July is summer time! July also is the month holding interesting national “holidays” including national grilling month, national hotdog month, and national blueberry month. Upon discovering this, the first thing that came to my mind was another summer tradition – county fairs.
County fairs differ from state fairs not only in size but in activities. County fairs are much more like local carnivals celebrating local craft, culture and food, while state fairs tend to be more competitive with more emphasis on best-in-show livestock and produce. County fairs are where you will find pie eating contests, handmade arts and crafts, entertainment, and lots of local foods.
County fairs date back to the mid 18th century growing out of the need for people to buy and sell livestock and other goods. The first designated place for an annual fair was in Trenton county New Jersey in 1745. The fairs later included horse shows, carnival rides, music and dancing. As an agricultural state Pennsylvania has county fairs throughout the summer all over the state. Butler County claims the largest, while York County claims the oldest.
Obviously, the fair as community gathering place can be traced back through civilization, but here we celebrate the American popular traditions and folk culture. (For an interesting and concise history, see “Circus and Carnival” in Dictionary of American History, vol. 2). We also want to celebrate American food! Yes, of course, that kind of American food, but also the kind that comes from your local farms, backyards, and communities. In the past and present, we want to celebrate the women who cooked it and the land it comes from. We want to celebrate potters and wood carvers, teachers and storytellers, entertainers and urban homesteaders.
While modern American folk culture is unique in its own right, it must be remembered that Native Americans and African Americans were largely delegated to their own fairs. Not until the mid 20th century were fairs openly integrated, but the influence of both cultures are obvious in the crafts and cooking of European Americans. America’s diversity can be recognized in different regions of the country, where fairs exhibit the flavor of their locality. Check out the library’s display for books on the Pennsylvania region as well as national American cooking, farming, gardening, crafts, and culture.
~Display and blog post by Donna Guerin, Reference Associate