Singer the Universal Sewing Machine [Pan-American Exposition Souvenir]

This clever bit of marketing was published by the Singer Manufacturing Company for distribution at the 1901 Pan-American Exposition held in Buffalo, New York. The vibrantly colored contents highlight Singer’s innovative products and the monumental architecture of the fair. A sweeping (if somewhat abstract) panorama presents the Niagara River between Lewiston and Buffalo, including Niagara Falls and the two primary bridges spanning the river. The back cover shows Columbia hard at work at her Singer sewing machine – connecting North and South America along a seam not far from where the Panama Canal would eventually open (then under construction). Before Coca-Cola or Disney could lay claim to the worldwide fame they know today, the mantle of supreme corporate advertising was perhaps worn by the Singer Sewing Machine Company. The massive plant in Scotland could churn out over 10,000 machines per day, destined for nearly every corner of the globe.