The Hopkinton State Fair is an annual

fair A fair (archaic: faire or fayre) is a gathering of people for a variety of entertainment or commercial activities. Fairs are typically temporary with scheduled times lasting from an afternoon to several weeks. Types Variations of fairs incl ...

taking place in the village of Contoocook in

Hopkinton, New Hampshire Hopkinton is a town in Merrimack County, New Hampshire, United States. The population was 5,914 at the 2020 census. The town has three distinct communities: Hopkinton village, mainly a residential area in the center of the town; Contoocook, the t ...

, United States. The fair began in 1915 and has continued to grow and become one of the most well known events in

New England New England is a region comprising six states in the Northeastern United States: Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, and Vermont. It is bordered by the state of New York to the west and by the Canadian provinces ...

, and the largest fair in

New Hampshire New Hampshire is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the northeastern United States. It is bordered by Massachusetts to the south, Vermont to the west, Maine and the Gulf of Maine to the east, and the Canadian province of Quebec t ...

History

The Hopkinton State Fair was originally started as a two-day

agricultural Agriculture or farming is the practice of cultivating Plant, plants and livestock. Agriculture was the key development in the rise of Sedentism, sedentary human civilization, whereby farming of Domestication, domesticated species created food ...

event by the Contoocook Board of Trade, which held the first fair on October 5 and 6, 1915, at George's Park in Contoocook village. The event was named the "Hopkinton Fair" or the "Contoocook Valley Fair". The net profit for the first fair was just under $5. There was no fair in 1917 nor 1918. In 1921, the board expanded the fair to a three-day event from Tuesday through Thursday.

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

caused the fair to be cancelled between 1942 & 1945. The fair consisted of agricultural exhibits, food vendors, baseball games, horse races, games, amusement rides and sideshow tents. Other entertainment such as the Hopkinton Town Band concerts became quite popular over the years. Ribbon and monetary prize competitions were popular exhibits for

livestock Livestock are the domesticated animals raised in an agricultural setting to provide labor and produce diversified products for consumption such as meat, eggs, milk, fur, leather, and wool. The term is sometimes used to refer solely to animals ...

and other farm animals. After enduring tremendous growth, in 1947 the fair moved to its present location behind the Hopkinton High School, as it needed more land for its ever-expanding exhibits. In 1953, the Fair Association acquired more property for additional expansion. In 1980, the fair became a five-day event opening on Thursday and operating through

Labor Day Labor Day is a federal holiday in the United States celebrated on the first Monday in September to honor and recognize the American labor movement and the works and contributions of laborers to the development and achievements of the United St ...

. In December 1985, the association directors voted to change the name of the fair to its current "Hopkinton State Fair". In 1986, the fair held a logo design competition. The winner was Doug Price of Contoocook with the original design of the current fair logo. In 2014, the association decided to shorten the fair back to a four-day event, running Friday through Labor Day. This fair will return in 2021 for a five-day event as the

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identif ...

caused 2020's cancellation.

References

External links

Hopkinton State Fair official website
{{Coord, 43, 13, 55, N, 71, 43, 20, W, type:landmark, display=title Festivals in New Hampshire State fairs New Hampshire culture Tourist attractions in Merrimack County, New Hampshire October events September events Hopkinton, New Hampshire Festivals established in 1915