Pine County Fair Explained

Pine County Fair
Date:	First Weekend in August
Frequency:	annual
Location:	Pine City, Minnesota
First:	1892
Attendance:	40,000 (2017)^[1]
Genre:	County fair
Website:	pinecountyfair.com

The Pine County Fair is an annual event held at the Pine County Fairgrounds in Pine City, Minnesota, United States. The fair, like many in Minnesota, includes amusement rides, live entertainment and exhibits of farm animals, food, and flowers along with other types of specialty displays. Youth members of 4-H and Future Farmers of America participate by showing their animals and specialty collections.

Demolition derby

Pine County Fair's biggest draw is the Demolition Derby. Considered the “hardest hitting demolition derby in the Midwest”,^[2] the derby draws around 100 registrants each year and sells thousands of tickets, bringing in one-third of the total spending at the fair each year.^[3] It is held during the first weekend of August.

History

• From 1872 to 1888 Pine County and Chisago County held a joint fair.^[4]
• In 1911, Governor Adolph Olson Eberhart spoke at the fair.
• No fair was held in 1917–18.
• In 1939, Cedric Adams and Clellan Card were Master of Ceremonies at the grandstand.
• No fair was held between 1942 and 1945.
• In 1978, the first International Polkafest was held at the Pine County Fairgrounds and it was held there until it outgrew the space.^[5]
• In 1996, the grandstand was burned in a fire and later rebuilt with the help of the Pine City Lions.^[6]
• In 2014, the movie Derby Fever, by Dell Gross, about the Pine County Fair demotion derby, was released and shown at the Highway 61 Film Festival.^[7]
• In 2017, the economic impact of the fair on Pine City was studied.^[8]
• In 2018, a new beer garden and event center debuted at the Pine County Fairgrounds.^[9]
• In 2019, Governor Tim Walz visited the Pine County Fair^[10] with Ag Commissioner Thom Petersen.
• In 2020, the COVID-19 pandemic was to blame for cancellation of the fair.^[11]
• In 2021, fairgoers were paid $100 to get COVID-19 vaccinations.^[12]

Notes and References

1. Web site: Pine County Fair: Attendee and participant assessment and economic value . University of Minnesota .
2. Web site: Derby Fever: The Movie. 25 November 2015. Twin Cities PBS. 19 December 2018.
3. Web site: Study: Pine County Fair brings in $927k. Terry Salmela. Pinecitymn.com. 11 May 2018 . 19 December 2018.
4. Web site: Looking Back at The Pine County Fair . Pine City Area History Association.
5. Web site: Famed Polkafest enters 40th year. Linda. Tyssen. Mesabi Daily News. 9 April 2018 . 19 December 2018.
6. Web site: Pine City Lions celebrate half-century of service. Mike Gainor. Pinecitymn.com. 19 August 2016 . 19 December 2018.
7. Web site: Pine County's 'Derby Fever' captured in new movie. Mike. Gainor. Press Publications. 25 July 2014 . 19 December 2018.
8. Web site: WCMP East Central MN News, Sports, Music . www.wcmpradio.com . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20181220231059/https://www.wcmpradio.com/single-post/2017/08/24/Pine-County-Fair-Survey-Widely-Completed . 2018-12-20.
9. Web site: New beer garden makes debut at 125th Pine County Fair. Mike Gainor. Pinecitymn.com. August 2017 . 19 December 2018.
10. Web site: Governor Walz takes a tour of the Pine County Fair. 9 August 2019 .
11. Web site: At least 20 Minnesota counties have canceled their 2020 fair. 21 May 2020 .
12. Web site: At Pine County Fair, $100 for COVID-19 shot is working. 6 August 2021 .