The Pima County Fair will be 100 years old when it opens Thursday. As far as we can tell, it's the oldest county fair in Arizona, beating Yavapai County by two years and Santa Cruz county by four.
All of this should come as no surprise, really, when you consider that back at the turn of the last century, county fairs were likely to pop up in areas where there was a land-grant college. The University of Arizona, the state's first university, started with a strong cooperative extension and agriculture program.
Of course, we may not hold the record for the longest continually operated fair. The Pima County Fair took a few breaks along the way - during the world wars and the Great Depression when no one really had any money for such frivolities.
But the fair has run non-stop since 1948, serving as a needed respite from reality. Cotton candy, Ferris wheels and games of chance - the stuff of childhood memories that pass from generation to generation.
People are also reading…
If you go
The Pima County Fair
• When: Thursday-April 24
• Times: Noon-midnight Mondays-Fridays; 10 a.m.-midnight Saturdays-Sundays. Carnival area is open 3 p.m.-midnight Mondays-Fridays; 11 a.m.-midnight Saturdays-Sundays.
• Where: Pima County Fairgrounds, 11300 S. Houghton Road.
• Tickets: $8 with discounts available.
• Parking: $5.
• More info: pimacountyfair.com
Cathalena E. Burch
