Western Fair

The Western Fair is a fair held annually in London, Ontario, Canada in early September.

The first Western Fair was held in September 1868 in downtown London, northeast of the current location of Victoria Park. Organizers had hoped to use the Crystal Palace Barracks as the main exhibition area. Livestock shows took place on the parade grounds outside the Crystal Palace.

In 1887, when the fair gained legal status through the Provincial Charter and Act of Incorporation, it moved to 900 King Street in east London, where the fairgrounds remain today. The present fairgrounds were purchased for $65,000. Except for an eight-year period between 1939 and 1947 when the Canadian Department of National Defence occupied the grounds, the Western Fair has operated on the new site.

John Huse Saunders was President of the Western Fair Association (WFA) for 22 years. He devoted more than 50 years to the Western Fair and was known throughout North America as a poultry breeder. After receiving Honorary Presidential status the WFA changed the by-laws and limited the term to three years.

In 2011, the former Western Fair Association re-branded itself as the Western Fair District, to better represent the reality that the grounds and building facilities had expanded beyond a 9-day fair to year-round activities.

The Western Fair runs during the second full week of September, starting on Friday and ending on Sunday. As of 2016, the fair is closed to the public on Monday and Tuesday during its run, when it is open only to school trips.

The original basis for the Western Fair was agricultural displays, arts and crafts, and vendors, with a heavy emphasis on competition. Later additions included the midway and booked entertainment acts. A seasonal harness racetrack was opened in 1961, with simulcast betting added later. The racetrack was later separated from the fair proper.

The only 24-hour food vendor at the Western Fair, St. Anne's Church, served meals at the Western Fair from 1947 until 2015, with the proceeds going to local charities and to fund church activities. In 2016, St. Anne's Church did not renew its contract after new regulations restricted its operations to fair open hours only, which would have forced it to operate at a loss.

The Western Fairgrounds are open 12 months a year. In addition to the fair itself, the fairgrounds are also home to the Western Fair Raceway, the OLG casino slot machines, an agricultural complex, and several large buildings which are frequently rented out for events. It also used to be home to the former Western Fair Museum and Archives and the former IMAX theater, both of which closed in 2005. The IMAX theatre was taken over by London Musical Theatre Productions in 2007.

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