Fancy Farm is an unincorporated community and census-designated place in Graves County, Kentucky, United States, northwest of the county seat, Mayfield. As of the 2010 census it had a population of 458. Fancy Farm is on Kentucky Route 80 in the rural, far-western portion of the state called the Jackson Purchase. It was settled by

Roman Catholics The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...

starting in 1829, and is known for being a strongly Catholic area. The community grew around St. Jerome Church, built in 1836. The first post office opened in 1843. The colorful name was apparently chosen when the post office opened, by a man who was applying to be postmaster. It was first mentioned in the U.S. Census in 1870 as a post office in Boswell Precinct; first mentioned as a town in Magisterial District 5 in the 1910 census; and finally enumerated as a town in its own precinct in the 1920 census.

St. Jerome Church Picnic

The village is the site of the annual St. Jerome Catholic Church Picnic, famous as a traditional political gathering attracting statewide and occasionally national candidates. The picnic, referred to by non-locals as the "Fancy Farm Picnic," began in 1881 as a purely local affair. It takes place on the grounds of the church, which have expanded thanks in part to the picnic's success. Since 1956, the year that Kentucky moved its primary election to May from August, it has been held on the first Saturday in August and has come to represent the traditional starting point of the fall campaign season in Kentucky. The picnic was of largely local interest until two-time Governor A. B. "Happy" Chandler (best known for being the second Commissioner of Major League Baseball) began making appearances, going for the first time in 1931 while running successfully for

lieutenant governor A lieutenant governor, lieutenant-governor, or vice governor is a high officer of state, whose precise role and rank vary by jurisdiction. Often a lieutenant governor is the deputy, or lieutenant, to or ranked under a governor — a "second-in-comm ...

. So many Kentucky politicians attend that it is news when a major state politician decides not to make an appearance, such as U.S. Sen. Jim Bunning in 2007. National figures who have made speeches include

George Wallace George Corley Wallace Jr. (August 25, 1919 – September 13, 1998) was an American politician who served as the 45th governor of Alabama for four terms. A member of the Democratic Party, he is best remembered for his staunch segregationist and ...

in 1975,

Lloyd Bentsen Lloyd Millard Bentsen Jr. (February 11, 1921 – May 23, 2006) was an American politician who was a four-term United States Senator (1971–1993) from Texas and the Democratic Party nominee for vice president in 1988 on the Michael Dukakis ti ...

in 1988 and

Al Gore Albert Arnold Gore Jr. (born March 31, 1948) is an American politician, businessman, and environmentalist who served as the 45th vice president of the United States from 1993 to 2001 under President Bill Clinton. Gore was the Democratic Part ...

in 1992. Vice President Alben Barkley, who was born at nearby

Wheel A wheel is a circular component that is intended to rotate on an axle Bearing (mechanical), bearing. The wheel is one of the key components of the wheel and axle which is one of the Simple machine, six simple machines. Wheels, in conjunction wi ...

and lived in Paducah, spoke many times over the years. In addition to the political appearances, the picnic offers traditional fair activities such as bingo games and raffle prizes. Food includes

barbecue Barbecue or barbeque (informally BBQ in the UK, US, and Canada, barbie in Australia and braai in South Africa) is a term used with significant regional and national variations to describe various cooking methods that use live fire and smoke t ...

, a Knights of Columbus fish fry on Friday evening, and homemade baked goods. The event was recognized in the 1985 ''

Guinness Book of World Records ''Guinness World Records'', known from its inception in 1955 until 1999 as ''The Guinness Book of Records'' and in previous United States editions as ''The Guinness Book of World Records'', is a reference book published annually, listing world ...

'' as the "World's Largest Picnic" for the consumption of 15,000 pounds of mutton, pork, and chicken at the 1982 picnic. The picnic proceeds are used to finance the Catholic elementary school and local improvements. No outside vendors participate, but people representing political causes sell paraphernalia, and about 12,000 to 15,000 people attend each year.

Demographics

References

External links

Community website
{{authority control Census-designated places in Graves County, Kentucky Census-designated places in Kentucky Politics of Kentucky