Iowa State Fair
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The Iowa State Fair is an annual state fair held in Des Moines, Iowa.
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[edit] History
The first Iowa State Fair was held in Fairfield in 1854. The fair was held again in Fairfield in 1855. For the next several years, the fair was held in various towns, mostly in Eastern Iowa. The fair was held in Muscatine in 1856-1857, in Oskaloosa in 1858-1859, in Iowa City in 1860-1861, in Dubuque in 1862-1863, in Burlington in 1864-1866, in Clinton in 1867-1868, in Keokuk in 1869-1870 and 1874-1875, and in Cedar Rapids in 1871-1873 and 1876-1878. The fair moved in 1878 to Des Moines. After the state legislature and the city of Des Moines appropriated funds for the fair in 1886, the fair moved to its current location at East 30th and University in Des Moines [1].
In the over 150 years of the Iowa State Fair, there have only been a few years when it did not take place. In 1898, the fair was cancelled due to the World's Fair in nearby Omaha, Nebraska as well as because of the Spanish-American War. The fair was also shut down in 1942 due to World War II when the state provided the fairgrounds to the military to be used as a supply depot. The fair re-opened in 1946.[2]
The fair celebrated its sesquicentennial in 2004. Also in 2004, the fair set an attendance record with 1,053,978. visits.[3]
[edit] Attractions
The fair grounds are made of over 400 acres of which 160 acres are wooded campsites. Yearly attractions include the butter cow and the Midway's Double Ferris Wheel.
[edit] Livestock and traditional attractions
The Iowa State Fair places a great deal of emphasis on the agricultural presence in the state. To that end, there are many livestock shows and sales. These include the contests for the biggest animals: the Big Boar, the Big Ram, the Super Bull, and the Largest Rabbit. There are also livestock shows of sheep, swine, beef and dairy cattle, goats, llamas and rabbits, as well as cat and dog shows.
Additionally, the fair is home to several traditional contests and tournaments, including rooster crowing, sheep shearing, pigeon racing, turkey, duck, and chicken calling, wood chopping, pie eating, arm wrestling, banjo, fiddle, accordion, harmonica, mandolin and piano playing, and backgammon, chess, cribbage, and checkers tournaments.
Furthermore, the fair traditionally has many free musical and other events going on. These include Latin music, a capella music, country music, rock music, Jimmy Buffett and Beatles "tribute bands", stilt walkers, magicians, puppet and marionette shows, acrobats, and exotic animals like tigers and alligators.
The Heritage Village located on the fair grounds contains many items of historical import to the state of Iowa, including replicas of Native American traditional domiciles, a one-roomed school house, a church, and others.
The Varied Industries Building traditionally holds many vendors offering "fair specials" and free items, such as pens and pencils and magnets.
[edit] The butter cow
One of the most well-known features of the Iowa State Fair is the butter cow. Each year, a life-size cow figure is sculpted from butter. The butter cow has been a fair staple since 1911. In 1960, current butter sculptor Norma "Duffy" Lyon created her first bovine masterpiece. Since that time, she has sculpted all six breeds of dairy cow, as well as Garth Brooks, a butter version of Grant Wood's painting American Gothic, Superman, the Peanuts characters, Elvis Presley, various animals, John Wayne, a Harley-Davidson motorcycle, and a butter rendition of Leonardo DaVinci's The Last Supper. She has been featured in national magazines and on radio programs, as well as on The Today Show and Late Night with David Letterman.
[edit] The Bill Riley Iowa State Fair talent search
From 1957 to 1996, "Mr. State Fair" Bill Riley, Sr. hosted a talent search for Iowans between the ages of 2 and 21. Since 1996, the talent search has been hosted by Mr. Riley's son, Bill Riley, Jr. The talent search culminates in 6 winners from the "sprout" division (ages 2-12), and 1 winner from the senior division (13-21). Contestants sing, dance, play musical instruments, and otherwise showcase their unique talents. The talent search is routinely re-broadcast on IPTV (Iowa Public Television). Bill Riley, Sr. died on December 15, 2006.
[edit] Concerts
The Fairgrounds' grandstand, which holds about 11,000 people, is used every night of the State Fair, either for auto races, tractor pulls, monster truck events, or musical concerts. The fair has brought in many big names to perform, with an emphasis on Iowa natives. Popular past and present guests at the Grandstand include Iowa native Andy Williams, Liberace, Lawrence Welk, Johnny Cash, The Jackson Five, Charley Pride, Sonny and Cher, Elton John, Tammy Wynette, Liza Minelli, The Beach Boys, Chicago, The Eagles, Reba McEntire,The Nadas, Train, Raven Symone, Brooks & Dunn, Goo Goo Dolls, Christina Aguilera, Bob Dylan, Big and Rich, Cowboy Troy, Alan Jackson, Garth Brooks, and 2005 opener Switchfoot. The 2006 headliner was James Taylor. It has, however, seen its share of flops, including a Hoobastank performance in 2005 that only drew 2,500 people, which was reported to be even less than a free America concert going on nearby.
[edit] A national cultural event
Iowa is an important state in Presidential election races because the Iowa caucuses are the first in the nation to be held. For this reason, in years with pending elections, one can find presidential hopefuls at the State Fair, as well as national and international media reporting the event.[4]
In 1999, Martha Stewart and her production company taped an episode of her show at the fair, which was shown nationally.[5]
National media attention has also focused on "Duffy" Lyon and her butter sculptures, including segments on CBS News' Early Show, The Today Show, and The Late Show with David Letterman.
In 2004, the sesquicentennial of the fair drew the attention of Country Living magazine, USA Today, the Minneapolis Star-Tribune, the Dallas Morning News, ESPN (which featured the "Outhouse Races" on the "Play of the Day"), and CBS News Sunday Morning, as well as Monster Productions, which produces some of the Discovery Channel's programming.[6]
The Iowa State Fair was the inspiration for the acclaimed novel, 'State Fair', written by Iowa native Phil Stong. The novel was later made into three movies, the first starring Will Rogers, as well as a Rodgers and Hammerstein musical.[7] [8] Due to this portrayal, as well as recent media coverage of the fair, the Iowa State Fair is seen as the classic and quintessential state fair of the United States.
While the Iowa State Fair is not the oldest or largest state fair in the United States, it is considered to be a "must-see" event. The fair has been noted in a best-selling global travel book, 1000 Places to See Before You Die. Notably, it is the only Iowa attraction in the book, as well as the only state fair in the book. [9]. The fair has also been listed as second only to Las Vegas as a summer destination spot by USA Weekend magazine.[10]. It is also included in the June 2004 issue of Esquire magazine as one of the "15 Superlative Things to Experience Before Labor Day."[11] In addition, Midwest Living named the fair to its list of "30 Things Every Midwesterner Must Experience." In 2004, the fair was one of the events listed in Spread the Word Advertising's list of "Discover America 200 Events." Over 3000 national events were reviewed for inclusion in the list.[12].
[edit] Trivia
"Duffy" Lyon, the butter cow sculptor, is the niece of Phil Stong, who wrote 'State Fair'.
In over 150 years, there has only been one year in which temperatures at the fair reached over 100 degrees Fahrenheit: 1983. In this year, temperatures peaked at 106 degrees, and there were 6 days of over 100 degree weather.
