Meet George Ferris, The Engineer Who Designed the Ferris Wheel

The Ferris wheel protrudes from the horizon in this illustrated, bird’s-eye view of the World’s Columbian Exposition by Rand, McNally & Co., 1893. Public Domain

As the 1893 World’s Columbian Exposition approached, architect Daniel Burnham grew increasingly concerned. The exhibition typically featured amazing scientific innovations and cultural experiences, and the 1893 exhibition had the unenviable position of following the spectacular 1889 exhibition in Paris, which saw the unveiling of the Eiffel Tower. Chicago received the honor of hosting the fair, but when it came to a crowning achievement like Eiffel’s tower, Burnham couldn’t find the right idea. Then, one day, engineer George Ferris approached him with an ambitious plan to amaze the masses: the Ferris wheel.

The Idea

George Washington Gale Ferris Jr. was born on February 14, 1859, in Illinois. He grew up in Nevada and eventually received his engineering degree from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute. He embarked on a career as an engineer, eventually founding his own firm and building many large, ambitious structures. However, Ferris had no way of knowing that the bridges he was constructing would shrink in comparison to the project that would bring him fame beyond his wildest dreams.

When Ferris heard about the structure Burnham and the others were seeking, he immediately came up with a plan and submitted it to the committee. Ferris imagined two giant, rotating wheels parallel to one another that lifted large cars of people into the air. These types of wheels had existed for years, but Ferris’s plan called for a much larger wheel than had ever been built.

A portrait of George Washington Ferris, the inventor of the Ferris wheel. Public Domain

The committee rejected Ferris’s plan, for it seemed unrealistic and potentially dangerous. However, Ferris would not be deterred. He spent thousands on safety studies and solicited investors. After raising hundreds of thousands of dollars and convincing the committee that building a wheel safe for the public was possible, the committee approved Ferris’s idea near the end of 1892. Ferris knew that he needed to get to work right away in order for the wheel to be completed for the fair.

The Great Wheel

Ferris wrote engineer Luther Rice and offered him the job of overseeing the construction and operation of the giant wheel. “I have on hand a great project for the World’s Fair in Chicago,” Ferris wrote. “I am going to build a vertically revolving wheel 250’ in dia. There will be considerable masonry work to be done, and it will have to be done with the greatest care. … I want you at once if you can come.”

Luther accepted the job, and work quickly began. Ferris reached out to several companies in order to get the parts needed, and companies in Ohio and Pennsylvania sent them to Chicago by rail. The most notable part for Ferris’s wheel was its giant axle, which weighed nearly 45 tons.

A photograph of the Ferris wheel during the 1893 World’s Columbian Exposition in Chicago. ilbusca/Getty Images

The construction of the wheel was met with immediate challenges. The frozen ground made digging difficult, and the crew needed to pour the concrete footings to start the project. They finally managed to dig deep enough and successfully poured the concrete by using steam to keep the concrete from freezing. Over the next months, Rice and his team slowly built the giant wheel and outfitted it with a powerful engine to turn it. Though the fair opened in May, the Ferris wheel wasn’t finished yet. Finally, on June 9, 1893, Rice sent Ferris the telegram he’d been waiting for.

The last coupling and final adjustment was made and steam turned on at six o’clock this evening—one complete revolution of the big wheel was made—everything working satisfactory—twenty minutes time was taken for the revolution.—I congratulate you upon it—complete success—Midway is wildly enthusiastic.

Ferris responded with relief and joy the next day, writing, “Your telegram stating that first revolution of wheel had been made last night at six o’clock and that same was successful in every way has caused great joy in this entire camp. I wish to congratulate you in all respects in this matter.”

The Ferris wheel in Chicago was taken down and rebuilt for the 1904 Louisiana Purchase Exposition in St. Louis, Mo. Public Domain

By the end of June, the Ferris wheel was fully operational and astounding the public. The wheel featured 36 cars that could hold around 60 people each, so more than 2,000 patrons could enjoy the 20-minute ride at a time. Scientific American featured an article titled “A View From the Ferris Wheel.” In addition to the description of the fair from above, the article related a grand account of the wheel itself.

“The most conspicuous object by all odds is the great wheel which rises a half mile below,” the article proclaims. “This is the biggest wheel on earth, and it is devoted to giving pleasure by swinging the visitor up two hundred and fifty feet; in other words, it is a colossal merry-go-round; for at the extremity of each spoke is attached a car, so that the visitor can make the whole revolution with safety.”

The wheel featured 36 cars that could hold around 60 people each, so more than 2,000 patrons could enjoy the 20-minute ride at a time. Public Domain

More than a million people paid 50 cents to see the fair from atop the Ferris Wheel. It was the talk of the fair and the greatest success of George Ferris’s career.

“I have no desire to advertise the wheel when I tell you a trip upon it is worth taking,” reporter Robert Graves wrote. “You cannot advertise the wheel, anyway, any more than you can advertise the fair, or the Atlantic ocean. They are all too big. They are their own advertisement. The novel sensation, the opportunity to study a great engineering work, the beauty of the scene presented from the great altitude, all combine to make the trip on this structure fully worth the time and the cost.”

This article was originally published in American Essence magazine.