Electrical Show / The Spawning of Engineering Open House

Engineering Open House began with the Department of Physics Open House in 1906, [1] a modest affair that caught the eye of the Electrical Engineering Society and became the inspiration for the following years Electrical Show. Perhaps the most successful student enterprise ever undertaken [at the University of Illinois], the Electrical Show was held on March 1 and 2 of 1907. The object in view [of the Show] was to make the affair not merely spectacular, but rather educational in nature and therefore guides were provided to take the spectators around in personally conducted groups, and explanatory lectures were given at regular intervals. Planned for several months with weeks of site preparation, the Show featured among its numerous exhibits, [a] 100,000 volt transformer, an exhibit of the various uses of alternating current machines, a demonstration of different kinds of electric lighting, and a test-car used on the interurban tracks. [2]

The Show was a spectacular success, both monetarily and educationally. It was attended by both the University community and electrical engineers from across the nation, and the 1,600 paid admissions [3] added more than $250 [4] to the Robert Fulton Memorial Fund. Its national stage prompted many prominent periodicals to discuss the implications of the event. The March 16^th edition of Electrical World went so far as to say The combination of instructive exhibits of things of scientific interest with things to catch popular fancy and the means used to advertise the show poved [sic] the assertion we have often made that the technically trained man is equal to almost any emergency, and that he is not necessarily an adept in engineering matters only. [5]

The Electrical Show was continued in 1908, but for various reasons was not held in 1909. It was resurrected on February 10, 11, and 12^th, 1910, with a new emphasis on student-made equipment and exhibitions, with very little commercial apparatus on display. [6] The Show continued to grow, and by its sixth iteration, on February 6, 7, and 8^th, 1913, more than 300 Electrical Engineering students, from freshmen to postgraduates entered zealously into the project and intent [sic] to produce results worthy of the attention of every alumnus. By this time the show had exhibits in 7 different categories, including power development, telephony and telegraphy, high tension transmission, illumination, electrical welding, household appliances, and electrical freaks. [7]

The popularity and success of the Electrical Show continued to grow exponentially, and when it came time for the University to devise plans for the 100^th anniversary of James Watts birthday, it was decided to expand the show into an all-engineering exhibition. Thus, on March 23, 1920, the Watt Centenary and the College of Engineering Open House was celebrated. Dean of Engineering Charles Russ Richards gave the opening remarks, followed by a memorial address by Paige Breckenridge, Ph.B., M.A., Dr.EngG [sic], entitled James Watt, his life and its influence upon the industrial development of the world. More than 1,700 students and over 120 faculty and staff members contributed to the open house, which held exhibitions in 8 buildings, including Engineering Hall, Laboratory of Physics, Ceramic Engineering Building, Locomotive Testing Lab, Kiln Lab, Mining Engineering Lab, Mining and Railway Museum (between mining lab and transportation building), and the Transportation Building. The show started at Engineering Hall, with the Engineering Experiment Station, the Engineering Library, and the Department of Civil Engineering exhibits on the first floor, the Mechanical Engineering exhibits on the third floor, and Architecture exhibits on the fourth. The tour then continued to the Ceramics Engineering Laboratory, to the Locomotive Laboratory, then back to Ceramics, to the Ceramics Kiln House, to the Mining Laboratory, and to the Transportation Building. The Transportation Building featured Railway Engineering Exhibitions on its first floor, Mining Engineering exhibits on its second, and General Engineering Drawing displays on its third floor. From the Transportation Building, the tour headed off to the Power House, where two batteries of Babcock and Wilcox [500 horsepower] boilers with two boilers in each battery were on display, along with mountings for a third which was on its way. Along with the boilers, three 60-cycle AC generation engines were demonstrated, a ball non-releasing Corliss engine at 440v, a Westinghouse vertical single acting engine at 440v, and a horizontal Curtis steam turbine at 2300v. From the Power House, visitors were led to the attached Mechanical Engineering and Highway Laboratories. They it was off to the Pumping and Fire Stations, attached to the Old Boiler House (which used to run in front of Mechanical Engineering Laboratory on the engineering quad), and then to the Theoretical and Applied Mechanics Hydraulics Laboratory (where the Engineering Hall Bonyard plaza is now), followed by the Electrical Engineering Laboratory (which ran along Burrill Avenue, extending into the middle of the present engineering quad). From the Electrical Engineering Laboratory, the tour left for the Metal Shops, the Forge Shop, the Wood Working Shops, and finally ended at the Foundry. [8]