"Oh gosh; I have no idea," Gardner of Cape Girardeau said under his greying mustache Wednesday at the Cape Girardeau County History Center in Jackson. "I'm missing a box; I can't find one of the boxes."

The pieces were first on public display back in 1983 at Kent Library, he said, adding they haven't seen the light of day since. Gardner said he decided to display the relics at the center after talking with the center's director, Carla Jordan.

Gardner, now 73 and retired, started acquiring the 1904 World's Fair collectibles in junior high school through his parents' interest in antiques.

He doesn't recall which piece was the first collected, but he said one of the items, a blue ceramic dinner plate beautified with different landmarks and a centerpiece highlighting President Thomas Jefferson, was one of the first.

Dennis Gardner, originally of Washington, Missouri, and now Cape Girardeau, talks about his collection of items from the 1904 World~s Fair in St. Louis on display Thursday at the Cape Girardeau County History Center in Jackson.Jacob Wiegand

"That's a nice one. I like blue," Gardner said pointing to the plate among the hodgepodge of memories.

Several items within the fluorescent-lit glass cases and a cabinet depict the fair's iconic Ferris wheel. Gardner said it's hard to find such pieces nowadays.

"I don't know why," he said. "So anytime you get anything with a Ferris wheel on it, it's pretty expensive."

It's difficult for Gardner to pinpoint his favorite item. But he said one of the nicest pieces in the collection is a gold-colored clock. Another piece dear to him is a painted tin egg, given to him by his father.

"My dad, he passed away 12 years ago. He used to collect milk glass Easter eggs," Gardner said carefully holding one of several colorfully painted egg-shaped tins.

Jacob Wiegand ~ jwiegand@semissourian.comDennis Gardner, originally of Washington, Missouri, and now Cape Girardeau, poses for a portrait next to pieces of his collection from the 1904 World~s Fair in St. Louis on display Thursday, Aug. 8, 2019, at the Cape Girardeau County History Center i

But then a small grouping of misshapen currency caught his eye. "Gosh, I love elongated coins," Gardner said.

Aside from a couple nearby ceramic pieces, Gardner said he tries to stay away from anything breakable. He has a lot of paper, he said, "but it's getting so fragile."

One ornate seashell sits in the corner of the display case. "I only have two of those; that's just something else I figured I could break," he said with a laugh.

Most of the items are very well done, he said, pointing to a genuine leather coin purse painted and embossed with the words "Louisiana Purchase Exposition."

The fair was originally scheduled to open a year earlier, he said of the glass paperweight sitting near the front of the case inscribed with "1903 World's Fair."

An image of the Ferris wheel from the 1904 World's Fair in St. Louis is seen on display Thursday, Aug. 8, 2019, at the Cape Girardeau County History Center in Jackson.Jacob Wiegand ~ jwiegand@semissourian.com

"They wanted to outdo the Chicago Fair, the previous one to that," Gardner said. "So they got a little too ambitious and they couldn't get it done by '03."

Gardner's mother and father were antique collectors, he said, "and that gave me an appreciation for some things that were well-made."

He would travel with his parents to auctions and estate sales trying to find anything he could find embossed with "1904 World's Fair." Growing up in Washington, Missouri -- close to St. Louis -- is why the fair intrigued him.

That's also why the collection means so much more, he said.

Jordan described it as "the most extensive 1904 World's Fair collection I have ever seen."

"The collection just goes on and on," she said.

The Louisiana Purchase Exposition -- informally known as the St. Louis World's fair -- garnered an attendance of 237,000 on Saturday, April 30, 1904, at Forest Park, according to the St. Louis Post-Dispatch. A "good showing" of 197,000 people paid the 50-cent admission at the main gate, Lindell and DeBaliviere Avenue, on opening day. At the time of the event, St. Louis was the fourth-largest city in the country, with a population of 575,000.

The 1904 World's Fair in St. Louis exhibit will be on display through Oct. 31 at the Cape Girardeau County History Center in Jackson.

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