Canfield Fair: Sights, Sounds & Memories

The fair was the end of summertime. It was sunburns and big crowds. It was eating fried food on a stick and not counting the calories. It was paying a man with very few teeth five dollars so that you could try to catch a little red magnet with a miniscule fishing pole in order to win a ten cent stuffed toy. It was elephant ears and 4-H dances. It was peals of laughter on the Ring of Fire, and whispered gossip among friends. The fair was memories in the making.

And, for me, it’s still all these things — and more.

For the past 164 years, droves of people have traveled to the fairgrounds in Canfield, Ohio, over Labor Day weekend to attend what has become the largest county fair in the country. They come from all over — hundreds of thousands of them these days — to walk along the dusty midway, grab an elephant ear, check out the livestock displays, and take in the sights and sounds that bring the fair to life. Forgotten are the office work and business attire; at the Canfield Fair, everyone is a farmer.

Growing up in the quiet farm community of Canfield, I never had to travel further than down the street to experience the great local fair tradition. While I realize I’m far too young to already be waxing nostalgic for my youth, the Canfield Fair still manages to bring back a barrage of memories of years past. I’ve been going to the fair almost as long as I’ve been alive. And you can stack up quite a few memories in 24 years.

At Night

It’s interesting to visit the fair now as an adult. I see everything through a different lens. And, while many things have changed, it’s amazing to notice how many things have stayed exactly the same.

There are still rows upon rows of food stands, and finding the best elephant ears or cavatelli in a bread bowl remains a mission that could easily take hours. Inevitably, somewhere along your search, you’ll get sidetracked by fried cheese on a stick, DiRusso sausage, or perhaps some deep-friend oreos, and forget what you were originally craving anyway. The smells from the different food stands — Italian, Southern, Chinese, Greek — bombards the senses, and you can forget about sticking to a diet here.

Mmm ribs

Fair food

There are the bouncing kangaroos in Kiddie Land that used to be my favorite fair ride as a kid. These days, their pink and yellow paint has faded to white, but I can still remember how I used to love riding them, pushing the lap bar forward to soar up above the fairgrounds.

Kiddie Land (but not the Kangaroos)

“The rock” in front of the Grandstand is still a popular gathering place, especially for gaggles of awkward middle school boys and girls. I can remember the feeling of freedom that came along with being unleashed upon the fairgrounds “alone” for the first time with friends. We would walk up and down the rows of games and rides and livestock barns, not really looking at anything but simply reveling in the fair freedom.

Flying High

The Grandstand itself brings back memories of marching band concerts, Bill Cosby (who I saw there one year in high school), and country music concerts. It was at the Canfield Fair that I got my very first cassette tape.

My path through the exhibit barns never seems to change, either — it’s always horses, cows, giant pumpkins, photography, health barn, and then the school buildings. The 4-H buildings are saved for last, because it was there that I used to spend the majority of my time with friends who were showing animals at the fair. I met my first boyfriend in one of the 4-H barns. I still remember the first time I saw him – with green glitter in his hair and a large brown rat perched upon his shoulder. (Clearly you can see it was love at first sight.)

Friendly Horse

Giant Pumpkin

The pioneer village still sits right on the edge of the fairgrounds, with refurbished old buildings dating back hundreds of years that show what living in Ohio used to be like. I never used to be interested in old log cabins and carriages and general stores when I was younger, but now it’s a welcome change from the hustle and bustle of the rest of the fairgrounds.

And, of course, the people at the Canfield Fair, though always different, are still essentially the same. You have the high school kids working the concession stands and parking fields for that last bit of money before school starts. You have the scooter brigades mowing down crowds on their way to check out the free giveaways in the health barn. You have the cowboy-boot-wearing farmers come to check out the antique tractors and the livestock for sale. You have couples – young, old and in between – strolling down the midway, some toting children begging for one more go at playing a fair game, others simply taking in the sights hand-in-hand. I could spend days simply people-watching here.

Fair games

Another year, another Canfield Fair. And yet it’s so much more than that. For me, I think the Canfield Fair and all its ever-changing-yet-always-the-same staples will always make me think of home; make me feel like I am at home. Because, while you may be able to take the girl out of the country, you can never really take the country (or the county fair) out of the girl.

Here are some more photos from this year’s Canfield Fair adventure: