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SANPETE COUNTY FAIR
FAIR THROUGH THE YEARS Looking back over the last century of fairs
By Christi C. Babbitt Fair Book Editor
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For more than 100 years, Sanpete County residents have joined together each fall for a fair.
In 1914, the Sanpete County Commissioners appropriated $250 for the Sanpete County Fair Association to conduct the first Sanpete County Fair. The fair has since grown over the years to including a rodeo, a demolition derby, a wide variety of entertainment opportunities and a grand parade.
Without a doubt, many county residents were disappointed when the decision was made to cancel this year’s fair due to the coronavirus pandemic. The Sanpete County Fair Board issued the following statement in early July:
“The Sanpete County Fair Board and Sanpete County Commissioners have taken into consideration every aspect of how to economically and safely conduct the 2020 Sanpete County Fair amidst COVID-19. We have been watching updates from our local health department and see the cases growing in the Sanpete Valleys.
“It is our desire to not contribute to the growing pandemic. It’s hard to maintain social distance and keep everyone safe at a lot of our events.
“This being said, and with the greatest respect for everyone’s health and safety, we regret to inform you that all Sanpete County Fair events are cancelled for 2020, this includes the Sanpete Xtreme Moto in July.
A look at past issues of The Pyramid newspaper revealed that this is not the first time the Sanpete County Fair has been canceled. In 1948, the county commission decided to cancel the fair due to lack of funding.
According to newspaper reports, however, the fair was back up and running in 1949, and, in fact, an editorial that ran in The Pyramid on Aug. 5, 1949, stated the fair that year was anticipated to be a “program unequaled in history.”
Stories about the fair that ran in the newspaper over the years frequently declared that the fair planned that particular year was anticipated to be the “greatest fair every held in Sanpete County.”
In an effort to remember the rich heritage of past Sanpete County Fairs and look forward to more fairs in the future even as the COVID-19 pandemic has caused nearly all large events to be canceled, this year’s fair book features a selection of articles and photos that reflect the activities and growth of the fair during the past century.
All of the articles included in this magazine were taken either from past copies of The Pyramid newspaper or past Sanpete County Fair Books published by The Pyramid. The date at the beginning of each story indicates the date it was published.
Special thanks are expressed to Nichole Sunderland
Ad for the Sanpte County Fair which ran September 17, 1915 in The Pyramid.
at the Mt. Pleasant Public Library for her assistance in searching through past issues of The Pyramid.
In the interest of historical accuracy, the capitalization, punctuation and writing style of the articles have been preserved; only the most egregious spelling errors have been corrected for clarity’s sake.
Most articles are included in their entirety; occasionally, when only a paragraph or two in the story referred to the fair, only the pertinent paragraphs have been utilized. Phone numbers have been
eliminated.
Enjoy this trip down memory road, and may we all look forward to the return of the Sanpete County Fair in 2021.
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