The South Mountain Fair provides a chance for children to be acknowledged for their personal efforts ranging from hobby interests to animal husbandry, for local and national merchants to show off their wares, and for community members from far and wide to come together for an evening full of great food, entertainment, and lots of fun.

According to the International Association of Fairs and Expositions, there are more than 3,200 fairs held in North America every year, but for Adams County, the most important one is the Annual South Mountain Fair. Historically the fair began in 1922 and continued each year until 1930, when it was cancelled because of a drought. The annual event picked up once again the following year in 1931 and continued until 1941, when it was again cancelled, this time due to a polio epidemic, then World War II, according to the South Mountain Fair Association. The fair was resumed in 1948 and has been held every year since then with the exception of last year, when it was cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

In early spring of last year, the Fair Board of Directors were monitoring the pandemic closely to determine if it was going to be possible to run the Fair. They were hopeful that they would be able to, but by the middle of May 2020 they realized that it was not going to be possible to safely hold the 2020 Fair. The carnival ride company told them that they were cancelling because there was just no way they could keep up with all of the sanitizing of the rides that would be required. The Board made the very difficult decision that the 2020 Fair was not going to happen, so the cancellation was announced.

There were a lot of things that went into making that difficult decision last May. The ride company cancelling, 4H not being allowed to participate and the general safety of exhibitors and attendees are just a few of the things they had to consider. In addition, all of the events that normally rent the fairgrounds throughout the year were cancelled so there would be no income to pay the bills for the fairgrounds or the Fair. Yet the Fair Board still had to maintain the property and buildings and pay the bills whether there was income or not.

Fast forward to 2021. While still monitoring the pandemic rules and regulations, in early Spring it appeared that things were getting better so the Board proceeded to plan to have the Fair in 2021. In early May it was decided to charge ahead. The entertainment that was scheduled to perform in 2020 was moved to 2021, premium books were printed and all of the normal events that rent the grounds throughout the year were once again scheduled. The pandemic appeared to be under control, with many getting the vaccine and everyone was excited to be getting back to something resembling normal again. The Board members are looking forward to having a successful Fair this year and hope that everyone comes to have a fun time, meet old friends and make new ones, enjoy the rides and livestock shows and eat some great fair food.

Admission for the fair is $7 for adults and is free for all children under 36" in height. All entertainment and carnival rides are included in the admission price and children under 36" in height may ride the carnival rides for free. Parking is provided to the public for free. Livestock exhibitions scheduled to be held during the fair include swine and poultry competitions on July 27, goat and sheep competitions on July 28, beef, calf and steer competitions on July 29th, and dairy cattle competitions on July 30. The annual junior livestock sale will be held on the last day of the fair, July 31, at 4 p.m.

Exhibit buildings will be open every day for the public. Exhibits include: a photography exhibit; baked goods, wine, vegetables, and fruit exhibits; crafts and art pieces of all kinds; as well as 4H projects. Additionally, plenty of entertainment has been scheduled for this year’s fair – on July 28 at 7:30 p.m., breakout country artist John King, out of a little mountain town in Georgia will perform, and Austin Rife, a local singer-songwriter, will perform on July 29th. On July 30th, the fair will host its annual Fair Showdown where eight country singers will compete on our stage to become the winner of the 2021 South Mountain Fair Showdown. Twenty-two year old Nathan Merovich will wrap up the entertainment on July 31st with favorite country hits from today and yesterday along with some of his own originals.

South Mountain Fair Secretary Joanne Irvin said that many other fair favorites will return this year, including a baked goods auction on July 27 with part of the proceeds going to a local charity, a draft and miniature horse pulling contest on July 28, a fireworks display on July 29, and a parade of antique farm equipment on July 31.

As always, the fair organizers are really hoping for a nice clear week with low humidity. "They’ve got a really great group of volunteers who spend countless hours setting up the main exhibit building and display the hundreds of exhibits that are entered in the fair. Even when the number of entries is lower, the volunteers make the displays look great."

Irvin also mentioned that the organization of this year’s fair is going well so far. Most of the commercial vendors will be returning and quite a few new vendors will also be coming on board. As always there will be a variety of food vendors and most of the crowd favorites will be coming back again this year.

For more information and a complete schedule, visit www.southmountainfair.com.