| Colorado State Fair | |
| Date: | 26 August – 5 September 2022 |
| Frequency: | Annual |
| Location: | Pueblo, Colorado |
| First: | October 9, 1872 |
| Genre: | State fair |
The Colorado State Fair is an event held annually in late August in Pueblo, Colorado. The state fair has been a tradition since October 9, 1872.[1]
The fairgrounds also host a number of other events during the rest of the year. Organizationally, the fair is one of the divisions of the Colorado Department of Agriculture.[2]
When Colorado became a state in 1876, its state fair was already earning its place in history. In 1869, approximately two thousand people converged on what is now Pueblo for a horse exhibition; from that meager beginning was born the Colorado State Fair.
There were cancellations in 1917–18 and 1942–45. 2020 saw drive-thru fair food and limited exhibitions due to the COVID-19 pandemic.[3]
In November 2019, the Colorado State Fair was audited by the Colorado General Assembly.[4] As reported in local media, the audit found that the Fair had lost money for the previous 21 years in a row, with deficits averaging $4 million per year between 2014 and 2018.[5]