Cranberry Red: A Novel

48. County Fair Eliminated

On November 5, less than a month after the RFD program was suspended , the Ames County Argus published the following report: In a surprise move yesterday, the Ames County Fair board voted five to two to permanently eliminate the Ames County Fair. When asked why they had made such a radical and far-reaching decision, Ed Stormer, fair board president, said, “It’s because the legislature voted out the county agricultural agent office and eliminated the 4-H program. The county agent’s office essentially ran the fair.They managed the exhibits, found the judges, signed up the grandstand events, contracted with the carnival— they did it all and they did it well. And without 4-H members, what is there to exhibit? We have but a handful of adults entering in open class. It was the 4-H members who made the fair.” The Ames County Fair was one of the oldest institutions in Ames County, going back to 1858. A county fair has been held every year since, although the fairgrounds, county-owned for many years, has expanded and the number of buildings increased as the fair grew larger.The Ames County Highway Department will take over the former fairgrounds and buildings and use the land and buildings for the storage of equipment. The Argus is inviting people with memories of the fair to submit their stories to the paper, maximum of 500 words. The Argus plans to publish a selection of the stories in an upcoming issue. 202 County Fair Eliminated 48 203 County Fair Eliminated News of the fair’s closing hit Ben Wesley hard. He had spent twenty years helping to build and improve the fair, from arguing for new, updated buildings to expanding the 4-H membership to assure high-quality exhibits for rural and city folks alike to enjoy. Ben and those in his office worked hard before, during, and after each fair, and some people criticized them for it. “Should be spending more of your time working with the people of Ames County,” one critic had said. Ben was convinced that the county fair was one of the best tools he had in his bag of teaching approaches. At the same time that they were having fun, 4-H members had their work compared to the work of other young people in the county, and they could see how to improve. A good judge who rated the various fair projects had an important teaching role, pointing out where a woodworking project could be improved, how a hem could be sewed straighter on a dress, why one cucumber exhibit was placed above another. Beyond the young people learning, city folk learned too. They learned about farming and agriculture, they learned a little more about where their food comes from, and the challenges farmers faced these days. A couple of weeks later, the Argus printed several stories of Ames County Fair memories: When I enrolled in 4-H back in 1950, I couldn’t wait for the fair to begin. I had a calf project, her name was Annie. I worked all summer trying to teach that balky animal how to lead. I wasn’t very big then, and Annie had a mind of her own. She dragged me all around the yard more than once. Pa said, “Just hang on to that halter rope, no matter what,” and that’s what I did.You should have seen my bib overalls after one of those calf-leading attempts. Dirt from one end to the other. I wasn’t so sure I even wanted to take Annie to the fair. The last thing I wanted was for the other kids to laugh at me when I couldn’t put a stop to some of Annie’s antics. Pa said, “Be patient. Calves can be just like people. Stubborn and sometimes slow to learn. But often they learn more than you think, they just don’t want you to know it.” Well, I guess that’s what happened. From the time that Annie stepped off of Ross Caves’s cattle truck and onto the fairgrounds in Willow River, she was a picture of good behavior. I couldn’t believe it. Another kid in the cattle barn asked, “How’d you get your calf to lead so well?” I answered, “Took some time.” I wasn’t about to share all the times when I...