Minnesota State Fair
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The Minnesota State Fair is the
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 ...
of the
U.S. state In the United States, a state is a constituent political entity, of which there are 50. Bound together in a political union, each state holds governmental jurisdiction over a separate and defined geographic territory where it shares its sove ...
of
Minnesota Minnesota () is a state in the upper midwestern region of the United States. It is the 12th largest U.S. state in area and the 22nd most populous, with over 5.75 million residents. Minnesota is home to western prairies, now given over to ...
. Also known by its slogan, "The Great Minnesota Get-Together", it is the largest state fair in the United States by average daily attendance and the second-largest state fair in the United States by total attendance, trailing only the
State Fair of Texas The State Fair of Texas is an annual state fair held in Dallas at historic Fair Park. 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. It ...
, which generally runs twice as long as the Minnesota State Fair. The state fairgrounds, adjacent the Saint Paul campus of the
University of Minnesota The University of Minnesota, formally the University of Minnesota, Twin Cities, (UMN Twin Cities, the U of M, or Minnesota) is a public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in the Minneapolis–Saint Paul, Tw ...
, are in
Falcon Heights, Minnesota Falcon Heights is a suburb of Saint Paul and a city in Ramsey County, Minnesota, United States. The population was 5,321 at the 2010 census. It became a village in 1949 and a city in 1973. Falcon Heights is the home of the University of Minn ...
, midway between the state's capital city of
Saint Paul Paul; grc, Παῦλος, translit=Paulos; cop, ⲡⲁⲩⲗⲟⲥ; hbo, פאולוס השליח (previously called Saul of Tarsus;; ar, بولس الطرسوسي; grc, Σαῦλος Ταρσεύς, Saũlos Tarseús; tr, Tarsuslu Pavlus; ...
and the adjacent city of Roseville, near the Como Park and
Saint Anthony Park Saint Anthony Park is a neighborhood in northwest Saint Paul, Minnesota. It is adjacent to the University of Minnesota's St. Paul Campus (in Falcon Heights), bordering Southeast Minneapolis on the west, the Minnesota State Fairgrounds on the e ...
neighborhoods of Saint Paul. Residents of the state and region come to the fair to be entertained, exhibit their best
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 ...
, show off their abilities in a variety of fields including
art Art is a diverse range of human activity, and resulting product, that involves creative or imaginative talent expressive of technical proficiency, beauty, emotional power, or conceptual ideas. There is no generally agreed definition of wha ...
and
cooking Cooking, cookery, or culinary arts is the art, science and craft of using heat to Outline of food preparation, prepare food for consumption. Cooking techniques and ingredients vary widely, from grilling food over an open fire to using electric ...
, learn about new products and services, and eat many different types of
food Food is any substance consumed by an organism for nutritional support. Food is usually of plant, animal, or fungal origin, and contains essential nutrients, such as carbohydrates, fats, proteins, vitamins, or minerals. The substance is inge ...
—often on a stick. The Minnesota State Fair was named the best state fair in the United States in 2015 by readers of ''
USA Today ''USA Today'' (stylized in all uppercase) is an American daily middle-market newspaper and news broadcasting company. Founded by Al Neuharth on September 15, 1982, the newspaper operates from Gannett's corporate headquarters in Tysons, Virgini ...
''. The fair runs for twelve days from late August into early September, ending on Labor Day. Around two million people attend the fair annually. Attendance in 2019 was a record 2,126,551 people. The highest daily attendance in the history of the fair was 270,426 visitors on Saturday, September 1, 2018.


History

Minnesota Territory The Territory of Minnesota was an organized incorporated territory of the United States that existed from March 3, 1849, until May 11, 1858, when the eastern portion of the territory was admitted to the Union as the State of Minnesota and west ...
first held a Territorial Fair in 1854, although the first Minnesota State Fair didn't occur until 1859, the year after statehood. In its early years during the 19th century, the fair was held in many different locations. Some were not far from the current site, but others were held in Greater Minnesota, including years where it was held in
Rochester Rochester may refer to: Places Australia * Rochester, Victoria Canada * Rochester, Alberta United Kingdom *Rochester, Kent ** City of Rochester-upon-Medway (1982–1998), district council area ** History of Rochester, Kent ** HM Prison ...
, Owatonna, and Winona. For a time in the 1870s, the
Twin Cities Twin cities are a special case of two neighboring cities or urban centres that grow into a single conurbation – or narrowly separated urban areas – over time. There are no formal criteria, but twin cities are generally comparable in sta ...
of
Minneapolis Minneapolis () is the largest city in Minnesota, United States, and the county seat of Hennepin County. The city is abundant in water, with thirteen lakes, wetlands, the Mississippi River, creeks and waterfalls. Minneapolis has its origins ...
and St. Paul held competing fairs. Minneapolis, the younger city of the pair, eventually outdid its neighbor by staging the larger fair with the help of William S. King. In 1884, a
committee A committee or commission is a body of one or more persons subordinate to a deliberative assembly. A committee is not itself considered to be a form of assembly. Usually, the assembly sends matters into a committee as a way to explore them more ...
was put together by the Minnesota State Agricultural Society to select a permanent site. One site that was considered was an area around
Minnehaha Falls Minnehaha Park is a city park in Minneapolis, Minnesota, United States, and home to Minnehaha Falls and the lower reaches of Minnehaha Creek. Officially named Minnehaha Regional Park, it is part of the Minneapolis Park and Recreation Board syst ...
, but the final site chosen was the Ramsey County
Poor Farm A poorhouse or workhouse is a government-run (usually by a county or municipality) facility to support and provide housing for the dependent or needy. Workhouses In England, Wales and Ireland (but not in Scotland), ‘workhouse’ has been th ...
, the fair's current site. It was a politically neutral site, being about halfway between Minneapolis and St. Paul. The fair first opened its doors there on September 7, 1885. The site was then , but now stands at . One of the first annual events to occur is the creation of a
butter sculpture Butter sculptures are three-dimensional works of art created with butter, a dairy product made from the fat and protein components of churned cream. The works often depict animals, people, buildings and other objects. They are best known as attra ...
. Each year, a new
Princess Kay of the Milky Way Princess Kay of the Milky Way is the title awarded to the winner of the statewide Minnesota Dairy Princess Program, an annual competition organized by the Midwest Dairy Association. During her one-year term, the Princess Kay of the Milky Way serve ...
is selected to promote Minnesota's
dairy A dairy is a business enterprise established for the harvesting or processing (or both) of animal milk – mostly from cows or buffaloes, but also from goats, sheep, horses, or camels – for human consumption. A dairy is typically located on ...
industry. Part of the job involves posing for several hours in a walk-in, glass-walled refrigerator as a block of butter is carved into a head with her likeness. Butter makers started sculpting their products at the fair as far back as 1898, although the head-sculpting tradition did not begin until 1964. The main entrance to the fair from Snelling Avenue heads onto a road named
Dan Patch Dan Patch (April 29, 1896 – July 11, 1916) was a noted American Standardbred pacer. At a time when harness racing was one of the largest sports in the nation, Dan Patch was a major celebrity. He was undefeated in open competition, and was so ...
Avenue for a pacer
horse The horse (''Equus ferus caballus'') is a domesticated, one-toed, hoofed mammal. It belongs to the taxonomic family Equidae and is one of two extant subspecies of ''Equus ferus''. The horse has evolved over the past 45 to 55 million y ...
who won every race he ran in from 1900 to 1909 when he was retired. In 1898 the
Spanish American War Spanish might refer to: * Items from or related to Spain: **Spaniards are a nation and ethnic group indigenous to Spain **Spanish language, spoken in Spain and many Latin American countries **Spanish cuisine Other places * Spanish, Ontario, Cana ...
broke out. The states were requested to provide volunteers and Minnesota quickly had enough to form four Regiments. They were initially numbered 1–4, but
GAR Gars are members of the family Lepisosteidae, which are the only surviving members of the Ginglymodi, an ancient holosteian group of ray-finned fish, which first appeared during the Triassic, over 240 million years ago. Gars comprise seven livin ...
veterans felt that they should continue the numbering from the
Civil War A civil war or intrastate war is a war between organized groups within the same state (or country). The aim of one side may be to take control of the country or a region, to achieve independence for a region, or to change government policies ...
and they became the 12th–15th Minnesota Infantry Regiments. All four were mustered and organized on the State Fair Grounds. Camp Ramsey on Machinery Hill was the encampment site. One of the most significant dates in the fair's history was September 2, 1901, when then-
Vice President A vice president, also director in British English, is an officer in government or business who is below the president (chief executive officer) in rank. It can also refer to executive vice presidents, signifying that the vice president is on t ...
Theodore Roosevelt Theodore Roosevelt Jr. ( ; October 27, 1858 – January 6, 1919), often referred to as Teddy or by his initials, T. R., was an American politician, statesman, soldier, conservationist, naturalist, historian, and writer who served as the 26t ...
was visiting and first uttered the famous phrase, "Speak softly and carry a big stick." Roosevelt became
president President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) *President (education), a leader of a college or university *President (government title) President may also refer to: Automobiles * Nissan President, a 1966–2010 Japanese ful ...
just 12 days later, after
William McKinley William McKinley (January 29, 1843September 14, 1901) was the 25th president of the United States, serving from 1897 until his assassination in 1901. As a politician he led a realignment that made his Republican Party largely dominant in ...
was assassinated. In 1925, the Minnesota State Fair was the site of the Norse-American Centennial celebration. During his appearance at the
Norse-American Centennial The Norse-American Centennial celebration was held at the Minnesota State Fair on June 6–9, 1925. Description The event served to commemorate the 100th anniversary of the arrival during 1825 of the Norwegian immigrant ship '' Restauration''. T ...
, President
Calvin Coolidge Calvin Coolidge (born John Calvin Coolidge Jr.; ; July 4, 1872January 5, 1933) was the 30th president of the United States from 1923 to 1929. Born in Vermont, Coolidge was a History of the Republican Party (United States), Republican lawyer ...
gave recognition to the contributions of Scandinavian-Americans and noted
Leif Erikson Leif Erikson, Leiv Eiriksson, or Leif Ericson, ; Modern Icelandic: ; Norwegian: ''Leiv Eiriksson'' also known as Leif the Lucky (), was a Norse explorer who is thought to have been the first European to have set foot on continental Nort ...
as the discoverer of America. In 1967, attendance was well over a million people and the record day that year was about 197,000 visitors. By 2016, attendance neared 2 million and the record day was about a quarter-million people. 2018 was another record year for the Fair. The overall attendance record of 2,046,533 was set along with an all-time single-day attendance record of 270,426 on the second Saturday.


Cancellations

Since 1859, the fair has run annually except for six different years. In 1861 and 1862, the fair was not held because of the
Civil War A civil war or intrastate war is a war between organized groups within the same state (or country). The aim of one side may be to take control of the country or a region, to achieve independence for a region, or to change government policies ...
and the
Dakota War of 1862 The Dakota War of 1862, also known as the Sioux Uprising, the Dakota Uprising, the Sioux Outbreak of 1862, the Dakota Conflict, the U.S.-Dakota War of 1862, or Little Crow's War, was an armed conflict between the United States and several ban ...
. Scheduling issues between the fair and the
World's Columbian Exposition The World's Columbian Exposition (also known as the Chicago World's Fair) was a world's fair held in Chicago (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordi ...
in
Chicago (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...
,
Illinois Illinois ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern United States. Its largest metropolitan areas include the Chicago metropolitan area, and the Metro East section, of Greater St. Louis. Other smaller metropolita ...
caused the 1893 fair to be cancelled. The fair was not held in 1945, as fuel was in short supply due to
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 ...
and it was again cancelled in 1946 because of an outbreak of
polio Poliomyelitis, commonly shortened to polio, is an infectious disease caused by the poliovirus. Approximately 70% of cases are asymptomatic; mild symptoms which can occur include sore throat and fever; in a proportion of cases more severe s ...
. The fair was most recently cancelled in 2020, this time 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 ...
with the decision announced on May 22, 2020. Fair Manager, Jerry Hammer, had previously stated that the 2020 fair would not be a postponed or scaled-back event; it would either run unchanged or be cancelled. Of the decision to cancel, Hammer stated "this is the time of year when things really need to take off, and we can't do it. There's not time." Instead, a food parade featuring several well-known State Fair vendors was held on several dates in October. To make up for 2020's cancellation, the fair management hosted its first-ever spring event entitled "Kickoff To Summer" featuring scaled-back concessions and attractions. It also served as a test to the fair's eventual return in 2021. The "Kickoff to Summer" event returned in 2022 after positive reception in 2021.


Attractions


Livestock

A large portion of the Fairgrounds are occupied by livestock barns where various farm animals are displayed. The animals and their owners take part in livestock shows to compete for awards. Most of the shows take place in the coliseum, a large indoor arena on the fairgrounds. The Coliseum was constructed to replace the Hippodrome, which was rendered structurally unsound during its use as a Propeller Plant by the A.O. Smith Corporation during WWII and razed in 1946, and was completed for use in the 1951 fair. Open class livestock competitions are held in horses, beef cattle, dairy cattle, swine, sheep, dairy goats,
llama The llama (; ) (''Lama glama'') is a domesticated South American camelid, widely used as a List of meat animals, meat and pack animal by Inca empire, Andean cultures since the Pre-Columbian era. Llamas are social animals and live with othe ...
s, poultry (chickens, ducks, geese, turkeys, pigeons) rabbits, and stock
dog The dog (''Canis familiaris'' or ''Canis lupus familiaris'') is a domesticated descendant of the wolf. Also called the domestic dog, it is derived from the extinct Pleistocene wolf, and the modern wolf is the dog's nearest living relative. Do ...
s. On August 31, 2007, a bull escaped from its handler charging several fairgoers before fatally injuring itself charging a fire hydrant. No people were seriously injured in the mishap.


Food

Foods served at the annual Minnesota State Fair have traditionally included watermelon pickles,
baked beans Baked beans is a dish traditionally containing white beans that are parboiled and then, in the US, baked in sauce at low temperature for a lengthy period. In the United Kingdom, the dish is sometimes baked, but usually stewed in sauce. Canned ...
, buffalo burgers, deep-fried cheese curds,
cotton candy Cotton candy, also known as fairy floss and candy floss, is a spun sugar confection that resembles cotton. It usually contains small amounts of flavoring or food coloring. It is made by heating and liquefying sugar, and spinning it centrifu ...
, glazed ham, Australian battered potatoes and homemade
apple pie An apple pie is a fruit pie in which the principal filling ingredient is apples. The earliest printed recipe is from England. Apple pie is often served with whipped cream, ice cream ("apple pie à la mode"), or cheddar cheese. It is generally ...
. Some foods reflect Minnesota's agriculture, including
cheese curds Cheese curds are moist pieces of curdled milk, eaten either alone or as a snack, or used in prepared dishes. They are consumed throughout the northern United States and Canada. Notably, cheese curds are popular in Quebec, as part of the dish ...
, milk shakes, and
corn 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 ...
s. Many foods at the fair are
deep-fried Deep frying (also referred to as deep fat frying) is a cooking method in which food is submerged in hot fat, traditionally lard but today most commonly oil, as opposed to the shallow oil used in conventional frying done in a frying pan. Normal ...
or come on a stick, from the classic corn dog to alligator-on-a-stick, lobster-on-a-stick, and deep-fried candy bar on a stick. New to the fair in 2006 was
hotdish A hotdish is a casserole dish that typically contains a starch, a meat, and a canned or frozen vegetable mixed with canned soup that must be served hot or warm. A classic example is made with ground beef, topped with tater tots, and flavored ...
on a stick, a variant of a classic staple of Minnesotan cuisine. In 2007, one new food was
spaghetti Spaghetti () is a long, thin, solid, cylindrical pasta.spaghetti
Dictionary.com. Dictionary.com Unabridg ...
on a stick. 2008's new foods included two types of
bacon Bacon is a type of salt-cured pork made from various cuts, typically the belly or less fatty parts of the back. It is eaten as a side dish (particularly in breakfasts), used as a central ingredient (e.g., the bacon, lettuce, and tomato sand ...
, one called "Pig Lickers", which is chocolate covered, and the other, called the "Big Fat Bacon", which is of maple-glazed bacon. Another staple of the state fair is “Sweet Martha’s Cookies,” a stand that serves fresh and warm chocolate chip cookies in buckets. In 2018, 27 new foods were introduced to the Minnesota State Fair including Firecracker Shrimp Stuffed Avocado, Honey Cream Soda Float, Mangonada Shaved Ice, Messy Giuseppe, Nordic Waffles, Smoked Soft Serve Ice Cream, and the UpNorth Puff Pastry. New foods for 2019 included fried tacos on a stick, stuffed
cabbage rolls A cabbage roll is a dish consisting of cooked cabbage leaves wrapped around a variety of stuffing, fillings. It is common to the cuisines of Central Europe, Central, Northern Europe, Northern, Eastern Europe, Eastern and Southeastern Europe and ...
, feta bites, shrimp and grits
fritters A fritter is a portion of meat, seafood, fruit, vegetables or other ingredients which have been battered or breaded, or just a portion of dough without further ingredients, that is deep-fried. Fritters are prepared in both sweet and savory vari ...
, blueberry key lime pie, 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 ...
and assorted other dessert selections.


Machinery Hill/The North End

Machinery Hill is a large area of the fairgrounds. For several decades, it held the largest annual display of farm equipment in the world, with many companies showing off
tractor A tractor is an engineering vehicle specifically designed to deliver a high tractive effort (or torque) at slow speeds, for the purposes of hauling a trailer or machinery such as that used in agriculture, mining or construction. Most common ...
s, combines, and various attachments. However, modern displays generally focus on
car A car or automobile is a motor vehicle with wheels. Most definitions of ''cars'' say that they run primarily on roads, seat one to eight people, have four wheels, and mainly transport people instead of goods. The year 1886 is regarded as ...
s, trucks,
lawn mower A lawn mower (also known as a mower, grass cutter or lawnmower) is a device utilizing one or more revolving blades (or a reel) to cut a grass surface to an even height. The height of the cut grass may be fixed by the design of the mower, but g ...
s, hot tubs and recreational machines like
motorbike A motorcycle (motorbike, bike, or trike (if three-wheeled)) is a two or three-wheeled motor vehicle Steering, steered by a Motorcycle handlebar, handlebar. Motorcycle design varies greatly to suit a range of different purposes: Long-distance ...
s. Farm implement dealers tend to direct their efforts to more targeted "farm shows," abandoning the State Fair to more urban or suburban types of exhibitors. Machinery Hill also contains an interactive exhibit for kids called Little Farm Hands. In this exhibit, children get to experience life on the farm from planting seeds to selling goods at the farmers market. Machinery Hill is gradually being rebranded as "The North End." In 2019, a new main entrance gate was created in addition to the new North End Event Center, which hosts traveling events and expositions. Its 2019 inaugural event was ANGRY BIRDS UNIVERSE: THE EXHIBITION.


Shows

The State Fair hosts concerts, comedy shows,
product demonstration In marketing, a product demonstration (or ''"demo"'' for short) is a promotion where a product is demonstrated to potential customers. The goal is to introduce customers to the product in hopes of getting them to purchase that item. Products offere ...
s, the State Fair Talent Contest and other shows. The Grandstand is a large outdoor concert hall that also features three floors of interior exhibition space. It hosts the largest of the fair's concerts and until 2002 was also the site of
stock car Stock car racing is a form of automobile racing run on oval tracks and road courses measuring approximately . It originally used production-model cars, hence the name "stock car", but is now run using cars specifically built for racing. It ori ...
races run on a small oval track. In 2003 the facility completed the first phase of a $35 million remodeling project that removed large sections of bleachers and increased
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 ...
to 17,000. Most local television and radio stations set up temporary studios at the State Fair in their permanent buildings or booths. In 2012 the fair began holding the Walker Art Center's Internet Cat Video Festival in the grandstand. Fairgoers watch the year's most popular cat videos and memes and award the best videos with cat trophies, the most prized being the Golden Kitty. Guest appearances have included
Grumpy Cat Tardar Sauce (April 4, 2012 – May 14, 2019), nicknamed Grumpy Cat, was an American Internet celebrity cat. She was known for her permanently "grumpy" facial appearance, which was caused by an underbite and feline dwarfism. She came to promi ...
and
Lil Bub Lil Bub, officially Lil BUB (June 21, 2011 – December 1, 2019), was an American celebrity cat known for her unique physical appearance. Her photos were first posted to Tumblr in November 2011, before being taken off after being featured on the ...
, two internet stars, as well as the creator of
Nyan Cat Nyan Cat is a YouTube video uploaded in April 2011, which became an internet meme. The video merged a Japanese pop song with an animated cartoon cat with a Pop-Tart for a torso flying through space and leaving a rainbow trail behind. The video r ...
, Christopher Torres.


Art

The fair displays an annual art exhibition that is the result of a
juried competition A juried competition is a competition in which participants' work is judged by a person or panel of persons convened specifically to judge the participants' efforts, either by the competition's stated rubric or by a subjective set of criteria depen ...
of works of
fine art 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 metalwork ...
. Media include watercolor, oil, and acrylic paintings, photographs, sculptures, pastels, ceramics, glass, and textiles. Entrants must be living residents of the state. In 2010, a total of 2,330 pieces were submitted, and 413 works were accepted. One unusual display at the fair consists of the entrants in the
crop art Crop art is an environmental art practice using plants and seeds in the landscape to create statements, marks and/or images. Agnes Denes, Matthew Moore (artist), Dennis Oppenheim and Stan Herd are practitioners of Crop art. Some works of Land ar ...
competition. The artwork must be made of plant matter (seeds, stems, flowers, fruit, etc.) suitable for growing in Minnesota. For decades the display was dominated by Owatonna native
Lillian Colton Lillian Colton (1911 – March 20, 2007) was a crop artist whose work, usually portraits of public figures made from agricultural products such as wild rice, hay, and timothy seeds glued to cardboard, has been prominently displayed at the Minnesot ...
(1912–2007), who created
seed A seed is an embryonic plant enclosed in a protective outer covering, along with a food reserve. The formation of the seed is a part of the process of reproduction in seed plants, the spermatophytes, including the gymnosperm and angiospe ...
portraits, professionally, having effectively captured scores of celebrities such as
Ernest Hemingway Ernest Miller Hemingway (July 21, 1899 – July 2, 1961) was an American novelist, short-story writer, and journalist. His economical and understated style—which he termed the iceberg theory—had a strong influence on 20th-century fic ...
,
Barbra Streisand Barbara Joan "Barbra" Streisand (; born April 24, 1942) is an American singer, actress and director. With a career spanning over six decades, she has achieved success in multiple fields of entertainment, and is among the few performers List ...
,
Franklin D. Roosevelt Franklin Delano Roosevelt (; ; January 30, 1882April 12, 1945), often referred to by his initials FDR, was an American politician and attorney who served as the 32nd president of the United States from 1933 until his death in 1945. As the ...
,
Prince A prince is a male ruler (ranked below a king, grand prince, and grand duke) or a male member of a monarch's or former monarch's family. ''Prince'' is also a title of nobility (often highest), often hereditary, in some European states. Th ...
,
Princess Diana Diana, Princess of Wales (born Diana Frances Spencer; 1 July 1961 – 31 August 1997) was a member of the British royal family. She was the first wife of King Charles III (then Prince of Wales) and mother of Princes William and Harry. Her ac ...
, and
Willie Nelson Willie Hugh Nelson (born April 29, 1933) is an American country musician. The critical success of the album ''Shotgun Willie'' (1973), combined with the critical and commercial success of ''Red Headed Stranger'' (1975) and '' Stardust'' (197 ...
in her crop art. After winning nine purple ribbons, she stopped competing, but continued displaying her work at the fair. There are competitions in dozens of categories in
needlecraft Needlework is decorative sewing and textile arts handicrafts. Anything that uses a needle for construction can be called needlework. Needlework may include related textile crafts such as crochet, worked with a hook, or tatting, worked with a ...
, garment-making, wood-working,
models A model is an informative representation of an object, person or system. The term originally denoted the plans of a building in late 16th-century English, and derived via French and Italian ultimately from Latin ''modulus'', a measure. Models c ...
, painting, doll-making,
taxidermy Taxidermy is the art of preserving an animal's body via mounting (over an armature) or stuffing, for the purpose of display or study. Animals are often, but not always, portrayed in a lifelike state. The word ''taxidermy'' describes the proce ...
, stamp-collecting,
scrapbooking Scrapbooking is a method of preserving, presenting and arranging personal and family history in the form of a book, box or card. Typical memorabilia include photographs, printed media, and artwork. Scrapbook albums are often decorated and frequ ...
, baking,
canning Canning is a method of food preservation in which food is processed and sealed in an airtight container (jars like Mason jars, and steel and tin cans). Canning provides a shelf life that typically ranges from one to five years, although u ...
, and others.


Milk run

The annual 5 km run begins on the fairgrounds, winds its way through the
Saint Paul Paul; grc, Παῦλος, translit=Paulos; cop, ⲡⲁⲩⲗⲟⲥ; hbo, פאולוס השליח (previously called Saul of Tarsus;; ar, بولس الطرسوسي; grc, Σαῦλος Ταρσεύς, Saũlos Tarseús; tr, Tarsuslu Pavlus; ...
campus of the
University of Minnesota The University of Minnesota, formally the University of Minnesota, Twin Cities, (UMN Twin Cities, the U of M, or Minnesota) is a public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in the Minneapolis–Saint Paul, Tw ...
and the
Saint Anthony Park Saint Anthony Park is a neighborhood in northwest Saint Paul, Minnesota. It is adjacent to the University of Minnesota's St. Paul Campus (in Falcon Heights), bordering Southeast Minneapolis on the west, the Minnesota State Fairgrounds on the e ...
neighborhood, and ends back at the fairgrounds.


4-H

4-H has a significant presence at the fair, both in the 4-H Building and in the animal barns and arenas. Contests include herdsmanship,
horse showmanship Showmanship is an event found at many horse shows. The class is also sometimes called "Fitting and Showmanship", "Showmanship In-Hand", "Showmanship at Halter" or "Halter Showmanship" It involves a person on the ground leading a horse, wearing a ...
, judging teams, public presentations and county club exhibits. Livestock displays include beef and dairy cattle, dairy and market goats, poultry (chickens, ducks, geese, turkeys, and pigeons), rabbits,
Domestic sheep Sheep or domestic sheep (''Ovis aries'') are domesticated, ruminant mammals typically kept as livestock. Although the term ''sheep'' can apply to other species in the genus ''Ovis'', in everyday usage it almost always refers to domesticated sh ...
, and swine. About half of all 4-H projects entered are animal science projects. The 4-H building was opened and dedicated in 1939 and about 320,000 state fairgoers visit it every year. The non-livestock projects include photography, performing arts, crafts, food & nutrition, and clothing & textiles.


Science

In recent years the Progress Center has been housing the Eco Experience exhibit, which features activities and exhibits including the design and construction of an eco-friendly house, a
rain garden Rain gardens, also called bioretention facilities, are one of a variety of practices designed to increase rain runoff reabsorption by the soil. They can also be used to treat polluted stormwater runoff. Rain gardens are designed landscape sites t ...
, exhibits addressing
climate change In common usage, climate change describes global warming—the ongoing increase in global average temperature—and its effects on Earth's climate system. Climate change in a broader sense also includes previous long-term changes to E ...
,
energy conservation Energy conservation is the effort to reduce wasteful energy consumption by using fewer energy services. This can be done by using energy more effectively (using less energy for continuous service) or changing one's behavior to use less service (f ...
,
renewable energy Renewable energy is energy that is collected from renewable resources that are naturally replenished on a human timescale. It includes sources such as sunlight, wind, the movement of water, and geothermal heat. Although most renewable energy ...
,
biodiesel Biodiesel is a form of diesel fuel derived from plants or animals and consisting of long-chain fatty acid esters. It is typically made by chemically reacting lipids such as animal fat (tallow), soybean oil, or some other vegetable oil with ...
fuel and vehicles, and
organic farming Organic farming, also known as ecological farming or biological farming,Labelling, article 30 o''Regulation (EU) 2018/848 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 30 May 2018 on organic production and labelling of organic products and re ...
. The exhibit has received awards from the Western Fair Association, the International Associate of Fairs and Expositions, and the Minnesota Environmental Initiative.


State Fair Carousel

In 1913 Austin McFadden, a Michigan entrepreneur approached the Fair about building the first
roller coaster A roller coaster, or rollercoaster, is a type of amusement ride that employs a form of elevated railroad track designed with tight turns, steep slopes, and sometimes inversions. Passengers ride along the track in open cars, and the rides are o ...
on the Fair grounds and was turned down.The Midway, Minneapolis Star and Tribune, Katy Read, Aug 19, 2016
/ref> The next year he was back and offered to throw in a
Merry-go-round A carousel or carrousel (mainly North American English), merry-go-round (List of sovereign states, international), roundabout (British English), or hurdy-gurdy (an old term in Australian English, in South Australia, SA) is a type of amusement ...
to get the Fair Board's approval. They did. For the price of $8,500 McFadden got 30 tons of wood and steel decorated with 68 hand carved horses, 2 chariots and an organ from the
Philadelphia Toboggan Company Philadelphia Toboggan Coasters (PTC) is one of the oldest existing roller coaster manufacturing companies in the world. Based in Hatfield, Pennsylvania, it was established in 1904 by Henry Auchey and Chester Albright under the name Philadelphia ...
. The Carousel became a State Fair institution that all of Minnesota thought belonged to the fair grounds. It had no sign on it indicating its ownership was not public while being installed on public land. Without any disclosure in 1988 the Fair's board refused to extend the Carousel's lease. The public learned the owners had dismantled the Carousel and sent it to auction in
New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States New York may also refer to: Film and television * '' ...
.History, Cafesjian's Carousel, 1245 Midway Pkwy, Saint Paul, MN 55103
/ref> The price wanted was $1.1 million. The idea that the State Fair Carousel would be lost to Minnesota prompted a public effort to save it. While not at the Fair grounds, today it remains intact at Como Park close by. It is now named for the largest contributor to its remaining in Minnesota,
Gerard Cafesjian Gerard Leon Cafesjian ( hy, Ջերարդ Լեւոն Գաֆէսճեան, 26 April 1925 – 15 September 2013) was a businessman and philanthropist who founded the Cafesjian Family Foundation (CFF), the Cafesjian Museum Foundation (CMF) and the Ca ...
.


Entertainment


Music

Every year there are many musical venues. The Grandstand, with a capacity of up to 17,000, has featured
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, Foreigner,
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, Styx,
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, and Usher, featuring Lil Jon. There are also many free entertainment venues with local bands and a selection of national acts. Entertainment stages include the Leinie Lodge Bandshell, the Schell's Stage at Schilling Amphitheater, and the International Bazaar Stage. In 2010,
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performed two nights at one of the free venues.


Permanent rides

There are several rides that are permanent fixtures at the fair, including the Giant Slide, on which fairgoers ride down a large fiberglass slide on burlap sacks. The Skyride is an aerial lift ride that carries fairgoers across the grounds in a gondola. The Space Tower is a
gyro tower A gyro tower, or panoramic tower, is a revolving observation tower with a vertical moving platform. A gyro tower's observation deck is not simply raised to provide its passengers a spectacular view, it is also rotated around the supporting mast ...
that rotates as it lifts people over 300 feet (90 m) in the air, giving views of the Minneapolis/St. Paul area. There is also a
haunted house A haunted house, spook house or ghost house in ghostlore is a house or other building often perceived as being inhabited by disembodied spirits of the deceased who may have been former residents or were otherwise connected with the prope ...
which has been around since 1977 and is located on Judson Ave. The fair's oldest existing ride, Ye Old Mill (opened in 1915), is located near the food building. It is a " tunnel of love"-style ride for all ages.


Temporary rides

The Midway is a carnival-like setting that contains most of the rides at the State Fair. The attractions include several funhouses, roller coasters and other thrill rides as well as numerous games of skill. It is located across the street from the Midway, but is not a part of it. Kidway is the carnival area on the fairgrounds geared toward children. Kidway is located between Dan Patch and Wright Avenues on the north end of the fairgrounds.


Management

The Minnesota State Fair is a state government-related entity that is operated by the Minnesota State Agricultural Society. The management of the fair is handled by the board of managers. The state fair has not accepted governmental funds since 1949. Revenue from the fair is reinvested into maintenance and the next year's fair. The Minnesota State Fair Foundation is an organization that works to improve and preserves historic state fair buildings. The foundation is a
501(c)3 A 501(c)(3) organization is a United States corporation, trust, unincorporated association or other type of organization exempt from federal income tax under section 501(c)(3) of Title 26 of the United States Code. It is one of the 29 types of 50 ...
organization, and also supports State Fair agricultural, scientific and educational programs. The foundation provided funding for the new Miracle of Birth center. The Fair employs about 80 full-time staff members for the entire year; in the summer, some 400 seasonal staff are hired. During the fair time, around 3,000 temporary employees are hired.


Police Department

The State Fair area was policed by the Minnesota State Fair Police Department. The Chief of Police is Paul Paulos, appointed in 2018, who replaced Art Blakely, who had been chief for 37 years. Their authority is given by section 37.20 of the Minnesota Statutes. In 2020, 37 police officers were dismissed and required to re-apply for their positions, requiring a college degree which a number of longer-serving officers did not have, prompting a lawsuit against the State Fair on the grounds of age discrimination. For the first time ever, in 2021, the Ramsey County Sheriff's Office provided security at the fair in place of the State Fair P.D.


J. V. Bailey House

The J. V. Bailey House, at 1263 Cosgrove Street, is one of the oldest buildings on the fairgrounds. It was built in 1911 and restoration was completed in 2006. It is connected to the greenhouses and was occupied year-round by the greenhouse superintendent until 2004. The State Fair Foundation operates out of the residence.


Mascots

The fair's mascots are two anthropomorphized gophers. The choice of gopher as mascots was an homage to the
University of Minnesota The University of Minnesota, formally the University of Minnesota, Twin Cities, (UMN Twin Cities, the U of M, or Minnesota) is a public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in the Minneapolis–Saint Paul, Tw ...
mascot A mascot is any human, animal, or object thought to bring luck, or anything used to represent a group with a common public identity, such as a school, professional sports team, society, military unit, or brand name. Mascots are also used as fi ...
which is also a gopher and was a historical reference to the expansion of railroads in Minnesota, towns popping up across the state like gophers. For these reasons, Minnesota is sometimes referred to as the gopher state. Fairchild, the original mascot, was suggested in a statewide contest by Gladys Anderson Brown in 1966 in honor of Henry S. Fairchild who advocated using the former Ramsey County Poor Farm as the permanent site of the fair. Dressed like an early barker on the midway with a straw hat and striped jacket, Fairchild has represented the fair since 1966. In 1986, he was joined on promotional materials by his nephew, Fairborne.


Attendance records


Off-season use

The fairgrounds host several events throughout the year. Events include horse shows in the Coliseum and Horse Barn, the Minnesota Horse Expo and the Minnesota Beef Expo, dog shows, antique and hot-rod car shows, motorcycle shows, model railroad shows, clothing and jewelry shows, gun and weapon collectors shows, comic book conventions, flea markets and swap meets, and more. Buildings on the grounds are frequently rented for commercial events such as appliance sales, computer and electronics sales, and boat and car sales. Earlier in the summer, some of the fairground's roads are used to host an annual series of bike races during the week, called the State Fair Affair Criterium Series. Many buildings on the fair grounds are rented for winter storage of boats, camping trailers, and similar equipment.


Gallery

Image:Princess Kay of the Milky Way-2006.jpg, Audrey Mohr of
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(right),
Princess Kay of the Milky Way Princess Kay of the Milky Way is the title awarded to the winner of the statewide Minnesota Dairy Princess Program, an annual competition organized by the Midwest Dairy Association. During her one-year term, the Princess Kay of the Milky Way serve ...
2006–2007 Image:Showing Holstein cow-Minnesota.jpg, Showing a
Holstein Holstein (; nds, label=Northern Low Saxon, Holsteen; da, Holsten; Latin and historical en, Holsatia, italic=yes) is the region between the rivers Elbe and Eider. It is the southern half of Schleswig-Holstein, the northernmost state of German ...
cow Image:Machinery Hill-Minnesota.jpg, Skyglider, Machinery Hill Image:Agriculture Building-Minnesota.jpg, The Fine Arts and 4-H buildings Image:Jams, Jellies, Honeys-Minnesota State Fair.jpg, Jams, jellies, and honeys Image:Giant Slide-Minnesota State Fair.jpg, The Giant Slide Image:2010 MN State Fair crowd.JPG, August 2010 crowd Image:MinnesotaStateFairBreads2007-08-25.JPG, Breads and baked goods Image:Minnesotastatefairpeople.jpg, August 25, 2007 Image:MN State Fair cheerleaders 2003.JPG, Golden Gopher Spirit Squads during the Maroon and Gold Day Parade in 2003 Image:Minn-State-Fair.jpg, Daytime crowd at the Fair Image:KARE-TV-MN State Fair 20060826.jpg, Television interview during the 2006 Fair


References


External links


Minnesota State Fair: Origins and Traditions in MNopedia, the Minnesota Encyclopedia

Minnesota State FairMinnesota State Fair Foundation
{{Authority control History of Minnesota State fairs Festivals in Minnesota August events September events Recurring events established in 1859 Tourist attractions in Ramsey County, Minnesota Buildings and structures in Ramsey County, Minnesota