The Mid-south Fair returns to the Memphis area: Here are 4 things to know

The Mid-south Fair, a Memphis-area staple for more than 160 years, is returning after being canceled in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic. This year’s fair will be Sept. 23 through Oct 3, at the Landers Center in Southaven. “It’s like everybody coming home,” Debbie Branan, Mid-south Fair board president, said. “We want to make sure they have a great time, but they’re safe. And I think we probably have the best plan in anybody in doing that.”

Branan has been involved with the fair since 1964 when she took part in the cheerleading competition as a high school student. In 1976 she joined the board.

JOE RONDONE/THE COMMERCIAL APPEAL Opening day of the Mid-south Fair at the Landers Center in Desoto County, Mississippi, on Sept. 20, 2018.