Wisconsin State Fair | |
---|---|
Genre | State fair |
Dates | 11 Days |
Location(s) | West Allis, WI |
Years active | 170 |
Founded | 1851 [2] |
Attendance | 1,130,572 in 2019 [3] |
Website | www.wistatefair.com |
The Wisconsin State Fair is an annual event held at the Wisconsin State Fair Park in West Allis, Wisconsin, a suburb of Milwaukee. The modern fair takes place in August (occasionally beginning late July) and lasts 11 days.
The first Wisconsin State Fair was held in 1851 in Janesville, with approximately 13,000 to 18,000 people in attendance. [4] Sponsored by the state's Agricultural Society, it was held on a six-acre plot along the banks of the Rock River. It featured a 200-pound squash and a quarter-acre plowing competition with teams of horses and oxen. It was reportedly the largest gathering in Wisconsin history. [5]
When the second fair was held in Milwaukee in 1852, fairgoers took their carriages for rides around the Cold Spring Race Course.
Abraham Lincoln was invited to give the annual oration at the fair in 1859. He spoke on the principles of free labor – farmers and their families working for themselves without the use of hired labor – and of the interconnectedness of farmers, merchants, and other businesses. He advised farmers to embrace new methods of agriculture, with the goal of raising the standard of living. [6] [7]
The fair added new attractions each year, and in 1869, there was a fire engine demonstration where boxes, barrels and a large wooden building were set aflame. For decades, the fair moved from city to city, including Janesville, Watertown, Fond du Lac, Madison and Milwaukee, until 1892, when it was first held at its permanent and present location at Wisconsin State Fair Park. [5]
During the 2011 fair, a small but violent flash mob was formed and began attacking fairgoers, with some witnesses stating that the attacks were racially-motivated. [8] [9] Eighteen people, including seven police officers, were injured during the event. [10] In response, fair managers added a youth curfew and worked with civic and youth leaders to prevent a recurrence. [11]
On May 28, 2020, the state fair's board of directors announced the cancellation of the 2020 State Fair, due to the state's COVID-19 pandemic. Previous Fairs had been cancelled in 1917 and 1918, then 1942 through 1945, all due to World Wars I and II. [12]
The Milwaukee Mile is a one-mile paved oval racing circuit on the grounds of the State Fair. It is the oldest continuously-operated motor racing circuit in the world. [13] Racing or exhibition events are often held on the circuit in conjunction with the state fair.
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Yearly features at the fair include a wide variety of vendors, many local and national bands, the Kids From Wisconsin, and a large assortment of food and drink, including cream puffs, [14] which are one of the fair's most popular attractions. In 2010, the Wisconsin State Fair introduced Comet 2, a forty-foot roller coaster. New in 2012, the Wisconsin State Fair took over the Midway, creating Spin City, a collection of independently contracted rides including the Sizzler, the Freak Out, and the Stratosphere, a 200-foot-tall swing ride.
The Main Stage features headline performance every evening of the fair. Many local bands can also be seen on smaller stages and pavilions located throughout the grounds.
Agricultural exhibits of horses, cattle, sheep, chickens and other animals are featured every year at the fair.
The Wisconsin State Fair is also home of the Wisconsin Wine Garden. Established in 1996 by the then ten member-wineries of the Wisconsin Winery Association, the Wine Garden features wines from dozens of Wisconsin wineries.
Wisconsin is a state in the Great Lakes region of the Upper Midwest of the United States. It borders Minnesota to the west, Iowa to the southwest, Illinois to the south, Lake Michigan to the east, Michigan to the northeast, and Lake Superior to the north. Wisconsin is the 20th-largest state by population and 23rd-largest state by area. It is divided into 72 counties and as of the 2020 census had a population of nearly 5.9 million. Its most populous city is Milwaukee, while its capital and second-most populous city is Madison. Other urban areas include Green Bay, Kenosha, Racine, Eau Claire, and the Fox Cities.
Wisconsin has a long history with the Boy Scout and Girl Scout organizations from the 1910s to the present day, both programs have independently served thousands of youth in programs that suit the environment in which they live.
West Allis is a city in Milwaukee County, Wisconsin, United States. A suburb of Milwaukee, it is part of the Milwaukee metropolitan area. The population was 60,325 at the 2020 census, making it the eleventh-most populous city in Wisconsin.
Monroe is a city in and the county seat of Green County, Wisconsin, United States. The population was 10,661 at the 2020 census. The city is bordered by the town of Monroe to the north and the town of Clarno to the south. Monroe is a part of the Madison metropolitan area. It is nicknamed the "Cheese Capital of the USA".
Janesville is a city in and the county seat of Rock County, Wisconsin, United States. As of the 2020 census, the city had a population of 65,615, making it the tenth-most populous city in Wisconsin. It is a principal municipality of the Janesville–Beloit metropolitan statistical area, which consists of all of Rock County and is included in the greater Madison–Janesville–Beloit combined statistical area.
The Milwaukee metropolitan area is a major metropolitan area located in Southeastern Wisconsin, consisting of the city of Milwaukee and some of the surrounding area. There are several definitions of the area, including the Milwaukee–Waukesha–West Allis metropolitan area and the Milwaukee–Racine–Waukesha combined statistical area. It is the largest metropolitan area in Wisconsin, and the 39th largest metropolitan area in the United States.
The New York State Fair, also known as the Great New York State Fair, is a 13-day showcase of agriculture, entertainment, education, and technology. With midway rides, concessionaires, exhibits, and concerts, it has become New York's largest annual event and an end-of-summer tradition for hundreds of thousands of families from all corners of the state. The first fair took place in Syracuse in 1841, and took permanent residence there in 1890. It is the oldest and one of the largest state fairs in the United States, with over one million visitors annually.
The Wisconsin State Fair Park is a fairgrounds and exhibition center in West Allis, Wisconsin, a suburb west of Milwaukee. It has been the location of the Wisconsin State Fair since 1892. The fairgrounds are open year-round, hosting various expositions.
John Thompson Williams Jennings was an American architect from Brooklyn. He was the Milwaukee Railroad's architect from 1885–93 and was part-time supervising architect for the University of Wisconsin from 1899 to 1906. He contributed to many prominent campus buildings.
The Wisconsin State League was a class D level baseball league that began in 1905, changing its name to the Wisconsin–Illinois League in 1908 and operating through 1914. The league re–organized under that name in 1926. Another Wisconsin State League began in 1940, shut down during World War II from 1943 through 1945, then operated from 1946 through 1953.
Alexander Chadbourne Eschweiler was an American architect with a practice in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. He designed both residences and commercial structures. His eye-catching Japonist pagoda design for filling stations for Wadham's Oil and Grease Company of Milwaukee were repeated over a hundred times, though only a very few survive. His substantial turn-of-the-20th-century residences for the Milwaukee business elite, in conservative Jacobethan or neo-Georgian idioms, have preserved their cachet in the city.
The Walworth County Fairgrounds is an almost 99-acre (400,000 m2) plot of land located in Elkhorn, Wisconsin, Walworth County, Wisconsin, United States and owned by the Walworth County Agricultural Society.
Squire Park Coon was an American lawyer, politician, and Wisconsin pioneer. He was the 2nd Attorney General of Wisconsin and served as a Union Army officer in the American Civil War.
Josiah Flint Willard was an American dairy farmer, naturalist and businessman living in Janesville, Wisconsin, who served one term as a Free Soiler member of the Wisconsin State Assembly. He was the father of suffragist Frances E. Willard.
Arthur J. Balzer was an American merchant and lecturer from West Allis, Wisconsin, who served several terms as a member of the Wisconsin State Assembly from Milwaukee County, first in the 1930s and again for a single term in the 1950s.
Lathrop Burgess was an American carpenter and farmer from Brighton, Wisconsin, who spent two one-year terms as a member of the Wisconsin State Assembly from Kenosha County; the first as a Freesoiler, the second as a Republican.
Thomas B. Scott was President Pro Tem of the Wisconsin State Senate.
Hans Christian Heg is a statue by Paul Fjelde that was cast in 1925 and installed at the Wisconsin State Capitol building in Madison, Wisconsin, United States in 1926. The bronze statue depicting the Union soldier and abolitionist Hans Christian Heg was torn down by rioters, decapitated and thrown into a lake in June 2020. The Wisconsin state government restored and reinstalled the original statue in September 2021.
The Wisconsin State Capitol Police is a police force maintained by the Wisconsin Department of Administration, and is responsible for policing the Wisconsin State Capitol, state government facilities and the protection of the Governor and Lieutenant Governor of Wisconsin.
The 1948 Wisconsin gubernatorial election was held on November 2, 1948.