General History of the Midway
The midway is an exciting, colourful, and sometimes controversial
phenomenon with a rich history to be told. To look at the culture of
midways is to see a reflection of popular culture and the preoccupations
and desires it represents. Its transitory and elusive nature has stemmed
from constant changes as definitions of novelty, morality, and
entertainment were constructed, revelled in, and deconstructed, only to
emerge once again as new shapes, sounds, smells, tastes, and sights to
be absorbed.
An occasion for all the senses, midways involve a jumbled assortment
of attractions and are loosely defined as the sideshow component of an
exhibition. An originating purpose of this being to draw audiences and
lead them towards a main show (hence the name midway, literally meaning
'halfway'). Two physical characteristics differentiate it from other
events, one of them pertaining to layout and the other to audiences.
Unlike a circus, which in its true form is set up as a ring with
entertainers performing on the inside and circus-goers on the outside
watching in, midways are often set up as a strip or as a U-shape that
functions to create movement. This resulting design leads to the second
midway characteristic, an ambulatory crowd. Circuses require audiences
to remain stationary while viewing live entertainment. On the contrary,
midway audiences walk back and forth through its route, choosing to stop
and take in whatever catches their fancy for as long as they please.
A transitory audience means fierce competition for attention. Antics
quickly developed to garner observation. Individuals referred to as
callers would 'Ballyhoo,' or fast talk loudly and amusingly, to pull in
small crowds around their particular showpiece.
As an event, midways are preceded by activities as old as
church-organized fairs during the 12th century. Medieval fairs occurred
in such places as Britain and served to entertain, but also provided a
regulated venue for buying and selling goods from far away. The
Bartholomew Fair of 1708 offered roundabouts, big wheels, stalls selling
foods for indulgence, and music. As fairs evolved and entertainment
gained prominence, later incarnations were imbued with more mischief and
playfulness.
In 1893, an event occurred that would shape the evolution of midways.
The World Columbian Exposition (WCE) took place and raised the bar for
all carnival events to follow. The first documented profitable fair, the WCE debuted attractions that would become mainstays, such as the Ferris
wheel and three currently prominent favourites: ice cream cones,
carbonated soda, and hamburgers. With the goal to unite the populace in
celebration of technology and commerce, this historical event marked a
particularly consumerist direction in entertainment seeking.
Attractions at the midway were derivative forms of 19th century
spectacles such as dime museums, medicine shows, peep shows, minstrel
shows, amusement rides, and Wild West shows. As exemplified by minstrel
shows and the display of nature's so called 'freaks', deep seated social
anxieties, judgments, and myths were realized in grotesque and
caricature forms of expression. As targets of ridicule or fear changed,
so too did the show. At a time when North American society was beginning
to shrug off Victorian mores, the debut of dancing girl shows produced
scandal, and as those who had often suffered ridicule became more
accepted in the mainstream, they ceased to be treated as otherworldly
wonders.
Contending with worries of the time, midways also provided an
opportunity for finding social cohesion and escape. A brief and
representative list of fantastic midway entertainment could include bearded
ladies, puppet shows, games of chance, slights of hand or other magic
tricks, acrobats, jugglers, and a wild array of animals, some of them
performers. For midway visitors, these various attractions provided a
shared entry into areas of the unknown.
As midways grew in popularity they became more attractive to
venturing entrepreneurs. In 1895, Otto Schmidt and his Chicago Midway Plaisance
Amusement Company was the first to adventurously take a midway on the
road. He encountered many challenges that served to refine the
efficiency of midways, effectively creating new systems for them.
Companies began to book whole seasons and great care was put into
planning well-synchronized arrivals, set-ups, executions, strike-downs,
and finally, travels to the next city. With the growth of mechanical
rides, the establishment of this process became even more important for
managing a sustainable business.
By 1901, seven big midways were operating in the United States with
plenty of business throughout the year. A representative organization
called the Carnival Managers Association of America was formed in 1912,
and eventually became known as the Showman’s League of America.
In the 20th century, midways were often contracted by circuses, and
eventually collaborated with agricultural societies across North
America. With time, some of them directed their travels north, where
they entertained visitors of the Edmonton Exhibition Association and
eventually, Northlands Park.
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