DIVISION OF FAIRS 

 Stephen F. Quinn, Director 



The "fairs", one of the oldest and finest traditions still in existence in 

 the Bay State, continue to "bask in the sun", with another great season full of 

 exhibits, entertainment, rides and games galore. The total attendance reported 

 by the 120 agricultural fairs and shows was 3,985,284, a slight decrease from 

 last year's record breaker. There were 81,854 exhibits of which 30,191 were pre- 

 pared by individual young people or youth groups. 



The State Exhibition Building at Eastern States Exposition in West 

 Springfield continued to please fair goers with all kinds of samples of foods 

 produced and processed in the State. The key feature of the show was the 

 beautiful art and craft exhibit developed by the Leverett Craft Center featuring 

 Western Massachusetts artists. 1,005,730 people attended the "Big E" in the 

 fall of 1984. 



The fairs were inspected with the help of ten part-time employees, all of 

 whom have considerable experience in Massachusetts agriculture. Their duties, 

 among others, were to insure that the state was benefiting from the $340,000 

 spent on agricultural promotions and that the $87,500 spent for rehabilitation 

 monies were used wisely. 



The Rehabilitation Committee met in Ashland in February, and approved 

 $87,175 worth of expenditures for animal health, public health, and display 

 purposes. 



The Division continued its assistance with the Massachusetts Wool Board in 

 promoting the use of wool and lamb products, and also actively participated in 

 the third annual Equine Exposition held in Northampton. 



A study group, composed of members of the various commodity associations in 

 the state, was formed to revise the fairs' guidelines. They met at the State 

 4-H Center in Ashland. After many meetings and much debate, the guidelines 

 should be ready for the Commissioner's approval by late fall and be available to 

 the fairs by mid winter. The guidelines had not been updated since the early 

 1950's; needless to say, the revisions were long overdue. 



The total appropriated budget for the fiscal year was $647,440. Of this 

 total, $399,100 were appropriated for the fair prize awards, fair inspections, 

 promotional programs, and administration costs; $87,500 were appropriated for 

 the rehabilitation program to assist with the upkeep at fairgrounds. 



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