Many counties claim to have America's Oldest Fair, but the true winner is the Topsfield Fair in Topsfield, Massachusetts.

Started in 1818 by the Essex County Agricultural Society, it is the oldest continuously run fair in the country.  There have been only 3 times in the 206 year history, when the fair was cancelled.

According to historyofmassachusetts.org, the Topsfield Fair was cancelled in 1918 due to the Spanish Influenza epidemic.

Then the fair was cancelled again in 1942, 1943, and 1944 due to World War II, and then the third time it was cancelled in 2020 from the Covid Pandemic.

Topsfield Fair via Facebook
Topsfield Fair via Facebook
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Last year saw the biggest single day attendance record in the history of the fair.

How many people does this large fair attract?  According to carnivalwarehouse.com, last year the attendance was almost 394,000 in the ten day period of the fair.

Some of the highlights are the hotdog eating contest (9 hotdogs in 7 minutes), the draft horse pulling contest, The Flying Wallendas, the largest pumpkin contest, the carnival rides, games, live entertainment, all the animals and livestock, and even the racing pigs.

Topsfield Fair via Facebook
Topsfield Fair via Facebook
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Of all the destinations at the fair, my personal favorite is Learned's Apple Pie and Apple Crisp.  They also offer Blueberry Crisp that's outrageously good.  The Apple Pie post has been a staple at the fair for years and years.

Look at how good this is, and there's always a line which moves quickly.

There's nothing like getting a blue ribbon from a local fair.  It gives you bragging rights for a lifetime, so good luck to all the 21-thousand entries for blue ribbons at the Topsfield Fair this week.

It runs through October 14th and you can buy tickets at topsfieldfair.org.

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