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First county fair
in (J.S. held in 1811
JA n
merica’s first county fair was organized
in Pittsfield, Massachusetts, in 1811 by a
entleman fanner named Elkanah Watson. Concerned that Americans were falling behind Europeans in farming and animal husbandry, Watson invited local farmers to compete for best livestock. Two years later, he encouraged women to contend in homespun in an effort to lessen their dependence on European products. While Watson was essentially concerned with the sober issue of agricultural edification, he also encouraged an atr of festivity, organizing parades and, even
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