The 1926 Sesquicentennial Exposition was held in Philadelphia, 100 years before America’s 250th anniversary.
The exposition commemorated the 150th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence. It also looked back to the 1876 Centennial Exposition, which had taken place in the same city 50 years earlier. The event opened on May 31, 1926, with major ceremonies on July 4.
Philadelphia’s connection to the American Revolution made it a natural host. The city had been the meeting place of the Continental Congress and the location where the Declaration of Independence was adopted in 1776.
The exposition was much less successful financially than its organizers hoped, and several planned structures were never completed. It is often remembered as the major national anniversary fair of 1926. The 2026 semiquincentennial is broader in scope, with events planned across the United States rather than relying on one exposition.