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Image courtesy of the Franklin D. Roosevelt Presidential Library and Museum.
Image courtesy of the Franklin D. Roosevelt Presidential Library and Museum.
1939 New York World's Fair Walking Stick
Image courtesy of the Franklin D. Roosevelt Presidential Library and Museum.
Image courtesy of the Franklin D. Roosevelt Presidential Library and Museum.

1939 New York World's Fair Walking Stick

Artifact IDMO 1941.2.31
Object Type Stick, Walking
Designer (American)
Maker (American garden tool manufacturer, founded 1842)
Artist (American painter, illustrator, and sculptor, 1880-1942)
Publisher (American publisher)
Dateca. 1939-1940
Mediumwalking stick: wood, paper, metal, cord
map: paper, ink, wood, metal
Dimensionspart a (cane) H 32 5/8 in x W 1 3/4 in x D 1 3/4 in x Diam 1 3/4 in (82.9 cm x 4.4 cm x 4.4 cm x 4.4 cm )
 part b (map) H 13 1/2 in x W 19 1/4 in (34.3 cm x 48.9 cm )
Physical Descriptiona) A souvenir wooden walking stick for the 1939 New York World's Fair. The hollow walking stick, made of light-colored natural wood, has a knob handle and is formed of two separatable sections - a short top piece and long bottom piece - joined together at a metal collar. On the top section of the stick, a woven textile strap is attached through a hole just below the knob handle, and a paper sticker with the typed number "D-2-X" is adhered. On the lower section of the stick is a round World's Fair sticker featuring the Trylon and Perisphere. Also on the lower section is a 14" long slot opening.

b) Originally mounted inside the walking stick - but now stored separately - is a paper map of the New York World's Fair. The map is wound around a spring-loaded wooden dowel and designed to be withdrawn from the long slot in the lower section of the walking stick, much in the manner of a window shade.

The cane was manufactured by Rugg Manufacturing Co., Greenfield, Massachusetts. The pull-out map mechanism was designed by IN-A-Cane Display Co., Boston, Massachusetts. The map was created by Tony Sarg and published by Tony Sarg Publications, New York, New York.
Historical NoteThe 1939 New York World's Fair, located in Flushing Meadows, New York, opened on April 30, 1939 and closed on October 27, 1940. President Franklin D. Roosevelt gave the opening speech in person which was televised throughout the Fair. His address was the first time that a president appeared on television.

This walking stick is an example of the souvenirs created for the 1939 New York World's Fair.
Additional Details
Custodial History NoteDeposited at the Franklin D. Roosevelt Presidential Library and Museum by Franklin D. Roosevelt on July 20, 1940. It was donated as a bequest of FDR to the Library in 1947.
Credit LineEstate of Franklin D. Roosevelt
National Archives Catalog CollectionFranklin D. Roosevelt Library Museum Collection (National Archives Identifier 735948)
National Archives Catalog SeriesGift Items and Commemorative Artifacts (National Archives Identifier 782690)
Use Restriction StatusUnrestricted
CopyrightReproduction or other use of these holdings or images thereof is unrestricted.
In Collection(s)
Not on view