Editing Centennial Exposition (section)

=== Machinery Hall ===
[[File:Machhall.jpg|thumb|Machinery Hall]]
Designed by Joseph M. Wilson and Henry Pettit, Machinery Hall was the second largest structure in the exposition and located west of the Main Exhibition Building. With a superstructure made of wood and glass resting on a foundation of massive masonry, it had a main hall painted light blue, {{cvt|1402|ft|m}} long and {{cvt|360|ft|m}} wide, with a wing of {{cvt|208|ft|m}} by {{cvt|210|ft|m}} attached on the south side of the building. The length of the building was 18 times its height. With eight entrances, it occupied {{cvt|558,440|sqft|sqm}}, had 1,900 exhibitors, and took six months to construct. The exhibits focused on machines and evolving industries.<ref>''Philadelphia's 1876 Centennial Exhibition'', p. 67</ref> Machinery Hall was the show case for the state of the art industrial technology that was being produced at the time. The United States of America alone took up two-thirds of the exhibit space in the building.

One of the major attractions on display in the building was the [[Corliss steam engine#Centennial Engine|Corliss Centennial Steam Engine]] that ran power to all the machinery in the building as well as other parts of the world's fair. The 1,400 horsepower engine was {{cvt|45|ft|m}} tall, weighed 650 tons, and had {{cvt|1|mi|km|adj=on}} of overhead line belts connecting to the machinery in the building. It symbolized the technology that was transforming the United States into an industrial powerhouse.

Amenities available to the visitors within the hall were rolling chairs, telegraph offices, and dinner for fifty cents. Machinery Hall had 8,000 operating machines and was filled with a wide assortment of hand tools, machine tools, material handling equipment, and the latest fastener technology.

Some of the sandstone that was used to build the hall was from [[Curwensville, Pennsylvania]].