I was shocked this week to find out that Bingham County does have a county fair separate from the Eastern Idaho State Fair. Even though I’ve been talking about county fairs over the last few years, no one has mentioned it to me. Makes me wonder if it is the best-kept secret of all time. At least outside of 4-H and Future Farmers of America, it seems unknown — or maybe just unmentioned. In case you also missed it, the fair happened Aug. 3-5.
My source for the county fair’s existence was impeccable, though a bit biased. Former high school ag teacher, former county fair board chairman and current County Extension Educator and 4-H leader over livestock projects in Fremont County — another serious ag county — Tom Jacobsen assured me that we do have a county fair.
Well, to a livestock expert, we do have a county fair. After all, there are horses, livestock and dogs. What else makes a county fair? To him, we have the essentials.
In a way, I agree with Jacobsen. The essentials, if you must have just the bare essentials, are to have a place for the 4-H and FFA youth to show and display the results of their hard work — whether it was learning new skills or raising animals. The Bingham County fair does do that in a small, but expanding way.
I was under the impression that the EISF pushed out the county fair, and I was pleased to learn that instead they have been a very helpful partner to the University of Idaho Extension Office as they struggle to grow their youth programs and handle all the fair details too. There is only so much a few, very dedicated people can do.
Which is why counties with fuller fairs have a busy fair board to handle all the details. Which begs the question why Bingham County doesn’t have a fair board and shoulder its part of putting on a county fair for all ages. It is especially puzzling when all three of the commissioners are country folk, dyed in the wool ag people or ag adjacent people. Perhaps it has been hard to see past the shadow of the state fair.
To be fair (pun not totally intended), one might wonder why we need two fairs in the same city only a month apart. Before answering that question, I need to be transparent that I’m a city girl and am clueless about the beauties of livestock beyond the basic, “Wow, how beautiful.” And, true confessions, I never experienced a county fair until I was decades past my youth and moved to rural Idaho.
Then I discovered the sense of community that comes with admiring my neighbors’ talents in woodworking, knitting, quilting and those incredible cakes that look so polished. Not to mention the delicious baked goods that are cruelly tempting. The fair food that can be eaten, even on the modest county level, is a welcome excuse to try something new or decadent, at least once a year.
I still remember the thrill and amazement of sitting in on a market sale where proud young ranchers showed off their prize cow, sheep or pig to be auctioned off. Then, to hear the older, experienced farmers around me bid to fill their freezers and support the next generation — at whatever price the betting rose to. The numbers didn’t always seem to be the best deal, but the real deal was in supporting the next generation.
And then there is the whole side of encouraging the growth of skills at all ages. Who says the county fair is only for the youth? I found it a scary thrill to submit a prized photo to be displayed and judged. And yet the satisfaction of seeing it on the wall was worth all the nerves before and after. It also gave me a yearly focus of what I might work on to share the next year. Yes, I could enter my art at the EISF — and I have — but the thrill is watered down a bit to be among a 100 entries versus 10.
And that leads to my answer as to why we need a separate county fair. To me, it is for the community it fosters through a common experience, mutual support and genuine admiration; for the opportunity at all ages to expand skills and for having a place of our own at least once a year.
I’m not clueless about what it takes to put on a fair. It is definitely an endeavor that needs many hands. But, before throwing up our hands in overwhelm, let’s make sure we have a clear, realistic vision of what our county fair could look like.
First, banish any thought of rivaling the EISF. Rather, we can embrace both levels of a fair — the local-focused one and the massive, busy one that brings in major attractions and exhibits. We have one benefit that no other county in Eastern Idaho has — we have beautiful and historic fairgrounds at hand that are already being well managed. And, we have EISF’s support in their use. We also have a strong and growing youth population already involved through 4-H and FFA.
But wait, what about all the quilt guilds in the county? And all the craftsmen and bakers in the summer markets and pop-up venues? Youth entrepreneur markets? There could also be a place for non-profit groups to raise funds or to share their vision of improving the world.
In Bingham County, we have dancers, singers, artists and actors for local evening entertainment. Is there a willing strolling minstrel? — one that will sing a serenade for a loved one? I’ve even heard of a barbershop group in the county that could add that old-time harmony to an afternoon at the fair. What about a square dance? Sock-hop? Old-fashioned carnival? Cake walk anyone?
The trick is to take brainstorm-type ideas and pick two or three to add to next year’s Bingham County fair. Our three-day fair can grow gradually each year with new attractions, instead of all at once. The second trick is to coax leaders and volunteers out of retirement to provide many wise hands to shape our own unique fair for all ages. One that will no longer be a secret, but rather a circled date on calendars throughout the county. Instead of saying, “We have a fair?”, we could be asking, “What will be new this year at our fair?”