Happy 175th, Wayne County Fair: Parade and fairgrounds packed for Saturday festivities

Wayne County residents from east to west and north to south came to Wooster and the fairgrounds Saturday to party like it was 1849.

Well it was, kinda.

After two years of planning the Senior Fair Board is holding a two-day 175th anniversary bash at the fairgrounds. The weekend kicked off with a two-hour parade Saturday with 169 entrants. Some had multiple pieces so the parade was actually larger.

Agricultural equipment both old and new, floats, marching bands and horse-drawn vehicles to name a few made for a memorable event. People lined the streets an hour before the parade started. By the 10 a.m. kickoff time the streets were lined with people multiple layers deep along the entire parade route.

Events at the fairgrounds were held throughout the day. Chuckwagon cooking started early Saturday with free samples later in the day. It will be back Sunday.

A pie baking contest had 40 entries that were judged. With 11 youth entries, a special youth division was created. There were over 30 pies in the adult category. All pies were fruit pies with either a crumb topping or a crust or lattice work top. This kept the three judges busy Saturday.

There was music in the entertainment tent with the Cedar Valley Cloggers, The Twang Cats and SB Music Band.

An auction featuring grandstand chairs and other fair memorabilia was held in the event center and the evening ended with a square dance p and a fireworks show.

Throughout the two-day event, memoriabilia items the Fair Board had for sale included playing cards, crocks, porcelain signs, Wendell August Forge ornaments, stress-reliever squishy toys and logo T-shirts. There also were raffles and live auctions.

What's on tap for Sunday

Here is the event schedule for Sunday's festivities at the fairgrounds:

Noon : Northern Ohio Outlaw Mounted Shooting, horse arena

Noon : Registraton for Pedal Pull, Buss Hall

Noon : Mullet & Beard Contest, entertainment tent

Noon -3 p.m.: Spring Mist Farm Petting Zoo and Animal Demo

1 p.m. : American Chuch Wagon Association serves food samples

1 p.m.: Lerch's Donut Easting Contest, entertainment tent

1 p.m.: Buckeye State Pedal Pull Tractor Contest

2 p.m.: Cinnamon Roll Baking Contest, dining hall

2-4 p.m.: Shawshank Big Band jazz concert, event center

This article originally appeared on The Daily Record: Happy 175th, Wayne County Fair: Parade and fairgrounds packed for Saturday festivities