Exposition internationale et coloniale (1894)

History

The exposition was originally planned as a national exposition to be held in 1892, but the short interval since the Paris 1889 Universal Exposition led to a postponement of two years and a call for international participation.

Several names were given to the project: "l’Exposition internationale et coloniale de Lyon, en 1894", "Exposition nationale de Lyon en 1894" and "l’Exposition universelle de 1894" before the eventual name "Exposition internationale et coloniale". At the same time San Francisco and Antwerp organised world's fairs as well.

3.8 million people visited the exposition, and the success of the exposition led to renaming the neighbourhood next to the exposition from Tête d'Or to Tonkin de villeurbanne, thus referring to North Vietnam (Tonkin), at that time part of French Indochina, in order to satisfy the inhabitants attracted to the exotic colonial atmosphere.