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Want to support this channel and help us preserve old films? Visit Visit our website This silent 8mm home movie was shot in 1940 by San Francisco residents Edward and Mary Burns. The film begins with shots aboard the ferry Hayward and images of Treasure Island (:21). At (:50) excited visitors disembark and head to the entrance. The flag of the Expo flies at ( :58). At (1:03) a policeman -- possibly a friend of the Burns' -- poses for the camera. At (1:13) a sweeping panorama with the Elephant Towers visible in the distance. At (1:30) paraders include a cowboy on horseback, drum majorettes and marching bands. At (2:21) Japanese American women pose in traditional kimonos. At (2:31) the Chinese Village attraction is visible. At (3:10) a paddleboat makes it way across one of the lakes. At (3:32) what appears to be a Chinese American girl and her mother watch the passing parade, which includes the Sequoia High School marching band. The Berkeley Municipal Legion Band marches at (3:37) followed at (3:51) by a cowboy troupe. At (4:17) a Chinese or Japanese American boy marches in the parade. At (4:27) a Chinese American woman marches in traditional clothes. At (4:42) Kabuki type actors walk in the parade. At (5:15) a lovely shot of a reflecting pool, followed by shots of the fountains. At (6:14) a shot of a statue of Father Junipero Serra is visible. At (7:05), shots of women in classy sunglasses, possibly including Mary Burns. At (8:49), a shot of the impressive Tower of the Sun. At (9:00) are rare shots of one of the performances at the Fair chronicling American history -- visible are Spaniards and British Redcoats, as well as General George Washington on his horse (9:30), a stagecoach robbery. At (10:41), two men pose for the camera. At (10:48) the aftermath of a fire at the California Pavilion / Pan American terminal building is shown. This blaze apparently happened in August of 1940, shortly before the close of the fair, and completely gutted the building. It took three hours to bring the fire under control. At (11:36), police officers perform stunts on Indian Motorcycles. At (12:04) attractions at the Gay Way are seen including a sign for Incubator Babies, the Giant Octopus Ride (12:26). At (12:49) a carnival barker advertises something -- a headless woman? -- at the sideshow. At (13:18) a marimba band plays. At (14:01) the large sign for the Gay Way is shown. At (14:15) the Dixie Inn -- a restaurant bearing a large, stereotyped image of a Mammy -- is visible. At (14:13) the Swiss pavilion is seen. At (15:13) are shots of the Fair at night, apparently shot from still photos from the official guidebook. The Golden Gate International Exposition (GGIE) (1939 and 1940), held at San Francisco's Treasure Island, was a World's Fair celebrating, among other things, the city's two newly built bridges. The San Francisco–Oakland Bay Bridge opened in 1936 and the Golden Gate Bridge in 1937. The exposition opened from February 18, 1939, through October 29, 1939, and from May 25, 1940, through September 29, 1940. The “Gayway“ was a 40-acre amusement area named after a contest was held in 1938. Some Gayway sights included sideshow-style attractions, such as little people in a Western setting and a racetrack featuring monkeys driving automobiles. We encourage viewers to add comments and, especially, to provide additional information about our videos by adding a comment! See something interesting? Tell people what it is and what they can see by writing something for example: “01:00:12:00 -- President Roosevelt is seen meeting with Winston Churchill at the Quebec Conference.“ This film is part of the Periscope Film LLC archive, one of the largest historic military, transportation, and aviation stock footage collections in the USA. Entirely film backed, this material is available for licensing in 24p HD, 2k and 4k. For more information visit
