ABSTRACT
Regardless of its basis in invention, the belief that Civil War tensions had been replaced by an attitude of forgiveness at the Centennial remained potent. Even one hundred years later, Richard Nicolai’s claim that “few reminders of the recent Civil War” appeared during the event seems to have been heavily influenced by lingering Centennial idealism.1 In actuality, references to the war and expressions of sectional tension enacted in the exhibits, ceremonies, special events, and behavior of visitors maintained a vivid presence during the Centennial. Upon making one’s way into the fairgrounds on foot or carried by the interior Centennial monorail, the visitor was promptly confronted by a colossal stone infantryman standing atop a massive pedestal conspicuously placed along a main concourse by the North Portal of the Main Building, just across from Memorial Hall (see Figure 2.1).
