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The World's Fairs (known as International Expositions in continental Europe and Asia) are expositions hosted in different countries around the globe that highlight scientific and cultural achievements of different nations. Fairs tend to last three to six months and also feature entertainment venues, rides, and food and drinks. The first modern World’s Fair was “Britain’s Great Exhibition” hosted at the Crystal Palace in Hyde Park, London in 1851. This first exposition inspired a golden age of fairs with fairs hosted in countries like Australia, Guatemala, and modern-day Vietnam. The first fair held in the United States was the New York Crystal Palace Exhibition in 1853-4. Unfortunately, this first fair was a financial failure. After around 20 years, the United States put on the Centennial Exhibition in Philadelphia to celebrate the 100 year anniversary of the Declaration of Independence. This fair was a success and resulted in several fairs being held in the United States in the following decades.

The North, Central, and South American Exposition was held in New Orleans, Louisiana between 1885-6. The event was held immediately after the financially unsuccessful World's Industrial and Cotton Centennial Exposition of 1884, and reused many of the buildings to lower the cost of construction and recoup financial losses.

The World Columbian Exposition was held in Chicago, Illinois from May 1, 1893 to October 20, 1893 to commemorate the 400th anniversary of Columbus’s voyage to the North American continent. The event is acknowledged influenced contemporary aesthetics by asserting the dominance of neo-classical architecture and sculpture eventually leading to the “City Beautiful” movement. The fair’s attractions were also numerous and novel, including a Ferris wheel and a moving walkway, and were powered with electricity. The fair would set a high standard for those that followed, and cemented the preeminence of both Chicago and the United States internationally.

The Pan-American Exposition was held in Buffalo, New York in May 1,1901 through November 2, 1901 under the unifying slogan of the "commercial well being and good understanding among the American Republics." However, it is best known for the assassination of United States President William McKinley on September 6, 1901 by anarchist Leon Frank Czolgosz.

The Louisiana Purchase Exposition was held in St. Louis, Missouri from April 30 to December 1, 1904 celebrating the centennial of the Louisiana Purchase. The exposition was a large-scale event with national and international participants, along with ethnographic exhibits of indigenous peoples from newly acquired US territories such as Guam.

The Panama Pacific International Exposition was held in San Francisco, California from February 20 to December 4, 1915 celebrating the completion of the Panama Canal. The fair emphasized rhetoric of US industrial achievements and nationalism, and featured architectural spectacles such as the Tower of Jewels and the Palace of Horticulture. The fair ran concurrent with the ultimately smaller Panama-California Exposition held in San Diego of the same year.

The Panama- California Exposition was held in San Diego, California from January 1, 1915 to January 1, 1917 to celebrate the opening of the Panama Canal. This fair ran concurrent with the official Panama Pacific International Exposition which was held in San Francisco in 1915. Architecture at the fair moved away from the traditional Neoclassical style, utilizing the local Spanish Colonial Revival style. Many of the buildings remain and make up the majority of Balboa Park.

A Century of Progress International Exposition was held in Chicago, Illinois from 1933-34 celebrating the city’s centennial. The focus of the world’s fair was technological and scientific advancements in the United States, aimed at bolstering low-morale during the Great Depression and sparking confidence in national progress.

The Golden Gate International Exposition was held in San Francisco, California from February 18, 1939, through October 29, 1939, and from May 25, 1940, through September 29, 1940 to celebrate the opening of the Golden Gate and San Francisco- Oakland bridges. The site of the exposition was built on the already extant Yerba Buena Shoals, which became Treasure Island.

Expo ‘74 was held in Spokane, Washington from May 4 to November 3, 1974, with a focus on the environment. At the time, Spokane was the smallest city to ever host an international exposition. Along with a U.S. pavilion, the U.S.S.R., Japan, Taiwan, South Korea, Canada, Iran, West Germany, and the Philippines were represented, along with the first-ever “Afro-American” pavilion.