{"value"=>"<p>These records primarily document pre-Fair engineering and construction matters and address technical issues related to site preparation, laying of foundations and the erecting of superstructures; development of infrastructures for transportation and utilities; and installation of plumbing, heating, mechanical and electrical systems. Included are meeting minutes; construction plans and detail drawings; correspondence and memos addressed to and from Hogan and his assistants; consultants' and technical reports; background research on the construction and engineering aspects of previous fairs; records related to labor-related issues; articles and speeches prepared by Fair engineers; and daily labor reports -- concise typewritten summaries of construction activities for each day from 1936 through the opening of the 1939 season.</p> <p>Files related to the participants' buildings most often address general contracting and labor management concerns and, for the most part, offer little of substance in the way of architectural design or exhibition content. However, files associated with the Fair-built structures (most particularly the Theme Center structures) often yield information on design and display elements. Theme Center records include an analysis of the structural stability of the Perisphere; architects Harrison and Foulihoux's report on methods and materials of construction; and information on the fabrication of \"Democracity,\" the Theme Center show that took place inside the Perisphere. These departmental records also document the flow of work between the Fair staff and the many architects, contractors, consultants, and vendors that participated in the construction of the Fair. Additionally they illuminate the relationship between the Fair staff and officials from City agencies, particularly the New York City Parks Department and its then Commissioner, Robert Moses.</p>"}