Step Right Up It's Fair Time: Where My Love of Fairs Started

I have been thinking about writing blogs on my love for county fairs and experiences with them. I have been to about 25 of Ohio’s county fairs so far and almost never miss the State Fair. I like to share my thoughts on the fairs I have been to with people, so why not write about it. Over time I am going to write blogs about the fairs I have been to and what I like or dislike about them and just a general personal over view. But, first I wanted to give some background of where my love of fairs comes from and how I started going to all these fairs.

I would say my love of fairs comes from my dad; my dad loves fairs because he has a history with them. He grew up on the fair circuit, my dad’s parents at times worked for Gooding Amusements out of Columbus, Ohio.

My Grandpa Parker on a ride he worked on.

Yes they where what you would today call a carny, but I don’t at all picture them as “carnies”, just hard working people trying to take care of their big family (my dad is the youngest of 12). Because of this I grow up hear stories from dad about the fairs, most of the stories where about the people he grew up around at the fairs, the Side Show Performers. Now days I hardly see side show tents at fairs and when I do they are fake stuff or just performers, not like the true oddities they were back then. My dad has told me all about people like Little Pete Moore, Emmitt and Priscilla the Alligator Man and Monkey Lady, Johann the Giant and many more. He would also tell me about rides and venders, when I was a kid he would almost always take us to the local county fair and the State Fair. He would take me on his favorite rides and share tricks with me, like how to make the Tit-a-Whirl spin faster or that you can turn yourself upside down on the Gravitron when it is going. Also as kid every year at the Madison County Fair dad would stop to visit with the man that owned the cane ring toss game and he always gave us kids one of the colorful canes, then dad would get me cotton candy because he knew the lady that rain that trailer too and would visit with her. Even today I never know when I might hear a new story from my dad about the fair.

Picture from Ohio State Fair's Facebook Page

A few years ago I showed him an old Ohio State Fair picture they posted on Facebook with a caption about how many Ferris Wheels there was in the picture, there was four. Dad said, “Yes Gooding always set up four Ferris Wheels at the state fair, three regular sized ones and one giant or double wheel. And by the afternoon of each day at the fair all four wheels would have a long line.” I learned something new that day.

As I got older my love of fairs changed, today I almost never ride a ride at a fair, so I can’t tell you who has the best rides or prices on rides. Mostly just not interested and don’t want to pay the prices to ride them. When I was of age I got involved in 4-H and by high school it was the most important activity to me that I was involved in, because of that I was always trying to do more with it. I was a Jr. Fair Board Member, County Camp Counselor, attended three state 4-H camps and one National, was a State 4-H Ambassador, worked at the state fair and later a state 4-H camp counselor. Through all of that (and probably more) I made lots of 4-H friends all over the state and that is how it started, me going to different county fairs. I would say it was about my junior year of high school I started driving where ever in the state to a county fair to see a friend I had made, normally dragging along a friend that didn’t have the love of 4-H I did, but went along for the fun of it. As an adult this has continued, but now days it is to see a farm bureau friends and their county fair. I also get to go to some county fairs for my work to take pictures of our involvement in the local fairs.  The past few years I have averaged going to about 13 county fairs a summer and try to get to one or two new ones each year.

There you have it, how I fell in love with going to county faisr… check back, in the future and I will tell you my favorite and lest favorite Ohio fairs and things at them.