The Florida State Fair is held annually at the

Florida State Fairgrounds The Florida State Fairgrounds is located in East Lake-Orient Park, Florida. In addition to holding the annual Florida State Fair, the fairgrounds also host a wide variety of other events throughout the year. The 2022 Florida State Fair took plac ...

East Lake-Orient Park, Florida East Lake-Orient Park is an unincorporated census-designated place in Hillsborough County, Florida, United States. The population was 22,753 at the 2010 census, up from 5,703 at the 2000 census following an expansion of its borders. The area is th ...

. The official state fair of

Florida Florida is a state located in the Southeastern region of the United States. Florida is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the northwest by Alabama, to the north by Georgia, to the east by the Bahamas and Atlantic Ocean, and ...

, it includes indoor and outdoor exhibits, rides and shows. It is a chance for the state to showcase its agricultural industry. The Fair also offers competitions and food oddities such as chocolate covered bacon & Buffalo chicken chimichanga. The annual event is usually held in February and typically lasts for 11 days. It is the first state fair to be held in the United States each calendar year.

History

In 1904, the South Florida Fair Association was formed and plans for a new exhibition were proposed. The fair was founded as the South Florida Fair in downtown Tampa and renamed the Mid-Winter Festival a few years later. The name finally changed to the present Florida State Fair in 1915. The

World Wars A world war is an international conflict which involves all or most of the world's major powers. Conventionally, the term is reserved for two major international conflicts that occurred during the first half of the 20th century, World WarI (1914 ...

cancelled the fairs in 1918 & 1942–1945. In 1975, the Florida Legislature created the Florida State Fair Authority and designated the yearly event in Tampa as the official Florida State Fair. By 1977, the first fair was held at its current location, at the intersection of

Interstate 4 Interstate 4 (I-4) is an Interstate Highway located entirely within the U.S. state of Florida, maintained by the Florida Department of Transportation (FDOT). Spanning along a generally southwest–northeast axis, I-4 is entirely concurrent ...

and U.S. Highway 301 in unincorporated Hillsborough County.

Fair events

The Florida State Fair also includes competitions in crafts such as

fine arts In European academic traditions, fine art is developed primarily for aesthetics or creative expression, distinguishing it from decorative art or applied art, which also has to serve some practical function, such as pottery or most metalwor ...

and

agricultural Agriculture or farming is the practice of cultivating plants and livestock. Agriculture was the key development in the rise of sedentary human civilization, whereby farming of domesticated species created food surpluses that enabled peopl ...

competitions. Entries are judged and ribbons awarded. 2009 saw new additions to the state fair, including a live shark exhibit and a mechanical rodeo.

Venues

Besides the rides and exhibits, other venues during the Fair include the Bob Thomas Equestrian Center, which hosts horse races and other equestrian events;

Cracker Country Cracker Country is a living history museum of rural Florida, which was established in 1978 by Mildred and Doyle Carlton Jr. Cracker Country features thirteen original buildings dating from 1870 to 1912 and is set in 1898. The buildings were moved ...

, which demonstrates life in frontier Florida; and exhibitions from most counties of Florida plus various agricultural and other state organizations in the large

Expo Hall Expo Hall is an indoor arena located at the Florida State Fairgrounds in East Lake-Orient Park, Florida. It is used primarily as an exhibition hall during the Florida State Fair, but has also hosted concerts and sporting events. The South Flori ...

. At the Rabbit and Poultry Barn, fair-goers can view different breeds of rabbits and hold newborn chicks.

References

External links

* {{Florida State fairs Festivals in Tampa, Florida 1904 establishments in Florida Festivals established in 1904 Annual events in Florida April events