A day at the fair
The North Stonington Agricultural Fair is back for July 2021
The North Stonington Agricultural Fair is back for July 2021
TThis year promises to bring back some of the long-cherished activities we’ve all missed so much. One of those events is the four-day North Stonington Agricultural Fair, scheduled to open on July 8. And, like so many other activities, the fair will be a different experience this year.
Sponsored by the North Stonington Community Grange and the North Stonington Volunteer Fire Company, 2021 will mark 57 years for the event. Through the determination and hard work of the fair board of directors, the hurdles of bringing the fair back were overcome with lots of thinking outside the box.
“We tried to figure out what steps we could take to hold events on the fairgrounds,” says Jody Whipple, vice-president of the board. “Even if it meant not having the traditional fair as everyone knows it.”
Agricultural fairs have always served a significant purpose -- that of ensuring the viability of the town’s agricultural lifestyle. According to the history of the fair, in the early 20th Century, the North Stonington Grange hosted fairs awarding $200 in prizes for farmers growing the largest produce or healthiest livestock.
Fast forward to 2021: with the hope that the COVID vaccines would be fully administered by July, the board moved in January to plan a full four-day event. At that time, governor’s orders only allowed 25% of the 2019 capacity.
“We knew that would be a major hurdle and a financial burden, but felt that it was important to move forward on a positive note,” says Whipple.
So much goes into planning a fair, and many considerations had to be included. Would the amusement