London hosted the first World Expo, the Great Exhibition of 1851.
The Great Exhibition of the Works of Industry of All Nations opened in London’s Hyde Park on 1 May 1851. Its main building, the Crystal Palace, was a revolutionary iron-and-glass structure designed by Joseph Paxton. The exhibition displayed industrial products, scientific instruments, manufactured goods, and works from countries and territories around the world.
More than six million visits were recorded during the exhibition’s run, a remarkable number for the period. Proceeds helped support the development of institutions in South Kensington, including what became the Victoria and Albert Museum, the Science Museum, and the Natural History Museum.
The Great Exhibition was not called a “World Expo” at the time, but it established the model for later international expositions. Subsequent expos included Paris in 1889, famous for the Eiffel Tower, and Chicago in 1893.