I love a good carnival, but all of the fairs and festivals in my life have been compared to the Wisconsin State Fair, the fair of my childhood. My dad is from Milwaukee and every year when I was a kid he would take my brother and I home to see our grandparents and every year he would make sure we went when the State Fair was in full swing. I was very happy to find that over 30 years later it was pretty much still how I remembered it. I used to say “one of these days I’ll make it back to the Wisconsin State Fair”, and finally “one of those days” was realized. I had a great time and hope you enjoy these just-for-fun photos of the Wisconsin State Fair.
Ah, State Fair! The mere mention of State Fair brings back so many fond memories from my childhood. Roasted corn on the cob, flying down the Giant Slide on a sack, cream puffs and little piglets were always the highlights for me. It was wonderful to be able to visit the Ohio State Fair in Columbus and relive some of those memories. It was great to see there are still hawkers selling shammies and cookware, and the guy who will guess your weight, age or birth month. I also loved visiting the crafts area and seeing the award winning dollhouses and quilts and muffins. State Fair was also my only real connection with agricultural life when I was a kid, and it was great to see farmers still sitting by their prized cattle and sheep. I also enjoyed the "butter cow", apparently a beloved local tradition. This year's was a recreation of one of my favorite holiday movies: A Christmas Story. Fairs are also fun to photograph as the colors are vivid and the patrons come in all shapes and sizes. I hope you enjoy these shots from the Ohio State Fair.
I really love good small town festivals, and my visit to the National Cornbread Festival in South Pittsburgh, Tennessee was one of the best I can remember. Apparently, when the Tennessee Department of Transportation built a bypass around South Pittsburgh, downtown really took a hit. Town leaders gathered to try and think of a way to bring business back to town. Since they are home to Lodge Cast Iron, they decided to try and stage a cornbread festival. After all, who doesn't like cornbread? The first year they brought out their card tables and folding chairs and hoped for 500 people to show up. An hour after the gates opened there were 5,000 people there... and they were out of cornbread. In the 21 years since, they've learned a lot about throwing a festival, and it really showed…
