State fair
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A state fair is an annual competitive and recreational gathering of a U.S. state's population, usually held in late summer or early fall. It is a larger version of a county fair, often including only exhibits or competitors that have won in their categories at the more-local county fairs.
State fairs began in the nineteenth century for the purpose of promoting state agriculture, through competitive exhibitions of livestock and display of farm products. As the U.S. evolved from a predominantly agrarian to an industrial society in the twentieth century, and the more service economy of the 21st century, modern state fairs have expanded to include carnival amusement rides and games, display of industrial products, automobile racing, and entertainment such as musical concerts. Large fairs can admit more than a million visitors over the course of a week or two. The oldest state fair is that of The Fredericksburg Agricultural Fair, established in 1738, and is the oldest fair in Virginia and the United States.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> The first U.S. state fair was the New York, held in 1841 in Syracuse, and has been held annually since.<ref name=su>Template:Cite web</ref> The second state fair was in Detroit, Michigan, which ran from 1849<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> to 2009.<ref name="freep.com">Template:Cite web</ref><ref name="It's official: State Fair a goner">Template:Cite web</ref> The fair was revived in 2013 and has been held at the Suburban Collection Showplace in Novi, Michigan ever since.
Events similar to state fairs are also held annually in each state capital in Australia, known as royal shows. Australian royal shows are organized by state agricultural and horticultural societies, and are described further in the agricultural show article.
List of state fairs
[edit]United States
[edit]
| State or Region | Fair Name | Location | Typical Month(s) | Attendance (year) | Attendance as % of State Pop. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Alabama | Alabama State Fair | Birmingham | |||
| Alabama | Alabama State Fair Montgomery | Montgomery | |||
| Alabama | Alabama National Fair | Montgomery | |||
| Alaska | Kenai Peninsula Fair | Ninilchik | 7,300 (2013) <ref>Template:Cite web</ref> | .99% | |
| Alaska | Southeast Alaska State Fair | Haines | |||
| Alaska | Tanana Valley State Fair | Fairbanks | 92,000 (2014) <ref>Template:Cite web</ref> | | 12.49% | |
| Alaska | Alaska State Fair | Palmer | 299,698 (2015) <ref>Template:Cite web</ref> | 40.68% | |
| Arizona | Arizona State Fair | Phoenix | 1,102,044 (2015) <ref>Template:Cite web</ref> | 16.37% | |
| Arizona | Navajo Nation Fair | Window Rock | 100,000 (2016) <ref>Template:Cite web</ref> | 57.58% (of Navajo Nation) | |
| Arkansas | Arkansas State Fair | Little Rock | 473,106 (2015) <ref>Template:Cite web</ref> | 15.95% | |
| California | California State Fair | Sacramento | 673,237 (2016) <ref>Template:Cite web</ref> | 1.7% | |
| Colorado | Colorado State Fair | Pueblo | 466,576 (2016) <ref>Template:Cite web</ref> | 8.71% | |
| Delaware | Delaware State Fair | Harrington | 262,587 (2016) <ref>Template:Cite web</ref> | 28.07% | |
| District of Columbia | DC State Fair | Washington | |||
| Florida | Florida State Fair | Tampa | 395,435 (2016) <ref>Template:Cite web</ref> | 1.99% | |
| Georgia | Georgia State Fair | Hampton | |||
| Georgia | Georgia National Fair | Perry, Georgia | 535,000 (2016) <ref>Template:Cite web</ref> | 5.30% | |
| Georgia | North Georgia State Fair | Marietta | 320,000 (2016) <ref>Template:Cite web</ref> | 3.17% | |
| Hawaii | Hawaii 50th State Fair | Aiea | |||
| Idaho | Eastern Idaho State Fair | Blackfoot | 249,892 (2021) <ref>Template:Cite web</ref> | 14.08% | |
| Idaho | Western Idaho Fair | Boise | August | 243,474 (2016) <ref>Template:Cite web</ref> | 14.90% |
| Idaho | North Idaho Fair <ref>Template:Cite web</ref> | Coeur d'Alene | 168,567 (2022) <ref>Template:Cite web</ref> | 5.18% | |
| Illinois | DuQuoin State Fair | Du Quoin | |||
| Illinois | Illinois State Fair | Springfield | 509,000 (2019) <ref>Template:Cite web</ref> | 4.00% | |
| Indiana | Indiana State Fair | Indianapolis | 730,000 (2016) <ref>Template:Cite web</ref> | 11.07% | |
| Iowa | Iowa State Fair | Des Moines | 1,130,260 (2018) <ref>Template:Cite web</ref> | 35.93% | |
| Kansas | Kansas State Fair | Hutchinson | 359,808 (2016) <ref>Template:Cite web</ref> | 12.39% | |
| Kentucky | Kentucky State Fair | Louisville | August | 609,955 (2017) <ref>Template:Cite news</ref> | 13.7% |
| Louisiana | Cajun Heartland State Fair | Lafayette | |||
| Louisiana | Greater Baton Rouge State Fair | Baton Rouge | |||
| Louisiana | State Fair of Louisiana | Shreveport | 379,700 (2017) <ref>Template:Cite web</ref> | 9.78% | |
| Maine | Bangor State Fair | Bangor | |||
| Maine | Skowhegan State Fair | Skowhegan | |||
| Maine | Fryeburg Fair | Fryeburg | 166,838 (2016) <ref>Template:Cite web</ref> | 12.54% | |
| Maryland | Maryland State Fair | Timonium | 588,000 (2013) <ref>Template:Cite web</ref> | 9.53% | |
| Michigan | Michigan State Fair | Novi | 92,000 (2014) <ref>Template:Cite web</ref> | .93% | |
| Michigan | Upper Peninsula State Fair | Escanaba | 80,000 (2013) <ref>Template:Cite web</ref> | .81% | |
| Minnesota | Minnesota State Fair | Falcon Heights | 2,126,551 (2019) <ref>Template:Cite web</ref> | 37.90% | |
| Mississippi | Mississippi State Fair | Jackson | 733,151 (2016) <ref>Template:Cite web</ref> | 24.49% | |
| Missouri | Missouri State Fair | Sedalia | August | 349,048 (2023)<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> | |
| Montana | Montana State Fair | Great Falls | 54,938 (2015) <ref>Template:Cite web</ref> | 5.37% | |
| Montana | MontanaFair | Billings, Montana | 226,333 (2016) <ref>Template:Cite web</ref> | 22.10% | |
| Nebraska | Nebraska State Fair | Grand Island | 379,108 (2017)<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref> | 19.88% | |
| Nevada | Nevada State Fair | Reno | Closed | ||
| Nevada | The Nevada Fair | Carson City, Nevada | 22,000 (2015) <ref>Template:Cite web</ref> | .77% | |
| New EnglandTemplate:Efn | The Big E | West Springfield, Massachusetts | 1,629,527 (2019) <ref>Template:Cite web</ref> | 10.97%Template:Efn | |
| New Hampshire | Hopkinton State Fair | Contoocook | |||
| New Jersey | New Jersey State Fair | Augusta | 420,000 (2013) <ref>Template:Cite web</ref> | 4.70% | |
| New Mexico | New Mexico State Fair | Albuquerque | 497,000 (2016) <ref>Template:Cite web</ref> | 23.83% | |
| New Mexico | Southern New Mexico State Fair | Las Cruces | |||
| New Mexico | Northern Navajo Nation Fair | Shiprock | |||
| New York | Great New York State Fair | Syracuse | 1,329,275 (2019) <ref>Template:Cite web</ref> | 6.8% | |
| North Carolina | North Carolina State Fair | Raleigh | October-November | 1,028,364 (2016) <ref>Template:Cite web</ref> | 10.34% |
| North Carolina | Dixie Classic Fair | Winston-Salem | 357,416 (2011) | 3.7% | |
| North Carolina | North Carolina Mountain State Fair | Fletcher | 187,819 (2007) <ref>Template:Cite web</ref> | 1.89% | |
| North Dakota | North Dakota State Fair | Minot | July | 293,123 (2016) <ref>Template:Cite web</ref> | 39.64% |
| Ohio | Ohio State Fair | Columbus | 921,000 (2016) <ref>Template:Cite web</ref> | 7.95% | |
| Oklahoma | Oklahoma State Fair | Oklahoma City | 900,000 (2012) <ref>Template:Cite web</ref> | 23.21% | |
| Oklahoma | Tulsa State Fair | Tulsa | 1,206,000 (2016 estimate) <ref>Template:Cite web</ref> | 31.10% | |
| Oregon | Oregon State Fair | Salem | 295,000 (2016 estimate) <ref>Template:Cite web</ref> | 7.43% | |
| Pennsylvania | Allentown Fair | Allentown | 500,000 (approx) (2014) <ref>Template:Cite web</ref> | 3.91% | |
| Pennsylvania | Butler Fair | Prospect | 240,000 (approx) (2011) <ref>Template:Cite web</ref> | 1.88% | |
| Pennsylvania | Bloomsburg Fair | Bloomsburg | 364,037 (2015) <ref>Template:Cite web</ref> | 2.85% | |
| Pennsylvania | The Reading Fair | Reading | 40,000 (2016) <ref>Template:Cite web</ref> | 0.3% | |
| Pennsylvania | York State Fair | York | 555,252 (2016) <ref>Template:Cite web</ref> | 4.34% | |
| Rhode Island | Washington County Fair | Richmond | around 100,000 <ref>Template:Cite web</ref> | 9.48% | |
| South Carolina | South Carolina State Fair | Columbia | 464,878 (2016) <ref>Template:Cite web</ref> | 9.62% | |
| South Dakota | South Dakota State Fair | Huron | 211,371 (2016) <ref>Template:Cite web</ref> | 24.77% | |
| Tennessee | Tennessee State Fair | Lebanon | August | 115,000 (2015) <ref>Template:Cite web</ref> | 1.76% |
| Tennessee | Delta Fair | Memphis | about 200,000 (2016) <ref>Template:Cite web</ref> | 3.05% | |
| Tennessee | Tennessee Valley Fair | Knoxville | 180,000 (approx) <ref>Template:Cite web</ref> | 2.75% | |
| Texas | South Texas State Fair | Beaumont | 175,000 (2014) <ref>Template:Cite web</ref> | .65% | |
| Texas | State Fair of Texas | Dallas | 2,547,289 (2022) <ref>Template:Cite web</ref> | 7.24% | |
| Texas | East Texas State Fair<ref>Waterson, James and Seymour, Rachel Anne. Pulling Up Stakes: East Texas State Fair Says Goodbye Until Next Year. Tyler Morning Telegraph, October 4th, 2010, p. 1A, 6A</ref> | Tyler | about 250,000 (estimate from 2016) <ref>Template:Cite web</ref> | .93% | |
| Texas | North Texas State Fair | Denton | 200,000 (estimate from 2023) <ref>Template:Cite web</ref> | .68% | |
| Utah | Utah State Fair | Salt Lake City | around 300,000 (2014) <ref>Template:Cite web</ref> | 10.19% | |
| Vermont | Vermont State Fair | Rutland | 40,000Template:Dash50,000 (2022) <ref>Template:Cite web</ref> | 9.83% | |
| Virginia | State Fair of Virginia | Caroline County | 238,000 (2014) <ref>Template:Cite web</ref> | 2.86% | |
| Washington | Central Washington State Fair | Yakima | 312,191 (2016) <ref>Template:Cite web</ref> | 4.42% | |
| Washington | Evergreen State Fair | Monroe | 342,631 (2016) <ref>Template:Cite web</ref> | 4.85% | |
| Washington | Northwest Washington Fair | Lynden | 189,154 (2015) <ref>Template:Cite web</ref> | 2.68% | |
| Washington | Washington State Fair | Puyallup | 1,117,323 (2012) <ref>Template:Cite web</ref> | 15.82% | |
| West Virginia | State Fair of West Virginia | Fairlea | 155,000-160,000 (2016) <ref>Template:Cite web</ref> | 8.65% | |
| Wisconsin | Wisconsin State Fair | West Allis | August | 1,015,815 (2016) <ref>Template:Cite web</ref> | 17.64% |
| Wisconsin | Central Wisconsin State Fair | Marshfield | 85,000 (2015) <ref>Template:Cite web</ref> | 1.48% | |
| Wisconsin | Northern Wisconsin State Fair | Chippewa Falls | 90,000 (2016) <ref>Template:Cite web</ref> | 1.56% | |
| Wyoming | Wyoming State Fair | Douglas |
- Notes
State fair police departments
[edit]Several state fairs maintain their own police departments, including:
- California Exposition and State Fair Police
- Iowa State Fair Police
- Minnesota State Fair Police Department
- Wisconsin State Fair Park Police Department
Provincial exhibitions in Canada
[edit]A few annual exhibitions in the summer in Canada are similar to state fairs in the United States:
| Province | Fair Name | Location | Attendance (year) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Alberta | Calgary Stampede | Calgary | 1,275,465 (2019)<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> |
| Alberta | K-Days | Edmonton | 702,327 (2019)<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> |
| British Columbia | Pacific National Exhibition | Vancouver | 731,708 (2019)<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> |
| Ontario | Canadian National Exhibition | Toronto | 1,500,000 (2019)<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> |
| Ontario | Ottawa SuperEX (defunct) | Ottawa | 422,095 (2009)<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> |
| Ontario | Royal Agricultural Winter Fair | Toronto | 300,000 (average per annum)<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> |
| Ontario | Western Fair | London | 170,000 (2015)<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> |
| Manitoba | Red River Exhibition | Winnipeg | 203,624 (2019)<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> |
| Manitoba | Royal Manitoba Winter Fair | Brandon | 110,000 (2018)<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> |
| Saskatchewan | Canadian Western Agribition | Regina | 121,326 (2019)<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> |
Awards
[edit]State and county fairs are famous for a variety of competitions that award ribbons. Awards are generally given according to the following scale:Template:Citation needed<ref name="It's official: State Fair a goner" />
- First place – blue ribbon
- Second place – red ribbon
- Third place – white ribbon
- Fourth place – yellow ribbon
- Fifth place – green ribbon
- Sixth place – orange ribbon
- Seventh place – purple ribbon
- Eighth place – brown ribbon
Attendance
[edit]As of 2019, the largest attendance at a state fair in the US is in Texas with the fair having attracted 2,514,637 visitors.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> Even though it is longer than an average state fair, any advantage is negated by the size of the physical state since those days would be required for the states citizens to have equal opportunity to attend.
The largest average per day attendance is at the Minnesota State Fair averaging just under 200,000 people per day.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>