State fair


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 first U.S. state fair was that of New York, held in 1841 in Syracuse, and has been held annually to the present year. The second state fair was in Detroit, Michigan, which ran from 1849 to 2009.
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

United States

State or RegionFair NameLocationAttendance Attendance as % of State Pop.
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AlabamaAlabama State FairBirmingham
AlabamaAlabama National FairMontgomery
AlaskaKenai Peninsula State FairNinilchik7,300 .99%
AlaskaSoutheast Alaska State FairHaines
AlaskaTanana Valley State FairFairbanks12.49%
AlaskaAlaska State FairPalmer299,698 40.68%
ArizonaArizona State FairPhoenix1,102,044 16.37%
ArizonaNavajo Nation FairWindow Rock100,000 57.58%
ArkansasArkansas State FairLittle Rock473,106 15.95%
CaliforniaCalifornia State FairSacramento673,237 1.7%
ColoradoColorado State FairPueblo466,576 8.71%
DelawareDelaware State FairHarrington262,587 28.07%
District of ColumbiaDC State FairWashington
FloridaFlorida State FairTampa395,435 1.99%
GeorgiaGeorgia State FairHampton
GeorgiaGeorgia National FairPerry, Georgia535,000 5.30%
GeorgiaNorth Georgia State FairMarietta320,000 3.17%
HawaiiHawaii 50th State FairAiea
IdahoEastern Idaho State FairBlackfoot229,992 14.08%
IdahoWestern Idaho FairBoise243,474 14.90%
IdahoNorth Idaho Fair Coeur d'Alene84,600 5.18%
IllinoisDuQuoin State FairDu Quoin
IllinoisIllinois State FairSpringfield509,000 4.00%
IndianaIndiana State FairIndianapolis730,000 11.07%
IowaIowa State FairDes Moines1,130,260 35.93%
KansasKansas State FairHutchinson359,808 12.39%
KentuckyKentucky State FairLouisville609,955 13.7%
LouisianaCajun Heartland State FairLafayette
LouisianaGreater Baton Rouge State FairBaton Rouge
LouisianaState Fair of LouisianaShreveport379,700 9.78%
MaineBangor State FairBangor
MaineSkowhegan State FairSkowhegan
MaineFryeburg FairFryeburg166,838 12.54%
MarylandMaryland State FairTimonium407,000 6.81%
MichiganGreat Lakes State FairNoviClosed in 2009
MichiganThird Bank Michigan State FairNovi, Michigan92,000 .93%
MichiganUpper Peninsula State FairEscanaba80,000 .81%
MinnesotaMinnesota State FairFalcon Heights2,126,551 37.90%
MississippiMississippi State FairJackson733,151 24.49%
MissouriMissouri State FairSedalia366,218 6.04%
MontanaMontana State FairGreat Falls54,938 5.37%
MontanaMontanaFairBillings, Montana226,333 22.10%
NebraskaNebraska State FairGrand Island379,108 19.88%
NevadaNevada State FairRenoClosed
NevadaThe Nevada FairCarson City, Nevada22,000 .77%
New EnglandThe Big EWest Springfield, Massachusetts1,629,527 10.97%
New HampshireHopkinton State FairContoocook
New JerseyNew Jersey State FairAugusta420,000 4.70%
New MexicoNew Mexico State FairAlbuquerque497,000 23.83%
New MexicoSouthern New Mexico State FairLas Cruces
New MexicoNorthern Navajo Nation FairShiprock
New YorkGreat New York State FairSyracuse1,329,275 6.8%
North CarolinaNorth Carolina State FairRaleigh1,028,364 10.34%
North CarolinaDixie Classic FairWinston Salem357,416 3.7%
North CarolinaNorth Carolina Mountain State FairFletcher187,819 1.89%
North DakotaNorth Dakota State FairMinot293,123 39.64%
OhioOhio State FairColumbus921,000 7.95%
OklahomaOklahoma State FairOklahoma City900,000 23.21%
OklahomaTulsa State FairTulsa1,206,000 31.10%
OregonOregon State FairSalem295,000 7.43%
PennsylvaniaPennsylvania Farm ShowHarrisburg500,000 3.91%
PennsylvaniaAllentown FairAllentown500,000 3.91%
PennsylvaniaButler FairProspect240,000 1.88%
PennsylvaniaBloomsburg FairBloomsburg364,037 2.85%
PennsylvaniaThe Reading FairReading40,000 0.3%
PennsylvaniaYork FairYork555,252 4.34%
Rhode IslandWashington County FairRichmondaround 100,000 9.48%
South CarolinaSouth Carolina State FairColumbia464,878 9.62%
South DakotaSouth Dakota State FairHuron211,371 24.77%
TennesseeTennessee State FairNashville115,000 1.76%
TennesseeDelta FairMemphisabout 200,000 3.05%
TennesseeTennessee Valley FairKnoxville180,000 2.75%
TexasSouth Texas State FairBeaumont175,000 .65%
TexasState Fair of TexasDallas2,049,118 7.24%
TexasEast Texas State FairTylerabout 250,000 .93%
TexasNorth Texas State FairDenton140,000 .52%
UtahUtah State FairSalt Lake Cityaround 300,000 10.19%
VermontVermont State FairRutland61,604 9.83%
VirginiaState Fair of VirginiaCaroline County238,000 2.86%
WashingtonCentral Washington State FairYakima312,191 4.42%
WashingtonEvergreen State FairMonroe342,631 4.85%
WashingtonNorthwest Washington FairLynden189,154 2.68%
WashingtonWashington State FairPuyallup1,117,323 15.82%
West VirginiaState Fair of West VirginiaFairlea155,000-160,000 8.65%
WisconsinWisconsin State FairWest Allis1,015,815 17.64%
WisconsinCentral Wisconsin State FairMarshfield85,000 1.48%
WisconsinNorthern Wisconsin State FairChippewa Falls90,000 1.56%
WyomingWyoming State FairDouglasabout 50,000 8.56%

;Notes

Provincial exhibitions in Canada

A few annual exhibitions in the summer in Canada are similar to state fairs in the United States:
ProvinceFair NameLocationAttendance
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AlbertaCalgary StampedeCalgary1,214,972
AlbertaK-DaysEdmonton816,250
British ColumbiaPacific National ExhibitionVancouver712,049
OntarioCanadian National ExhibitionToronto1,360,000
OntarioOttawa SuperEXOttawa422,095
OntarioRoyal Agricultural Winter FairToronto
ManitobaRed River ExhibitionWinnipeg175,971
ManitobaRoyal Manitoba Winter FairBrandon114,000
SaskatchewanCanadian Western AgribitionRegina122,300

Awards

State and county fairs are famous for a variety of competitions that award ribbons. Awards are generally given according to the following scale:
As of 2019, the largest attendance at a state fair in the USA is in Minnesota attracting 2,126,551 visitors. The largest average per day attendance is also at the Minnesota State Fair averaging just under 200,000 people per day.