Illinois State Fair
| Illinois State Fair | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| Genre | State fair |
| Frequency | Annually |
| Inaugurated | 1853 |
| Most recent | August 11 - 21, 2016 |
| Next event | August 10 - 20, 2017 |
| Website | |
| agr |
|
Coordinates: 39°50′10″N 89°38′31″W / 39.836°N 89.642°W
The Illinois State Fair is an annual festival, centering on the theme of agriculture, hosted by the U.S. state of Illinois in the state capital, Springfield. The state fair has been celebrated almost every year since 1853. In 2016 there were more than 350,000 visits. This marked a sharp decline from the more than 700,000 visitors counted in 2008, when the fair had been the 13th largest state fair in the United States. Currently, the fair is held annually over an 11-day period in mid-August of each year. In 2017, the State Fair will be held from August 10-20, and an admission fee will be charged.
The first Illinois State Fair was celebrated in 1853 in Springfield. In that first year, the admission fee was 25 cents. The fair moved to Chicago in 1855. The 1850s were a golden age of agricultural journalism, with a wide variety of editors offering many suggestions, well-founded or not, to increase farm productivity. The first State Fairs, in Illinois and other states, were created and organized by farmers in order to compare notes with their colleagues and distinguish between good and bad advice.
During the years after the Civil War, the rules of agricultural judging became standardized, and more and more farmers began to show their farm products. Increasing knowledge of genetics inspired the breeding and showing of purebred farm animals at both county fairs and the Illinois State Fair.
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