The County Fair: A Celebration of Farming and Community Life
The first county fair in Kansas was held in 1858 at McCamish. “Now Johnson County has put the ball in motion, let others keep it rolling,” proclaimed the editor of the newspaper Herald of Freedom. Although Lawrence’s Herald of Freedom described it as the Johnson County Agricultural Fair, the McCamish event was probably a privately-sponsored fair supported by town boosters to encourage new settlement. Newspaper accounts did note, however, that the “neat cattle, horses, and vegetables on exhibition were of a superior quality.”
Fair activity resumed in Johnson County after the Civil War. In 1865, the Johnson County Agricultural and Mechanical Association sponsored a fair in Gardner. In addition to agricultural and industrial exhibits, the fair included a Floral Hall, where presumably women could display their domestic talents. Similar fairs were held in Olathe in 1867 and during the 1870s. Competition between these two cities continued through the 1930s. In 1867, Gardner was rumored to have the better fair, but the Olathe Mirror reminded its readers, “there is but one Johnson County Fair... in Olathe.”
Between 1855 and 1900, most fairs were organized by agricultural societies to promote scientific livestock breeding. Their grounds, buildings, races, and contests were modeled after the New York Crystal Palace of 1853. These privately funded fair associations were constantly searching for new ways to increase attendance to cover their expenses. Most fairs of this period featured horse racing and curiosity shows or circuses to attract large crowds. Gradually, the agricultural theme became secondary as entertainment took over as the primary attraction.
St. Louis developed a fair in 1855 that received national attention and was familiar to Kansas settlers. Early fairs in Kansas did not cater to the farmer, but were designed to attract attention to the region's rich farm land, natural resources and potential for industry. The state Board of Agriculture also encouraged county fairs. County businesses and town speculators created fairgrounds, built permanent structures, provided railroad access to fair sites, and improved fairgrounds to attract fair-goers, settlers and immigrants.
Cleaning up the Fair
By the 1880s, ordinary farmers had established cooperative organizations to support and promote their livelihood. Cycles of depression and drought and escalating railroad rates redoubled their cooperative efforts. Farmers in Johnson County organized and supported local branches of the Patrons of Husbandry, a cooperative association commonly known as the Grange. By 1884, there were 1,026 members of the Olathe Cooperative. Throughout the 1880s and 1890s, the Johnson County Cooperative Fair Association sponsored agricultural fairs in Edgerton. Entertainment continued to be an important element, but “immoral” gambling and midway shows were eliminated. The 1895 fair featured a variety of diversions including a pony race, a balloon ascension and parachute descent, a mule race, a ladies’ bicycle race, a tug of war, a grand tilting tournament by the Knights of Sancho Panza, and a baby show.
The Olathe Fair re-appeared on the county map in 1893. The Johnson County Fair Association sponsored fairs in Olathe through the 1890s. They were held during the summer months, shortly after the Edgerton Fair.
Fairs received another boost after World War I. America’s farmers proved their ability to respond to a national crisis during the war. Farming gained greater respect as a livelihood and received national recognition with the Smith-Lever Act of 1917. Farm Bureaus and County Extension Services were established throughout the country. This gave ordinary farmers access to scientific information that influenced how they operated their farms. The Extension Service also supported county fairs as a way to stabilize farming. Their support further increased the agricultural theme and purpose of the fairs.
Multiple Fairs
The post-World War I era saw an increase in community fairs celebrating civic pride and residents’ agricultural heritage. In Johnson County Grange Fairs were held in Spring Hill in 1917 and 1918. The following year, Olathe held a fair on the Courthouse grounds. The location changed in subsequent years, moving to the Washington Elementary School in 1920 and to the Olathe Armory in 1923. Another fair association was organized in the late 1920s to serve the northeast area. Merriam was the site for the first Farm, Home and School Festival first held in 1922. By 1927, the fair was called the Johnson County Shawnee Mission Fair. Held at Shawnee Mission Rural High School, the fair featured a livestock department, antiques, sewing and handiwork, and a school department with a competition in agriculture. These fairs continued through 1931, while Olathe continued to sponsor a summer fair as well.
Women continued to contribute arts and crafts exhibits and organized competitions in baking, canning and other domestic arts. However, it was the new focus on youth participation that changed the county fairs of this period. Extension agents worked with early 4-H clubs and involved skeptical parents in new agriculture education. By the 1950s, 4-H participation was the key to a successful county fair.
New fairs cropped up across the county during the 1930s. The Gardner Community Fair operated from 1931 through 1936; in 1938 it was moved to Spring Hill and called a 4-H Fair. Overland Park sponsored a fair from 1934 to 1938. Meanwhile, Olathe’s fair moved to the Nafziger Farm at 83rd and Mission Road in 1937. The Fair’s relocation to the more urban northeast area of the county was an attempt to boost attendance and interest in Johnson County's agricultural heritage. Nationally-recognized trick riders and horsemen were engaged to “attract countywide interest and respect for the community.” Organizers guaranteed this fair would “not be the ordinary flea-bitten and shoddy show that is too common in this section.” The strategy failed, however, and no fair was held in 1938. The following year, the Spring Hill 4-H and Gardner Community fairs combined to form the Johnson County Fair. In 1940, Gardner became the official location for the Johnson County Free Fair. The Gazette reported this was “because of the fine showing of the past two years.” The county continues to gather in Gardner for the annual fair.
Community Fairs
The post-World War II years were a boom era for fairs, as farmers celebrated their patriotism and contributions to wartime production. County fairs became increasingly community-oriented. Communities dispensed with inappropriate entertainment and created fairs with more emphasis on youth education. Organizers worked to install the values of thrift, economy, and endurance associated with farming. Local tax dollars were increasingly used to build permanent fairgrounds, and as 4-H clubs were incorporated into the county fair, community participation increased as well.
Public support for the fair was a prolonged struggle in Johnson County. Until the late 1950s, the Johnson County Fair used former Civilian Conversation Corps cabins moved from Gardner Lake after the war. The fairgrounds included a race track, shelter houses for livestock, and exhibit buildings. In 1958, the Grange built a large metal building for fair administration and 4-H activities. Gradually, new livestock barns and an arts and crafts exhibit building were added. Finally, after much lobbying and several elections, a mill levy was approved in the 1970s to support the county fair. Many community members continue to volunteer for the fair, particularly those with children in 4-H clubs.
Urban Fairs
Like many county fairs, Johnson County’s has become more urban. Attendance exceeds 100,000 visitors who view about 5,000 exhibits in 48 departments. Agriculture remains an important component with 4-H livestock exhibits and auctions, a rodeo, arts and crafts exhibits, and carpentry and science displays. Carnivals, live music performances, and concessions help to attract general audiences and increase revenue. The parade is an important community event, featuring Mr. and Ms. 4-H, floats, animals, Shriners, local saddle clubs, fire trucks, school bands, old buggies, antique cars and, during election years, politicians’ floats.
An executive board, established in the 1970s, assists the Fair association officers with operations.
Despite Johnson County’s urban image, the county fair continues to draw large crowds and strong interest among participants. Exhibits and entertainment have changed with the times, but the fair remains a celebration of agriculture and community spirit.
--ALBUM vol. 9, no. 3 (summer 1996)