The Buffalo World's Fair Where a President Was Assassinated

In 1901, Buffalo, New York, built a city that wasn't supposed to last. The Pan-American Exposition was a spectacular World's Fair designed to show millions of visitors what the new century could become. Enormous buildings surrounded illuminated fountains, hundreds of thousands of electric lights transformed the grounds after dark, and the power of nearby Niagara Falls helped create a spectacle unlike anything many Americans had ever experienced. Then the President of the United States walked into the Temple of Music. On September 6, 1901, William McKinley stood inside the exposition greeting members of the public. One man approached with a handkerchief wrapped around his right hand. McKinley apparently assumed the hand was injured and reached out to greet him. Hidden beneath the handkerchief was a revolver. Two shots changed American history. McKinley survived the initial shooting, and for several days it appeared that he might recover. The news became optimistic enough that Vice President Theodore Roosevelt eventually left Buffalo for the Adirondacks. Then McKinley's condition suddenly collapsed. In this episode of Yore Town, Matt and Meg uncover the incredible story of the 1901 Pan-American Exposition, the assassination of President William McKinley, the medical battle to save his life, Theodore Roosevelt's frantic journey back to Buffalo, and the private home where a 42-year-old Roosevelt unexpectedly became the youngest person ever to assume the presidency. We also dig into the strange Robert Todd Lincoln connection, what happened to McKinley's assassin, how the assassination helped change presidential security, and the bizarre fate of the World's Fair itself. Because just weeks after one of the most important moments in American history unfolded there, Buffalo's spectacular temporary city began to disappear. The Temple of Music vanished. The Electric Tower vanished. Most of the exposition grounds were dismantled and eventually replaced by Buffalo neighborhoods. But not everything disappeared. More than a century later, Buffalo still holds pieces from both sides of the story: the place where one presidency ended and the home where another began. Yore Town explores the strange, dark, and unbelievable true stories of real places. Big towns. Small towns. Big stories. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.