Provincial Agricultural Fair of Canada West explained

The Provincial Agricultural Fair of Canada West was an annual provincial agricultural fair held in various places^{[1] [2]} in Canada West and after 1867 in Ontario.

The fair was established in 1846 and sponsored by the Provincial Agricultural Association and the Board of Agriculture for Canada West. It replaced an earlier attempt in 1792 by the Agricultural Society of Upper Canada^[3] founded in Newark (now Niagara-on-the-Lake, Ontario) in 1792.

The fair was mainly an agricultural themed show featuring horses and domesticated animals from around what was still a very rural pre-Confederation Ontario. It would last until 1878 as it met competition with large number of local fairs that emerged across some towns and counties in Ontario^[4] and eventually succeeded by the Canadian National Exhibition in 1879.

List of Provincial Agricultural Association of Canada West/Ontario

Year	Host	Notes
1846		Held at Government House Grounds near King Street West and Simcoe Street. The amount of prizes was $1,600. The number of entries was 1,150.^[5]
1847		Used Old Race Grounds^[6] between Dundurn Street (then Garth Street) and Locke Street South along Aberdeen Avenue in Kirkendall area. The amount of prizes was $3,000. The number of entries was 1,600.
1848		Hosted by Northumberland Agricultural Society and held on land loan by Patrick Wallace in the west end of town.^[7] The amount of prizes was $3,100. The number of entries was 1,500.
1849		Likely on same site used the then Frontenac Agricultural Society Fair c. 1825 near Kingston (Kingston and District Agricultural Society after 1825). The amount of prizes was $5,100. The number of entries was 1,429.
1850		Held at Court House (now Old Court House Theatre) and 14 acres of land set aside (perhaps military reserves).^[8] The amount of prizes was $5,000. The number of entries was 1,638.
1851		Host of fair from September 24 to 26.^[9] The amount of prizes was $5,000. The number of entries was 1,466.
1852	Toronto	September 21 to September 24.^[10] North part of Grange Park (neighbourhood). The amount of prizes was $6,000. The number of entries was 3,048.
1853	Hamilton	October 4 to 7.^[11] The amount of prizes was $6,400. The number of entries was 2,820.
1854		September 24 to 26.^[12] The first year London was chosen as a host site, corresponding to London's celebration of the coming of the railroad.^[13] Fair site was north of Oxford St., and south of Grosvenor St., between Talbot St. and the Thames River (now London Life Recreation Grounds). Attended in last three days by James Bruce, 8th Earl of Elgin.^[14] On the opening day, approximately 30,000 people attended. The amount of prizes was $7,200. The number of entries was 2,933. The floral hall hosted the first recorded public art show in London.^[15] A contemporary account notes the large size of the agricultural show, and the almost complete absence of exhibits highlighting mining and quarrying, forestry, and the Great Lakes fishery.^[16]
1855	Cobourg	October 9 to 12^[17]
1856	Kingston	September 23 to 26^[18]
1857		Held September 29 to 30^[19]

From 1858 the fair rotated between Toronto, Kingston, Hamilton and London in the same sequence for the duration of the fair's existence.

Year	Host	Notes
1858	Toronto	Crystal Palace or Palace of Industry built near King Street West and Shaw Street^[20]
1859	Kingston	Held again in the city for third time.^[21]
1860	Hamilton^[22]
1861	London	Military Garrison property near Victoria Park.^[23] The second provincial fair held in London (and sixteenth in Canada West) was on September 24–27, 1861, on grounds between Waterloo and Richmond, running south of what would become Kenneth Avenue "nearly down to Central Avenue".^[24] Octagonal Crystal Palace for the fair opens September 10, 1861 (demolished May 1888), designed by William Robinson, and built for $9000, sited immediately south of Great Market Street (now Central Ave) between Waterloo and Richmond.
1862	Toronto	September 23 to 26^[25]
1863	Kingston^[26]
1864	Hamilton
1865	London	Military Garrison property near Victoria Park. Held September 18–22, this was the fair's third time in London.^[27]
1866	Toronto ^[28]
1867	Kingston
1868	Hamilton
1869	London	Military Garrison property near Victoria Park. The fair took place in September,^[29] and was attended by the Governor General (Prince Arthur, Duke of Connaught and Strathearn) and Sir John A. Macdonald.^[30]
1870	Toronto
1871	Kingston
1872	Hamilton	Held September 23–27.^[31] Attended by Lord Dufferin and Lady Dufferin.^[32]
1873	London	Military Garrison property near Victoria Park. Held September 22–25—the 28th Provincial Fair was London's fifth.^[33] Attended by the Governor-General of Canada, Lord Dufferin.^[34]
1874	Toronto
1875	Kingston
1876	Hamilton
1877	London	Military Garrison property near Victoria Park. (The fairgrounds in London moved to their current Queen's Park location on September 19, 1887).
1878	Toronto	Last year Fair was held and first time at Exhibition Grounds by New Fort with Crystal Palace disassembled and rebuilt there.

Following Toronto's decision to create a permanent fair (Toronto Industrial Exhibition or now the Canadian National Exhibition), the provincial fair was replaced by the Dominion Exhibition from 1879 until 1913.

The remaining cities that continue with their existing fairs are:

• Kingston: continued with the Frontenac Agricultural Society Fair that began in 1825 on an irregular pattern to 1925, thereafter the Kingston Fair has been held annually^[35]
• Hamilton: the closest fair in the city has been the Ancaster Fall Fair held since 1850
• London: continued with the Western Fair that began in 1868 and operating since 1885 as the only fall fair in the city

Other fairs

A list of annual agricultural and/or country fairs in Ontario created before or after the establishment of the provincial fair:

• Williamstown Fall Fair 1812–present, Williamstown, ON is the oldest continuing fall fair in Ontario^[36] and replacing an unnamed fair that was held in town since 1808
• Kingston Fall Fair - 1912–present, operated by the Kingston and District Agricultural Society. A revival of the previous Midland Fair which operated from 1830 until 1880.
• Norfolk County Fair and Horse Show 1840–present, Simcoe, ON
• East Middlesex Agricultural Fair - 1841. Held annual fairs until 1868 at north-west corner of Talbot and Oxford^[37] - London, ON
• Aberfoyle Fall Fair 1842-present, Guelph, ON
• Scarboro Fair 1844 to early 20th Century, Scarborough, ON
• Aylmer Fari 1849-present, Alymer, ON
• Ancaster Fair 1850-present, Jersyville, ON
• Brigden Fair 1850-present, Brigden, ON
• Schomberg Fair 1850–present, Schomberg, ON
• Armour, Ryerson & Burk's Falls 1881-present, Burk's Falls, ON
• Barrie Fair 1853-present, Thornton, ON
• Brampton Fall Fair 1853–present, Brampton, ON
• Binbrook Fair 1853-present, Binbrook, ON
• Brampton Fall Fair 1853-present, Caledon, ON
• Beaverton Fall Fair 1855-present, Beaverton, ON
• Spencerville Fair 1855-present, Spencerville, ON
• Aruther Fall Fair 1856-present, Arthur, ON
• Bayfield Fair 1856-present, Bayfield, ON
• Arran Tara Agricultural Society 1857-present, Tara, ON
• Beaver Valley Fall Fair 1870-present, Clarksburg, ON
• Beachburg Fair 1857-present, Beachburg, ON
• Beeton Fall Fair 1857-present, Beeton, ON
• Brooke-Alvinston Watford Fall Fair 1857-present, Alvinston, ON
• Markham Fair 1857–present, Markham, ON
• Almonte Fair 1858-present, Almonte, ON
• Bolton Fall Fair 1858-present, Bolton, ON
• Bobcaygen Fair 1859-present, Bobcaygeon, ON
• Avonmore Fair 1860-present, Avonmore, ON
• Burford Fair 1860-present, Brant, ON
• Brussels Fall Fair 1861-present, Brussels, ON
• Blackstock Fair 1865-present, Blackstock, ON
• Bracebridge Fall Fair & Horse Show 1867-present, Bracebridge, ON
• Western Fair 1868–present, London, ON
• Bonfield Fall Fair 1890-present, Bonfield, ON
• Brooklin Spring Fair 1991-present, Brooklin, ON
• Action Fall Fair 1913-present, Acton, ON
• Royal Agricultural Winter Fair 1922–present, held in Toronto at Exhibition Place in the Colisium

Other annual fairs around Canada and the United States:

• Hants County Exhibition c. 1765 and annual since 1815 - Windsor, NS
• Great New York State Fair 1841 - NY State
• Provincial Agricultural Fair of Lower Canada - created in 1847 with Montreal hosting fair in 1853 but since ended. Expo Richmond Fair is the only visible and annual fall fair remaining in Quebec (since 1856)
• Royal Manitoba Winter Fair 1882 - Winnipeg, MB
• Pacific National Exhibition 1910 - Vancouver, BC
• Canadian Western Agribition 1971 - Regina, SK

other annual agricultural events in Ontario

• The International Plowing Match held annually since 1913 in a different location in Ontario each year, has become the largest outdoor agricultural and rural fair in North America.

Notes and References

1. CNE Archives. 2013.
2. Web site: Early CNE. 2015-01-22. 2015-01-22. https://web.archive.org/web/20150122041028/http://www.lostrivers.ca/points/CNEearly.htm. live.
3. Web site: History of Agricultural Fairs | Emsdale Agricultural Society . 2015-01-22 . 2015-01-22 . https://web.archive.org/web/20150122061332/http://www.emsdaleagriculturalsociety.com/our-history/history-of-agricultural-fairs/ . dead .
4. Agricultural Society of Upper Canada
5. Book: Goodspeed . W. A. & C.L. . History of the County of Middlesex Canada: From the Earliest Time to the Present ; Containing an Authentic Account of Many Important Matters Relating to the Settlement, Progress and General History of the County ; and Including a Department Devoted to the Preservation of Personal and Private Records, etc. . 1889 . W.A. & C.L. Goodspeed . Toronto and London . 202 .
6. Web site: The Old Race Course. 2017-09-08. 2017-09-08. https://web.archive.org/web/20170908112450/http://digitalarchive.mcmaster.ca/islandora/object/macrepo%3A73685. live.
7. Web site: Agricultural Societies & Fairs . . Cobourg, Ontario . 2017-09-07 . 2017-09-07 . https://web.archive.org/web/20170907215245/https://www.cobourgmuseum.ca/wp-content/uploads/2016/06/AgricultureFairs-Final.pdf . live .
8. Web site: Notes on Niagara NO. 32, 1759–1860 . Niagara Historical Society . 63 . https://web.archive.org/web/20190220063318/http://www.niagarahistorical.museum/media/NHS32.pdf . 20 February 2019 . dead .
9. Book: Descriptive Catalogue of the Provincial Exhibition, at Toronto, September 1858: With an Historical and Descriptive Sketch of the City of Toronto and a Digest of the Proceedings of the Agricultural Association Since Its Formation, with a Large Amount of Other Useful Information. 1858. 9780665511929. Exhibition. Provincial.
10. Book: Descriptive Catalogue of the Provincial Exhibition, at Toronto, September 1858: With an Historical and Descriptive Sketch of the City of Toronto and a Digest of the Proceedings of the Agricultural Association Since Its Formation, with a Large Amount of Other Useful Information. 1858. 9780665511929. Exhibition. Provincial.
11. Book: Descriptive Catalogue of the Provincial Exhibition, at Toronto, September 1858: With an Historical and Descriptive Sketch of the City of Toronto and a Digest of the Proceedings of the Agricultural Association Since Its Formation, with a Large Amount of Other Useful Information. 1858. 9780665511929. Exhibition. Provincial.
12. Book: Descriptive Catalogue of the Provincial Exhibition, at Toronto, September 1858: With an Historical and Descriptive Sketch of the City of Toronto and a Digest of the Proceedings of the Agricultural Association Since Its Formation, with a Large Amount of Other Useful Information. 1858. 9780665511929. Exhibition. Provincial.
13. Book: Sanmiya . Inge V. . A Celebration of Excellence: The History of the Western Fair Association . August 2000 . The Aylmer Express Ltd. . London ON . 0-9687675-0-8 . 8.
14. Book: Brock. Dan. McEwan. Catherine. Fragments from the Forks: London, Ontario's Legacy. 2011. The London and Middlesex Historical Society. London, Ontario, Canada. 978-0-9866899-0-1. 46.
15. Book: Smart . Tom . The Collection, London Canada . 1990 . London Regional Art and Historical Museums . London, ON . 0-920872-81-6 . 5.
16. Book: The Provincial Exhibition . November 1854 . The Anglo-American Magazine . 438–441 . 2023-10-11 . 2019-06-04 . https://web.archive.org/web/20190604155628/http://eco.canadiana.ca/view/oocihm.8_04640_29/23%3Fr%3D0%26s%3D1 . live .
17. Book: Descriptive Catalogue of the Provincial Exhibition, at Toronto, September 1858: With an Historical and Descriptive Sketch of the City of Toronto and a Digest of the Proceedings of the Agricultural Association Since Its Formation, with a Large Amount of Other Useful Information. 1858. 9780665511929. Exhibition. Provincial.
18. Book: Descriptive Catalogue of the Provincial Exhibition, at Toronto, September 1858: With an Historical and Descriptive Sketch of the City of Toronto and a Digest of the Proceedings of the Agricultural Association Since Its Formation, with a Large Amount of Other Useful Information. 1858. 9780665511929. Exhibition. Provincial.
19. Book: Descriptive Catalogue of the Provincial Exhibition, at Toronto, September 1858: With an Historical and Descriptive Sketch of the City of Toronto and a Digest of the Proceedings of the Agricultural Association Since Its Formation, with a Large Amount of Other Useful Information. 1858. 9780665511929. Exhibition. Provincial.
20. Web site: Historicist: An Exhibition in Crystal. 23 August 2008. 7 September 2017. 7 September 2017. https://web.archive.org/web/20170907215117/http://torontoist.com/2008/08/historicist_an_exhibition_in_crysta/. live.
21. Book: Circular: Office of the Provincial Industrial and Agricultural Exhibition for 1859. 9780665494666. 1859. 2017-09-07. 2017-09-07. https://web.archive.org/web/20170907213803/http://catalogue.nla.gov.au/Record/2836467. live.
22. Web site: Transactions. 1859.
23. Web site: Salter's Grove/Queen's Park (1879 - 1887). Closed Canadian Parks. April 1, 2016. March 3, 2015. https://web.archive.org/web/20150303022558/http://cec.chebucto.org/ClosPark/Salter.html. live.
24. Book: Brock. Dan. McEwan. Catherine. Fragments from the Forks: London, Ontario's Legacy. 2011. The London and Middlesex Historical Society. London, Ontario, Canada. 978-0-9866899-0-1. 58.
25. Book: Provincial Agricultural Association of Upper Canada [microform] : Catalogue of the horses, cattle, sheep, pigs and poultry, entered for the Association's seventeenth annual exhibition at Toronto, on the 23rd, 24th, 25th and 26th September, 1862. 9780665891892. 1862.
26. Web site: R.C. Gill, Upper Canadian Provincial Exhibition, Kingston. "Upper Canada Exhibition Eighteenth Meeting." the Globe, 25 September 1863 - photocopy newspaper clipping. 8 September 2017. 9 September 2017. https://web.archive.org/web/20170909005349/http://vitacollections.ca/cramahelibrary/2813225/data?n=6. live.
27. Book: Brock. Dan. McEwan. Catherine. Fragments from the Forks: London, Ontario's Legacy. 2011. The London and Middlesex Historical Society. London, Ontario, Canada. 978-0-9866899-0-1. 71.
28. Web site: The Hamilton Evening Times - Google News Archive Search.
29. Book: The Ontario Provincial Exhibition . October 30, 1869 . The Canadian Illustrated News . Montreal . 5 . October 11, 2023 . June 3, 2019 . https://web.archive.org/web/20190603185836/http://eco.canadiana.ca/view/oocihm.8_06230_1/10%3Fr%3D0%26s%3D1 . live .
30. Book: Brock. Dan. McEwan. Catherine. Fragments from the Forks: London, Ontario's Legacy. 2011. The London and Middlesex Historical Society. London, Ontario, Canada. 978-0-9866899-0-1. 81.
31. Book: The Ontario Provincial Exhibition . October 5, 1872 . The Canadian Illustrated News . Montreal . 211 . October 11, 2023 . June 3, 2019 . https://web.archive.org/web/20190603170549/http://eco.canadiana.ca/view/oocihm.8_06230_153/4%3Fr%3D0%26s%3D1 . live .
32. Book: The Ontario Provincial Exhibition . October 12, 1872 . The Canadian Illustrated News . Montreal . 226 . October 11, 2023 . June 3, 2019 . https://web.archive.org/web/20190603170550/http://eco.canadiana.ca/view/oocihm.8_06230_154/3%3Fr%3D0%26s%3D1 . live .
33. Book: Brock. Dan. McEwan. Catherine. Fragments from the Forks: London, Ontario's Legacy. 2011. The London and Middlesex Historical Society. London, Ontario, Canada. 978-0-9866899-0-1. 91.
34. Book: Miller . Orlo . London 200: An Illustrated History . registration . 1992 . London Chamber of Commerce . London, ON . 116–117. 9780920298985 .
35. Web site: Archived copy . 2017-09-08 . 2017-09-09 . https://web.archive.org/web/20170909052231/http://www.agrinewsinteractive.com/archives/article-6187.htm . live .
36. Web site: History | Williamstown Fair. 16 September 2020. 7 September 2017. 7 September 2017. https://web.archive.org/web/20170907213222/http://williamstownfair.ca/about-us/history/. live.
37. Web site: Mitchell-Reid. Alison. The East Middlesex Agricultural Society Fonds (AFC73). Archives Finding Aids. Archives and Research Collections Centre, Western University. April 1, 2016. October 22, 2015. https://web.archive.org/web/20151022140505/http://www.lib.uwo.ca/files/archives/archives_finding_aids/AFC_73_-_East_Middlesex_Agricultural_Society_fonds.pdf. live.