Several of the sights on her trip inspired her, and they found their way into her poem, including the World's Columbian Exposition in Chicago, the "White City" with its promise of the future contained within its gleaming white buildings; the wheat fields of North America's heartland Kansas, through which her train was riding on July 16; and the majestic view of the Great Plains from high atop Pikes Peak.
sˈɛvɹəl ʌvðə sˈaɪts ˌɔn hɜː tɹˈɪp ɪnspˈaɪɚd hɜː, ænd ðeɪ fˈaʊnd ðɛɹ wˈeɪ ˌɪntʊ hɜː pˈoʊᵻm, ɪŋklˈuːdɪŋ ðə wˈɜːldz kəlˈʌmbiən ɛkspəzˈɪʃən ɪn ʃᵻkˈɑːɡoʊ, ðə "wˈaɪt sˈɪɾi" wɪð ɪts pɹˈɑːmɪs ʌvðə fjˈuːtʃɚ kəntˈeɪnd wɪðˌɪn ɪts ɡlˈiːmɪŋ wˈaɪt bˈɪldɪŋz; ðə wˈiːt fˈiːldz ʌv nˈɔːɹθ ɐmˈɛɹɪkəz hˈɑːɹtlənd kˈænzəs, θɹuː wˌɪtʃ hɜː tɹˈeɪn wʌz ɹˈaɪdɪŋ ˌɔn dʒuːlˈaɪ sˈɪkstiːn; ænd ðə mɐdʒˈɛstɪk vjˈuː ʌvðə ɡɹˈeɪt plˈeɪnz fɹʌm hˈaɪ ɐtˈɑːp pˈaɪks pˈiːk.