| Cumberland Fair | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Dates | Final week of September |
| Location(s) | Cumberland, Maine, U.S. |
| Founded | 1868 |
| Website | CumberlandFair.com |
The Cumberland Fair is an annual farmers' fair held in Cumberland, Maine, United States, at the Cumberland Fairgrounds. It is put on by the Cumberland Farmers' Club and is usually held the last week in September.
The annual Maine State Pumpkin and Squash Weigh-Off is held at the fair. [1] The winner of the event receives $500. An adult is limited to one entry in the giant squash and pumpkin weigh-off. [1] The 2015 winner of this event was Edwin Pierpont, who harvested a 1,046 pound pumpkin. [2]
The inaugural Cumberland Fair was held for two days, on October 10 and 11, 1868 in the center of town in the back of what is now Greely Junior High School. The land was provided by Capt. Enos Blanchard. On show were foods, handicrafts, vegetables of all shapes and sizes and also steers, especially in the traditional ox-pull. Horse racing was also featured.
There was no fair in 1919, 1942-44 nor 2020, although the latter year saw the 4H livestock show & auction go on.
Cumberland County is a county in the U.S. state of Maine. As of the 2020 census, the population was 303,069, making it the most populous county in Maine. Its county seat is Portland. Cumberland County was founded in 1760 from a portion of York County, Province of Massachusetts Bay, and named for William, Duke of Cumberland, a son of King George II. Cumberland County has the deepest and second-largest body of water in the state, Sebago Lake, which supplies tap water to most of the county. The county is the state's economic and industrial center, having the resources of the Port of Portland, the Maine Mall, and having corporate headquarters of major companies such as Fairchild Semiconductor, IDEXX Laboratories, Unum, and TD Bank. Cumberland County is part of the Portland–South Portland, ME Metropolitan Statistical Area.
Standish is a town in Cumberland County, Maine, United States. The population was 10,244 at the 2020 census. It includes the villages of Standish Corner, Sebago Lake Village and Steep Falls, and the localities known as Richville, Elmwood, Standish Neck and Two Trails. Standish is part of the Portland-South Portland-Biddeford, Maine metropolitan statistical area.
Goffstown is a town in Hillsborough County, New Hampshire, United States. The population was 18,577 at the 2020 census. The compact center of town, where 3,366 people resided at the 2020 census, is defined by the U.S. Census Bureau as the Goffstown census-designated place and is located at the junctions of New Hampshire routes 114 and 13. Goffstown also includes the villages of Grasmere and Pinardville. The town is home to Saint Anselm College, the Goffstown Giant Pumpkin Regatta, and was the location of the New Hampshire State Prison for Women, prior to the prison's relocation to Concord in 2018.
Cucurbita is a genus of herbaceous fruits in the gourd family, Cucurbitaceae, native to the Andes and Mesoamerica. Five edible species are grown and consumed for their flesh and seeds. They are variously known as squash, pumpkin, or gourd, depending on species, variety, and local parlance. Other kinds of gourd, also called bottle-gourds, are native to Africa and belong to the genus Lagenaria, which is in the same family and subfamily as Cucurbita, but in a different tribe. These other gourds are used as utensils or vessels, and their young fruits are eaten much like those of the Cucurbita species.
Punkin chunkin or pumpkin chucking is the sport of hurling a pumpkin solely by mechanical means for distance. The devices used include slingshots, catapults, centrifugals, trebuchets, and pneumatic (air) cannons.
The Colisée, formerly Androscoggin Bank Colisée, Central Maine Youth Center, Central Maine Civic Center, and Lewiston Colisee, is a 4,000 capacity multi-purpose arena, in Lewiston, Maine, United States that was built from 1956 to 1958 and opened in the latter year to replace the Dominics Regional High School Arena and was initially constructed and operated by the Catholic parish of SS. Peter and Paul. It was used as a replacement venue for the boxing match between Muhammad Ali and Sonny Liston in 1965.
The Fryeburg Fair is a large agricultural fair held annually in Fryeburg in the U.S. state of Maine. The fair was first held in March 1851, and in subsequent years has grown to become the state's largest agricultural fair.
A giant pumpkin is an orange fruit of the squash Cucurbita maxima, commonly weighing from 68 kilograms (150 lb) to over 910 kilograms (2,010 lb).
The University of Maine School of Law is a public law school in Portland, Maine. It is accredited by the American Bar Association and is Maine's only law school. It is also part of the University of Maine System. The school's current dean is Leigh Saufley, who assumed the post in 2020. Until 1972 the School of Law was located at 68 High Street, Portland. In 1972, the School of Law moved to the University of Maine School of Law Building, which is adjacent to the University of Southern Maine's Portland campus. In 2023, the Law School moved to 300 Fore Street, on the waterfront of downtown Portland.
The Circleville Pumpkin Show is an annual show held in Circleville, Ohio, about 30 miles (48 km) south of the state capital of Columbus. The festival, which is held to celebrate local agriculture, is headed up by the Circleville Pumpkin Show Corporation. Considered to be the biggest festival in the United States dedicated to the pumpkin, it is billed as The Greatest Free Show On Earth. Attendance has topped 400,000 for the four-day event, which is free to enter.
Scarborough Downs Race Track was a horse-racing track located in Scarborough, Maine, United States. It was Maine's largest race track. It was home to The Downs Club restaurant as well as a grandstand for race viewing, and includes 2 track-side lounges as well as a VIP Room. It held its final races on November 30, 2020.
The S. D. Warren Paper Mill is a paper mill on the Presumpscot River in Westbrook, Maine. It is now owned by SAPPI Limited, a South African paper concern. It is one of Westbrook's major employers. The mill complex and former worker and management housing associated with the mill's operation in the 19th century were listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1974 as the Cumberland Mills Historic District.
Cucurbita maxima, one of at least five species of cultivated squash, is one of the most diverse domesticated species. This species originated in South America from the wild subspecies Cucurbita maxima subsp. andreana over 4,000 years ago. Cucurbita maxima, known for modern varieties as Hubbard, Delicious, Marblehead, Boston Marrow, and Turks Turban, originated in northern Argentina near the Andes or in certain Andean valleys. Secondary centers of diversity include India, Bangladesh, Myanmar, and the southern Appalachians.
The Hants County Exhibition is an annual fall fair held in Windsor, Nova Scotia. It is known for being the oldest continuously run agricultural fair in North America. It was first held on the grounds of Fort Edward beginning in 1765 and has been running continuously since 1815.The fair has been held at the nearby Hants Exhibition Arena and exhibition grounds since the land was purchased in 1949. September 2015 marked the 250th anniversary of the Hants County Exhibition. Five years later, the fair went virtual because of the COVID-19 pandemic in Canada.
Cow Island is a 26-acre (11 ha) island in Casco Bay, Maine, United States, off Great Diamond Island, about 3 miles (4.8 km) northeast of downtown Portland, and is part of the Town of Long Island in Cumberland County. A non-profit youth development organization called Rippleffect owns the island and has the responsibility to protect the island's natural ecosystem as well as the island's public access.
The Morton Pumpkin Festival is an annual four-day festival held in mid-September in Morton, Illinois since 1967. The event now draws more than 75,000 attendees annually. It is organized and sponsored by the Morton Chamber of Commerce.
A pumpkin is a cultivated winter squash in the genus Cucurbita. The term is most commonly applied to round, orange-colored squash varieties, though it does not possess a scientific definition and may be used in reference to many different squashes of varied appearance.
The Barnesville Pumpkin Festival is an annual festival in Barnesville, Ohio, dedicated to the growing and harvesting of pumpkins and other fall harvests. The festival, which has been held since 1964, is conducted by a locally appointed committee and attracts an average of 100,000 people during the 4-day event.
The Half Moon Bay Art and Pumpkin Festival is an annual festival held in the coastside community of Half Moon Bay, California, for one weekend during pumpkin harvest season. It is one of the oldest and largest local festivals in California. Proceeds go to local civic causes and to the beautification of the downtown area of Half Moon Bay. There is no admission charge for the event.
The Topsfield Fair is an annual county fair located in Topsfield, Massachusetts. The Topsfield Fair is known as America's Oldest County Fair. Started in 1818 by the Essex County Agricultural Society, the Topsfield Fair was originally a one-day cattle show. The goal of the society was to showcase agriculture in order to educate the public as well as provide somewhere for farmers to exchange ideas and methods. The fair draws between 450,000 and 500,000 people over its 10-day event period. It is home to a large midway, an arena with ongoing events throughout the year, as well as many agricultural exhibitions.
43°48′36″N70°17′24″W / 43.810°N 70.290°W
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