The State Fair of Texas is an annual
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 th ...
held in
Dallas
Dallas () is the List of municipalities in Texas, third largest city in Texas and the largest city in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex, the List of metropolitan statistical areas, fourth-largest metropolitan area in the United States at 7.5 ...
at historic
Fair Park
Fair Park is a recreational and educational complex in Dallas, Texas, United States, located immediately east of downtown. The area is registered as a Dallas Landmark and National Historic Landmark; many of the buildings were constructed for th ...
. The fair has taken place every year since 1886 except for varying periods during World War I and World War II as well as 2020, due to 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 ...
. It usually begins the last Friday in September and ends 24 days later. The fair claims an annual attendance of over two million visitors through ticket scanning. The State Fair of Texas is considered one of the best in America as well as Dallas' signature event despite its troubled history.
Attractions
![Big Tex 2013](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/ac/Big_Tex_2013.jpg)
The State Fair of Texas's opening day ceremonies are highlighted by the annual Friday parade rolling through
downtown Dallas
Downtown Dallas is the central business district (CBD) of Dallas, Dallas, Texas, United States, located in the geographic center of the city. It is the second-largest business district in the state of Texas. The area termed "Downtown" has tradit ...
. In 2019, the parade moved to Fair Park. The fair also has a nightly parade called the Starlight Parade and a nightly light show called Illumination Sensation around the park's esplanade. However, the start of the fair is largely viewed negatively by the residential, as the blight it creates is so severe that it depresses the real estate value of neighboring homes, which are already in a depressed neighborhood. In addition, nearby businesses lose money while the fair is in operation.
Traditionally, the centerpiece of the fair has been the annual
college football
College football (french: Football universitaire) refers to gridiron football played by teams of student athletes. It was through college football play that American football rules first gained popularity in the United States.
Unlike most ...
game between
Oklahoma
Oklahoma (; Choctaw language, Choctaw: ; chr, ᎣᎧᎳᎰᎹ, ''Okalahoma'' ) is a U.S. state, state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States, bordered by Texas on the south and west, Kansas on the nor ...
and
Texas
Texas (, ; Spanish language, Spanish: ''Texas'', ''Tejas'') is a state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. At 268,596 square miles (695,662 km2), and with more than 29.1 million residents in 2 ...
, nicknamed the
Red River Rivalry
The Oklahoma–Texas football rivalry is a college football rivalry game between border rivals Oklahoma and Texas. The two teams first played each other in 1900, and the rivalry has been renewed annually and uninterrupted since 1929 for a tota ...
(historically known as both the "OU-Texas Game" or "Texas-OU Game") and played in the
Cotton Bowl at Fair Park. Also, the
State Fair Classic
The State Fair Classic (formerly known as the Southwest Airlines State Fair Classic, for sponsorship purposes) is an annual college football game between the Grambling State University Tigers and the Prairie View A&M University Panthers of th ...
, featuring
Grambling State University
Grambling State University (GSU, Grambling, or Grambling State) is a public historically black university in Grambling, Louisiana. Grambling State is home of the Eddie G. Robinson Museum and is listed on the Louisiana African American Heritage ...
and
Prairie View A&M University
Prairie View A&M University (PVAMU or PV) is a public historically black land-grant university in Prairie View, Texas. Founded in 1876, it is one of Texas's two land-grant universities and the second oldest public institution of higher learnin ...
, is played at the Cotton Bowl during the fair. In 2010,
Baylor and
Texas Tech
Texas Tech University (Texas Tech, Tech, or TTU) is a public research university in Lubbock, Texas. Established on , and called Texas Technological College until 1969, it is the main institution of the five-institution Texas Tech University Sys ...
played their game during the fair for the first time. During the opening weekend of the 2013 fair,
Army
An army (from Old French ''armee'', itself derived from the Latin verb ''armāre'', meaning "to arm", and related to the Latin noun ''arma'', meaning "arms" or "weapons"), ground force or land force is a fighting force that fights primarily on ...
and
Louisiana Tech
Louisiana Tech University (Louisiana Tech, La. Tech, or simply Tech) is a public research university in Ruston, Louisiana. It is part of the University of Louisiana System and classified among "R2: Doctoral Universities – High research activi ...
played in the only
Heart of Dallas Classic
The Heart of Dallas Classic was a planned annual college football game played on the opening weekend of the State Fair of Texas at the historic Cotton Bowl (stadium), Cotton Bowl in Fair Park, Dallas, Texas. However, the game was not renewed beyon ...
at the Cotton Bowl; it was abandoned thereafter. The Texas State Fair Football Showdown took place on the third weekend of the 2018 and 2019 fair and featured
Southern
Southern may refer to:
Businesses
* China Southern Airlines, airline based in Guangzhou, China
* Southern Airways, defunct US airline
* Southern Air, air cargo transportation company based in Norwalk, Connecticut, US
* Southern Airways Express, M ...
and
Texas Southern
Texas Southern University (Texas Southern or TSU) is a public historically black university in Houston, Texas. The university is one of the largest and most comprehensive historically black college or universities in the USA with nearly 10,000 ...
. In 2020, the Southern versus Texas Southern game moved to
Arlington, Texas
Arlington is a city in the U.S. state of Texas, located in Tarrant County. It forms part of the Mid-Cities region of the Dallas–Fort Worth–Arlington metropolitan statistical area, and is a principal city of the metropolis and region. ...
.
The State Fair of Texas is the only fair in the United States to include a full auto show, dating back to 1913.
However, the Texas Museum of Automotive History was forced to pull out as a tenant, blaming the fair for forcing it to close down during the annual event.
The State Fair formerly featured "Birds of the World" where several birds would fly overhead. It was removed from the Fair lineup in 2014, only to return in 2019. The $5-million Texas Skyway is a gondola ride which only operates 24 days a year, transporting visitors around the fairgrounds. There is also a BMX bike show as well as dog and pig races. For children, puppet shows, Children's Medical Center Barnyard, and Story Time also take place inside the fair.
In recent years, the fair has emphasized its reputation as an event featuring unique, albeit high-fat, foods. It has been known for years for Fletcher's brand
corny dog
A corn dog (also spelled corndog) is a sausage (usually a hot dog) on a stick that has been coated in a thick layer of cornmeal batter and deep fried. It originated in the United States and is commonly found in American cuisine.
History
Newly a ...
s. Recent years have seen the introduction of new unusual deep-fried items, including deep-fried
Oreo
Oreo () (stylized as OREO) is a brand of sandwich cookie consisting of two biscuits or cookie pieces with a sweet creme filling. It was introduced by Nabisco on March 6, 1912, and through a series of corporate acquisitions, mergers and split ...
s, deep-fried
Twinkie
A Twinkie is an American snack cake, described as "golden sponge cake with a creamy filling". It was formerly made and distributed by Hostess Brands. The brand is currently owned by Hostess Brands, Inc. (), having been formerly owned by private ...
s, deep-fried
s'more
A s'more is a campfire treat popular in the United States and Canada, consisting of one or more toasted marshmallows and a layer of chocolate sandwiched between two pieces of graham cracker.
Etymology and origins
''S'more'' is a contraction of ...
s, deep-fried pork ribs, fried cheesecake; deep-fried butter, fried avocados, fried alligators, deep-fried
peanut butter
Peanut butter is a food paste or spread made from ground, dry-roasted peanuts. It commonly contains additional ingredients that modify the taste or texture, such as salt, sweeteners, or emulsifiers. Peanut butter is consumed in many countri ...
,
jelly, and banana sandwiches, and most recently a batter-based
fried Coke
Fried Coke or Deep Fried Soda is a frozen Coca-Cola-flavored batter that is deep-fried and then topped with Coca-Cola syrup, whipped cream, cinnamon sugar, and a cherry. It was introduced by inventor Abel Gonzales Jr. at the 2006 State Fair of T ...
. New foods in 2008 included
chicken fried bacon
Chicken fried bacon consists of bacon strips dredged in Batter (cooking), batter and Deep frying, deep fried, like chicken fried steak. It is an American dish that was introduced in Texas in the early 1990s. Frank Sodolak of Sodolak's Original Coun ...
and fried banana splits. For the 2012 fair, the Girl Scouts of Northeast Texas added the deep-fried Samoa cookie in honor of the 100th Anniversary of Girl Scouts of the US and the Girl Scout 100th Anniversary Experience at the Texas Hall of State at the fair. People travel from all around the world to attend the State Fair of Texas, including former talk show host
Oprah Winfrey
Oprah Gail Winfrey (; born Orpah Gail Winfrey; January 29, 1954), or simply Oprah, is an American talk show host, television producer, actress, author, and philanthropist. She is best known for her talk show, ''The Oprah Winfrey Show'', br ...
. In 2019, the fair introduced a Buffalo chicken
chimichanga
A chimichanga (; ) is a deep-fried burrito that is common in Tex-Mex and other Southwestern U.S. cuisine. The dish is typically prepared by filling a flour tortilla with various ingredients, most commonly rice, cheese, beans, and a meat such as ...
.
History
The first state fair in Texas was established by the Mechanical and Blood Stock Association of Texas (MBSAT). The first fair convened in
Houston
Houston (; ) is the most populous city in Texas, the most populous city in the Southern United States, the fourth-most populous city in the United States, and the sixth-most populous city in North America, with a population of 2,304,580 in ...
on the north bank of Buffalo Bayou in 1870. The MBSAT hosted another state fair at the same location in 1871. Beginning in 1872, the fair moved to a new location south of Houston in an area more recently known as "Midtown," until the last state fair held by the MBSAT in 1878. After its last fair, the MBSAT declared bankruptcy, and no other organization in Houston emerged to restart the state fair in Houston.
In its modern incarnation, the State Fair of Texas was charted as a private corporation by local businessmen. It was an immediate success and attracted thousands of people. However, in 1904 a series of events led to a financial crisis and not enough income was available to keep the fair running. Therefore, the businessmen sold it to the city of Dallas with the agreement that 24 days during the fall would be set aside annually for the fair and exhibition.
On February 10, 1942, a fire-alarm blaze raged unchecked for an hour in the automobile building at the State Fair park causing damage estimated at several hundred thousand dollars. One fireman was hospitalized after being overcome with smoke and a half dozen others were given treatment at the scene. Roy Rupard, secretary of the State Fair association, said the loss was covered by insurance.
Big Tex
Big Tex is a tall figure and marketing icon of the annual State Fair of Texas held at Fair Park in Dallas, Texas. The figure has become a cultural icon of Dallas and Texas. Since 1952 Big Tex has served as a cultural ambassador to visitors, and ...
, a tall
cowboy
A cowboy is an animal herder who tends cattle on ranches in North America, traditionally on horseback, and often performs a multitude of other ranch-related tasks. The historic American cowboy of the late 19th century arose from the '' vaquer ...
statue, has been its symbol since his introduction in 1952. In 1953, Big Tex's jaw was hinged, so that he appears to "speak" the announcements that promote fair events.
[Steven Butler]
Fair Park Timeline, part 4: The Post-Exposition Years (1938-1984)
/ref> After a fire on October 19, 2012, destroyed the original Big Tex, he was rebuilt and reintroduced for the 2013 fair. Big Tex is claimed to be the world's tallest cowboy.
Its Texas Star
Texas Star is a Ferris wheel at Fair Park in Dallas, Texas, where it operates during the annual State Fair of Texas as its most popular ride.
With an overall height of , it was the tallest Ferris wheel in North America from 1985 until the open ...
Ferris wheel
A Ferris wheel (also called a Giant Wheel or an observation wheel) is an amusement ride consisting of a rotating upright wheel with multiple passenger-carrying components (commonly referred to as passenger cars, cabins, tubs, gondolas, capsules ...
was the largest in North America when it debuted in October 1985, just months before the Texas Sesquicentennial
An anniversary is the date on which an event took place or an institution was founded in a previous year, and may also refer to the commemoration or celebration of that event. The word was first used for Catholic feasts to commemorate saints. ...
. It has since been dwarfed by Ferris wheels in Las Vegas and Orlando.["What makes us unique,"](_blank)
BigTex.com. Retrieved 2008-09-24.[Norman Anderson. ''Ferris wheels: an illustrated history'', Popular Press, 1992, page 138-40.]
DART's Fair Park Station
Fair Park station is a DART Light Rail station located in Fair Park in Dallas, Texas. It serves the . The station opened on September 14, 2009 as one of four original stops on the line. Fair Park contains the largest collection of Art Deco exhib ...
and MLK Jr. Station opened in 2009 to serve Fair Park and the State Fair. In addition to regular service on the Green Line, the Red Line and Blue Line also run "special event" trains to Fair Park Station for major fair events.
In 2017, Foundation for Community Empowerment commissioned a major report laying a major portion of blame against how the State Fair of Texas has hindered development at and around Fair Park.
Controversies
A Segregated Fair
For the majority of time the State Fair of Texas has been in operation, it was a segregated fair. African Americans were allowed into the fair only on "Negro Achievement Day," known colloquially as "Nigger Day" by the white population. The end of the segregated fair began in 1953 under increasing pressure to desegregate. In that year, African Americans were allowed in the fair for the full season, but were not served in restaurants or allowed on the midway. Only on Negro Achievement Day were African Americans allowed full access to the fairgrounds. The Dallas Negro Chamber of Commerce, under pressure from the African American community, began to denounce the State Fair as segregated. White Dallas leaders continued to assert that the fair was not segregated. In the mid-1950's, then mayor R. L. Thornton, one of the founding men of the Dallas Citizens Council who helped fundraise for the 1936 Centennial Exposition, agreed to desegregate more, but continued to assert that some restaurants and attractions remain separate. Notably, two attractions that involved physical contact, the "Laff in the Dark" and "Dodge 'em Scooter" rides, continued to be segregated.
In 1955, Juanita Craft
Juanita Craft (born Juanita Jewel Shanks; February 9, 1902 – August 6, 1985) was an American activist and politician. Craft was an activist in the civil rights movement and also served as a member of the Dallas City Council in Texas.
Biography
...
organized a protest of the State Fair of Texas against its policy of admitting blacks only on "Negro Achievement Day."
In addition, the fair once had a “Colored People’s Day,” “Ku Klux Klan
The Ku Klux Klan (), commonly shortened to the KKK or the Klan, is an American white supremacist, right-wing terrorist, and hate group whose primary targets are African Americans, Jews, Latinos, Asian Americans, Native Americans, and ...
Day” and, as recently as the 1980s, a day dedicated to the Confederacy. In the 1960s, the fair looked at market research showing that many white fairgoers were frightened by seeing black people on their way into the fair leading to an aggressive eminent domain campaign to buy nearby homes to convert the land into parking lots.
The State Fair in 1966 commissioned a report on the redevelopment of the fair, which concluded that the land around Fair Park should be `bought up and turned into a paved, lighted, fenced parking lot" that would `eliminate the problem from sight'. "If the poor Negroes in their shacks cannot be seen, all the guilt feelings…will disappear, or at least be removed from primary consideration".
The State Fair was criticized in October 2014 for spending over $5 million on attorneys fees to two insiders.
Despite a $30 million investment in Summer Adventures, the event was shuttered after just one season.
In August 2015, the State Fair was sanctioned more than $75,000 for filing a SLAPP suit against a lawyer who had requested financial documents from the State Fair. On August 2, 2016, the Dallas Court of Appeals reversed in its entirety the judgment against the State Fair of Texas, holding that the trial court erred in, among other things, finding that the State Fair's lawsuit was a SLAPP suit.
Timeline
* The State Fair of Texas opened its gates for the first time on October 26, 1886. Approximately 14,000 people attend the opening day.
* On November 7, 1886, the fair closes and attracted over 100,000 people for the very first year.
* The State Fair of Texas has a history of racial discrimination dating back to the 1880s. The first designated day for African-Americans to attend the fair was held in 1889 and was called "Colored People's Day." Educator Norman Washington Harllee Norman Washington Harllee ( - 1927) was an educator and advocate for African American education in the United States. He was born on the Harllee Plantation near Lumberton in Robeson County, North Carolina where he was enslaved. He taught himself to ...
organized exhibits and planned events and speakers including Booker T. Washington in 1900. In 1910, "Colored People's Day" was discontinued and reappeared in 1936 as "Negro Achievement Day" set to coincide with the Texas Centennial Exposition
The Texas Centennial Exposition was a world's fair presented from June 6 to November 29, 1936, at Fair Park, Dallas, Texas. A celebration of the 100th anniversary of Texas's independence from Mexico in 1836, it also celebrated Texas and Western Am ...
. Contrary to the fact that African-Americans weren't allowed to participate in entertainment or eat at restaurants and concession stands on other days during the run, fair officials touted "Negro Achievement Day" as a way to recognize the accomplishments and progress of the Negro race in Texas and the United States. The Hall of Negro Life was the only building demolished after the Texas Centennial ended.
* In 1913, the fair introduces the first Automobile building which was filled with 175 vehicles for fairgoers to see.
* The fair was canceled in 1918 due to the US Army
The United States Army (USA) is the land service branch of the United States Armed Forces. It is one of the eight U.S. uniformed services, and is designated as the Army of the United States in the U.S. Constitution.Article II, section 2, cla ...
taking control of Fair Park to establish an aviation boot camp known as Camp Dick. It resumed the next year.
* In 1921, Boston College beats Baylor at the first game ever played between teams from the southwest
The points of the compass are a set of horizontal, radially arrayed compass directions (or azimuths) used in navigation and cartography. A compass rose is primarily composed of four cardinal directions—north, east, south, and west—each sepa ...
and northeast
The points of the compass are a set of horizontal, radially arrayed compass directions (or azimuths) used in navigation and cartography. A compass rose is primarily composed of four cardinal directions—north, east, south, and west—each se ...
.
* In 1921, Texas and Vanderbilt start a series which is played here every year from 1921 to 1928 with the exception of 1924.
* In 1923, the fair hosted Ku Klux Klan day. Thousands of new Klan members were sworn in at the fairgrounds. More than 150,000 people were at the fair that day.
* In 1925, the first State Fair Classic
The State Fair Classic (formerly known as the Southwest Airlines State Fair Classic, for sponsorship purposes) is an annual college football game between the Grambling State University Tigers and the Prairie View A&M University Panthers of th ...
is played.
* In 1929, TX-OU play their Red River Rivalry
The Oklahoma–Texas football rivalry is a college football rivalry game between border rivals Oklahoma and Texas. The two teams first played each other in 1900, and the rivalry has been renewed annually and uninterrupted since 1929 for a tota ...
here for the first time.
* In 1930, construction of a new Fair Park Stadium (now known as the Cotton Bowl) begins.
* In 1932, TX-OU play their Red River Rivalry for the first time at the new Fair Park Stadium.
* In 1937, the first Cotton Bowl Classic
The Cotton Bowl Classic (also known as the Cotton Bowl) is an American college football bowl game that has been held annually in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex since January 1, 1937. The game was originally played at its namesake stadium i ...
is played in Fair Park.
* 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 ...
cancelled fairs from 1942 to 1944. By September 1945, the fair resumed for the next 75 years unhitched.
* Big Tex makes his first appearance in 1952.
* In 1955, a seat filled with members of the Memphis High School marching band broke free from the top of a 92-foot Sky Wheel, killing a 15-year-old girl. Also that year, a Denton, Texas
Denton is a city in and the county seat of Denton County, Texas, United States. With a population of 139,869 as of 2020, it is the 27th-most populous city in Texas, the 197th-most populous city in the United States, and the 12th-most populous ...
, high school senior, Doris Mae Dukes, was named ''Miss Bronze Texas'' from among 15 Texas high school and college contestants during the fair's "Negro Achievement Day". The award was presented by a Neiman Marcus
Neiman Marcus Group, Inc. is an American integrated luxury retailer headquartered in Dallas, Texas, which owns Neiman Marcus, Bergdorf Goodman, Horchow, and Last Call. Since September 2021, NMG has been owned by a group of investment compani ...
official.
* In 1956 the Trailblazer
A trailblazer is a person who is paving the way in their particular field for future generations.
Trailblazer may refer to:
Sports
* Derby Trailblazers, a British semi-professional basketball team
* North Carolina Trailblazers, a US women's rec ...
monorail began operation at Fair Park from 1956 to 1964. It was the first commercially operated monorail system in the United States.
* Elvis Presley
Elvis Aaron Presley (January 8, 1935 – August 16, 1977), or simply Elvis, was an American singer and actor. Dubbed the "Honorific nicknames in popular music, King of Rock and Roll", he is regarded as Cultural impact of Elvis Presley, one ...
performs in the Cotton Bowl during the fair in 1956.
* In 1960, the Dallas Texans Dallas Texans may refer to:
American football
*Dallas Texans (NFL), 1952 team in the National Football League
*Dallas Texans (AFL), 1960–1962 team that is now the Kansas City Chiefs
* Dallas Texans (arena), 1990–1993 Arena Football League team ...
(AFL
AFL may refer to:
Sports
* American Football League (AFL), a name shared by several separate and unrelated professional American football leagues:
** American Football League (1926) (a.k.a. "AFL I"), first rival of the National Football Leagu ...
) and the Dallas Cowboys
The Dallas Cowboys are a professional American football team based in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex. The Cowboys compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) East divisi ...
(NFL
The National Football League (NFL) is a professional American football league that consists of 32 teams, divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National Football Conference (NFC). The NFL is one of the major ...
) play their first season in the Cotton Bowl.
* In 1964 the monorail closed and was replaced by the Swiss Sky Ride, a 64 car aerial ride that traveled over a 3,800 foot path (the longest ever built).
* In 1966, the State Fair commissioned a report on the redevelopment of the fair, which concluded that the land around Fair Park should be `bought up and turned into a paved, lighted, fenced parking lot" that would `eliminate the problem from sight'. "If the poor Negroes in their shacks cannot be seen, all the guilt feelings…will disappear, or at least be removed from primary consideration".
* In 1979, a Sky Ride accident occurred during the last day of the fair, prompting the removal of the attraction.
* In 1983, an 18-year-old boy was killed and several bystanders were injured when a gondola fell off the Enterprise
Enterprise (or the archaic spelling Enterprize) may refer to:
Business and economics
Brands and enterprises
* Enterprise GP Holdings, an energy holding company
* Enterprise plc, a UK civil engineering and maintenance company
* Enterprise ...
.
* In 1985 the Texas Star
Texas Star is a Ferris wheel at Fair Park in Dallas, Texas, where it operates during the annual State Fair of Texas as its most popular ride.
With an overall height of , it was the tallest Ferris wheel in North America from 1985 until the open ...
opens as the largest ferris wheel
A Ferris wheel (also called a Giant Wheel or an observation wheel) is an amusement ride consisting of a rotating upright wheel with multiple passenger-carrying components (commonly referred to as passenger cars, cabins, tubs, gondolas, capsules ...
in North America.
* In 1989, The Comet Roller Coaster, a Fair Park landmark since 1947, is torn down.
* Following the 2001 September 11 attacks
The September 11 attacks, commonly known as 9/11, were four coordinated suicide terrorist attacks carried out by al-Qaeda against the United States on Tuesday, September 11, 2001. That morning, nineteen terrorists hijacked four commercia ...
, Dallas police
The Dallas Police Department, established in 1881, is the principal law enforcement agency serving the city of Dallas, Texas.
Organization
The department is headed by a chief of police who is appointed by the city manager who, in turn, is hir ...
and State Fair officials announce the implementation of new security measures during the annual event.
* In 2005, the Fried Peanut Butter, Jelly and Banana Sandwich is introduced to the fair.
* In 2007 the Texas Skyway aerial ride opens in Fair Park.
* In 2010, the 8000 ft Greenhouse on the Midway is built to house 1000 hanging baskets, beehives, and Farmer Mike Farmer Mike is the stage name of professional pumpkin carver Mike Valladao of Half Moon Bay, California. He specializes in carving giant pumpkins from 100 pounds to more than a half ton each at events such as the Half Moon Bay Art and Pumpkin Festiv ...
the Pumpkin Carver.
* Fairgoers spent more than $37 million in 2010 which broke the fair's record.
* On November 14, 2011 – State Fair of Texas filed its 2010 IRS Form 990 Tax Return.
* On October 19, 2012, Big Tex
Big Tex is a tall figure and marketing icon of the annual State Fair of Texas held at Fair Park in Dallas, Texas. The figure has become a cultural icon of Dallas and Texas. Since 1952 Big Tex has served as a cultural ambassador to visitors, and ...
caught on fire, burning it down to the skeletal frame, with only the right arm remaining.
* On November 15, 2012 – State Fair of Texas filed its 2011 IRS Form 990 Tax Return.
* In 2013:
** The State Fair opened a brand new attraction – a 500-foot observation tower called "Top o' Texas Tower" – as part of a renovation of part of the Midway called "Summer Adventures at Fair Park." The "Tower" now operates only 24 days a year, despite a construction cost of over $11 million.
** The State Fair also operated Summer Adventures in Fair Park, a beach-themed amusement park from May to August 2013.
** Despite a $30 million investment in Summer Adventures, the event was shuttered after just one season.
** Jim Schutze of the Dallas Observer wrote, "The sudden collapse of a $30 million venture has to be some kind of red flag, some indication that it's time to re-examine the whole thing."
** A new Big Tex statue was unveiled the day before the fair opened.
* On November 12, 2013 – State Fair of Texas filed its 2012 IRS Form 990 Tax Return.
* In 2014:
** In September 2014, a blue ribbon task force appointed by Mayor Mike Rawlings submitted a report on the rejuvenation of Fair Park. The Mayor's Task Force plan envisions a public-private partnership led by a non profit organization to be charged with over arching powers to control the revitalization of Fair Park, including the State Fair of Texas. Architect/City planner Antonio Di Mambro, with international experience in infrastructure planning and neighborhood revitalization, encouraged the Mayor to use the Task Force report as a building block for constructive dialogue with residents, stakeholders and the neighborhoods around Fair Park. Following the presentation of the Task Force Plan, Mayor Mike Rawlings said, "I felt passion by all the council and park board members that they want Fair Park to be all it can be and they're interested in taking this big challenge on".
** October – State Fair comes under fire for spending over $5 million on attorneys fees to two insiders.
** November 7, 2014 -State Fair of Texas filed its 2013 IRS Form 990 Tax Return, indicating a loss of over $2 million for the reporting period.* In 2015:
** In March 2015, the State Fair pushed back on any notion of tightening up the footprint of its current operation. ''Dallas Morning News'' reporter Robert Wilonsky called the State Fair's response "rather dramatic" The article also quoted Stephen Page of the closed Texas Museum of Automotive History from 2012 as saying, "The City's requirement that tenants vacate the majority of the buildings in Fair Park during the State Fair is the principal reason for Fair Park's ongoing decline." Wilonsky also quoted a ‘prominent member of the Mayor's Task Force’ as suggesting privately "that the State Fair's presence at Fair Park also needs to be greatly reduced."
** In May 2015, the Park and Recreation Board voted unanimously to recommend and approve the Mayor's Task Force Plan and recommended that underground parking structures be built rather than as initially recommended by the Task Force.
** In August 2015, the State Fair was sanctioned more than $75,000 for filing a SLAPP
Strategic lawsuits against public participation (also known as SLAPP suits or intimidation lawsuits), or strategic litigation against public participation, are lawsuits intended to censor, intimidate, and silence critics by burdening them with t ...
suit against a lawyer who had requested financial documents from the State Fair. On August 2, 2016, the Dallas Court of Appeals reversed in its entirety the judgment against the State Fair of Texas, holding that the trial court erred in, among other things, finding that the State Fair's lawsuit was a SLAPP suit.
* On September 9, 2017, Charlie Daniels
Charles Edward Daniels (October 28, 1936 – July 6, 2020) was an American singer, musician, and songwriter. His music fused rock, country, blues and jazz, pioneering Southern rock. He was best known for his number-one country hit "The Dev ...
performed and played his famous song ''The Devil Went Down to Georgia
"The Devil Went Down to Georgia" is a song written and performed by the Charlie Daniels, Charlie Daniels Band and released on their 1979 album ''Million Mile Reflections''.
The song is written in the key of D minor. Vassar Clements originally wr ...
''.
* On September 5, 2019, the State Fair of Texas was ordered by the Court of Appeals for the Fifth District of Texas at Dallas to compensate Riggs & Ray, P.C. for its appeal of the August 2, 2016 ruling.
* On July 7, 2020, it was announced that due to COVID-19
Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a contagious disease caused by a virus, the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The first known case was COVID-19 pandemic in Hubei, identified in Wuhan, China, in December ...
, the State Fair of Texas was cancelled for the first time since WWII
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 ...
. This was the first cancellation in 76 years.
* In September 2021, the fair resumed after a one-year hiatus.
Economics, finances and management
The economics, finances and management of the State Fair of Texas is a matter of public concern and study. The five main areas of concern are:
* What is the annual attendance of the fair?
* What economic impact does the fair have on people and businesses in the surrounding area?
* How much money does the State Fair provide for the benefit of improvements at Fair Park
Fair Park is a recreational and educational complex in Dallas, Texas, United States, located immediately east of downtown. The area is registered as a Dallas Landmark and National Historic Landmark; many of the buildings were constructed for th ...
and elsewhere
* State fair staff compensation levels
* Audits
Attendance
Staff of the State Fair have traditionally reported that attendance at the fair runs in the vicinity each year of between 3 and 3.5 million people. These figures were disputed in an April 2016 study published by Tom Kelly, Ph.D., a professor of economics at Baylor University
Baylor University is a private Baptist Christian research university in Waco, Texas. Baylor was chartered in 1845 by the last Congress of the Republic of Texas. Baylor is the oldest continuously operating university in Texas and one of the fir ...
and the Director of Baylor University Center for Business and Economic Research, along with Bennet Hickok, an Economics student at Baylor. The Kelly/Hickok report argues that the attendance at the fair is about 1.5-1.7 million visitors a year, or about half of what state fair staff reported it to be. According to the 2017 State Fair of Texas Annual Report, the Fair attracted a total of 2,250,433 attendees during the 2017 event with roughly 93,000 daily guests. The total annual reported attendance for 2018 dropped to 2,049,119 with a net operating revenue loss of $3,199,044 for the year
Economic impact on surrounding businesses
The 2016 Kelly/Hickok study found that the State Fair generates around $50 million for the area economy. This is in contrast to the figure of $600 million in impact that the State Fair itself has traditionally reported.
How excess revenue is spent
The State Fair has a lease with Fair Park
Fair Park is a recreational and educational complex in Dallas, Texas, United States, located immediately east of downtown. The area is registered as a Dallas Landmark and National Historic Landmark; many of the buildings were constructed for th ...
, the terms of which require that any profit or excess revenue it generates be spent "for the development and enhancement of Fair Park and the Fair". In May 2016, the State Fair released a list of capital projects for the past 10 years, detailing how the fair had spent their excess revenue. According to media reports, 90% of excess revenue was spent on projects that solely benefited the State Fair. A survey of Fair Park
Fair Park is a recreational and educational complex in Dallas, Texas, United States, located immediately east of downtown. The area is registered as a Dallas Landmark and National Historic Landmark; many of the buildings were constructed for th ...
revealed out of the 277 acres available, 200 are covered in asphalt or concrete, compared to 10 acres of green space.
Staff compensation
In 2014, Errol McKoy, the former President of the State Fair of Texas, received $1.425 million in compensation. Excessive executive compensation is a constant and major complaint of the fair.
Audits
On May 13, 2016, the City of Dallas Auditor, Craig Kinton, released an audit regarding Fair Park Business Partners, which included the State Fair of Texas. The audit concluded the City of Dallas had no way to ensure the State Fair was adequately investing in Fair Park
Fair Park is a recreational and educational complex in Dallas, Texas, United States, located immediately east of downtown. The area is registered as a Dallas Landmark and National Historic Landmark; many of the buildings were constructed for th ...
, per the terms of the contract between the City of Dallas and State Fair.
See also
* A Fair To Remember (documentary)
''A Fair to Remember'' is a documentary film about the State Fair of Texas that debuted in February 2007 at the Hall of State on the grounds of Fair Park in Dallas, Texas.
Synopsis
The film chronicles the history of the State Fair of Texas beginni ...
* Fair Park
Fair Park is a recreational and educational complex in Dallas, Texas, United States, located immediately east of downtown. The area is registered as a Dallas Landmark and National Historic Landmark; many of the buildings were constructed for th ...
* Hall of State
The Hall of State (originally the State of Texas Building) is a building in Dallas's Fair Park that commemorates the history of the U.S. state of Texas and is considered one of the best examples of Art Deco architecture in the state. It was desig ...
* Heart of Dallas Classic
The Heart of Dallas Classic was a planned annual college football game played on the opening weekend of the State Fair of Texas at the historic Cotton Bowl (stadium), Cotton Bowl in Fair Park, Dallas, Texas. However, the game was not renewed beyon ...
* State Fair Classic
The State Fair Classic (formerly known as the Southwest Airlines State Fair Classic, for sponsorship purposes) is an annual college football game between the Grambling State University Tigers and the Prairie View A&M University Panthers of th ...
* African dodger
African dodger, also known as Hit the Coon or Hit the Nigger Baby, was a carnival game played in the United States. In the game, an African Americans, African-American child would stick his head through a curtain, and attempt to dodge objects, suc ...
Notes
External links
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{{DEFAULTSORT:State Fair Of Texas
Fairs in Texas
Fair Park
Festivals in Dallas
Texas
Texas (, ; Spanish language, Spanish: ''Texas'', ''Tejas'') is a state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. At 268,596 square miles (695,662 km2), and with more than 29.1 million residents in 2 ...
Annual events in Texas
Annual fairs
September events
October events
Texas culture
State agencies of Texas
Festivals established in 1886
1886 establishments in Texas