The Monroe County Fairgrounds in

Monroe County, Michigan Monroe County is a county in the U.S. state of Michigan. As of the 2020 Census, the population was 154,809. The largest city and county seat is Monroe. The county was established as the second county (after Wayne County) in the Michigan Ter ...

includes a number of buildings.

History

The Monroe County Agricultural Society organized its first fair in 1849, but it wasn’t until 1948 that it was moved to this permanent location. All of the 120 acres of property is owned by the county and leased to the fair association on a 99-year agreement. In

1952 Events January–February * January 26 – Black Saturday in Egypt: Rioters burn Cairo's central business district, targeting British and upper-class Egyptian businesses. * February 6 ** Princess Elizabeth, Duchess of Edinburgh, becomes m ...

, a one half mile dirt oval on the premises hosted its only

Grand National Series The name NASCAR Grand National Series refers to former names of the following NASCAR series: *National-level stock car series: **NASCAR Cup Series (known as NASCAR Grand National Series between 1950 to 1970, then the NASCAR Winston Cup Grand Nation ...

(now NASCAR Cup) event. The race was won by racing pioneer

Tim Flock Julius Timothy Flock (May 11, 1924 – March 31, 1998) was an American stock car racer. He was a two-time NASCAR series champion. He was a brother to NASCAR's second female driver Ethel Mobley and Bob and Fonty Flock. NASCAR career Tim Flo ...

, who went on to win that year’s series championship.

Facilities

Stock Arena

Glenn F. Stock Arena is a 2,000-seat indoor arena located in

Monroe, Michigan Monroe is the largest city and county seat of Monroe County in the U.S. state of Michigan. Monroe had a population of 20,462 in the 2020 census. The city is bordered on the south by Monroe Charter Township, but the two are administered autonomo ...

. It is used for sporting events,

concerts A concert is a live music performance in front of an audience. The performance may be by a single musician, sometimes then called a recital, or by a musical ensemble, such as an orchestra, choir, or musical band, band. Concerts are held in a w ...

conventions Convention may refer to: * Convention (norm), a custom or tradition, a standard of presentation or conduct ** Treaty, an agreement in international law * Convention (meeting), meeting of a (usually large) group of individuals and/or companies in a ...

, and

trade shows A trade fair, also known as trade show, trade exhibition, or trade exposition, is an exhibition organized so that companies in a specific industry can showcase and demonstrate their latest products and services, meet with industry partners and cu ...

. It is part of the

Monroe County Monroe County may refer to seventeen counties in the United States, all named for James Monroe: * Monroe County, Alabama *Monroe County, Arkansas * Monroe County, Florida * Monroe County, Georgia *Monroe County, Illinois *Monroe County, Indian ...

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 ...

grounds. Stock Arena is also used for

graduation Graduation is the awarding of a diploma to a student by an educational institution. It may also refer to the ceremony that is associated with it. The date of the graduation ceremony is often called graduation day. The graduation ceremony is a ...

ceremonies of Monroe County's high schools. The arena measures wide by long with a -high ceiling. Although the Monroe County Fair's website hails the arena one of the "largest arenas in Michigan,"Fairground Facilities and Map at monroecountyfair.com
/ref> this is actually not true as far as

seating capacity Seating capacity is the number of people who can be seated in a specific space, in terms of both the physical space available, and limitations set by law. Seating capacity can be used in the description of anything ranging from an automobile that ...

is concerned; in fact, Stock Arena seats up to 3,500 for concerts. Many indoor arenas in Michigan have larger seating capacities. Also, several of them, including

Little Caesars Arena Little Caesars Arena is a multi-purpose arena in Midtown Detroit. Opened on September 5, 2017, the arena, which cost $862.9 million to construct, replaced Joe Louis Arena and The Palace of Auburn Hills as the home of the Detroit Red Wings of th ...

Breslin Center The Jack Breslin Student Events Center is a multi-purpose arena at Michigan State University in East Lansing, Michigan. The arena opened in 1989, and is named for Jack Breslin, MSU alumnus, former athlete and administrator, who first began pus ...

, and

Van Andel Arena Van Andel Arena is a 12,000 plus seat multi-purpose arena, situated in the Heartside district of Grand Rapids, Michigan, United States. The arena attracted over five million patrons in its first 5 years, 1996–2001. It is home to the Grand Rapid ...

have higher ceiling heights. Stock Arena is, however, Monroe County's largest arena and the largest in Toledo's northern suburbs. Other amenities include a -by-210-foot pipe fence separating the stands from the arena floor, and a

wireless Wireless communication (or just wireless, when the context allows) is the transfer of information between two or more points without the use of an electrical conductor, optical fiber or other continuous guided medium for the transfer. The most ...

PA system that can be used inside and outside the building.

Other fairground facilities

Other facilities at the Monroe County Fairgrounds include: *The First Merchants Bank Expo Center, a

convention center A convention center (American English; or conference centre in British English) is a large building that is designed to hold a convention, where individuals and groups gather to promote and share common interests. Convention centers typica ...

with of exhibit space *Two buildings and a livestock show arena with each of space *The Far West Building *The 2,400 4H Craft Building *Two horse rings and 270 horse stalls *A 9,000-seat grandstand used for

auto racing Auto racing (also known as car racing, motor racing, or automobile racing) is a motorsport involving the racing of automobiles for competition. Auto racing has existed since the invention of the automobile. Races of various sorts were organise ...

and

rodeos Rodeo () is a competitive equestrian sport that arose out of the working practices of cattle herding in Spain and Mexico, expanding throughout the Americas and to other nations. It was originally based on the skills required of the working vaq ...

. *Parking for 4,000 cars.

References

External links

Monroe County Fair
{{NASCAR Cup Series racetracks Fairgrounds in the United States Convention centers in Michigan Indoor arenas in Michigan Sports venues in Michigan Buildings and structures in Monroe County, Michigan Tourist attractions in Monroe County, Michigan NASCAR tracks Defunct motorsport venues in the United States