Illinois Department of Agriculture announces 2008 county fair schedule

[May 15, 2008]  SPRINGFIELD -- The first of the state's 104 county fairs will begin June 8 this year when the Clark County Fair opens an eight-day run in Marshall.

The Illinois Department of Agriculture released the complete schedule of 2008 county fairs Wednesday. Copies can be obtained by calling the department's Bureau of County Fairs and Horse Racing at 217-782-4231 or by visiting www.agr.state.il.us. The electronic version on the Internet includes a database that is searchable by both date and location.

"With gas prices at record highs, I encourage families to consider a trip to their county fair as a way to save on travel expenses when they plan their summer vacations this year," said Tom Jennings, acting agriculture director. "County fairs offer affordable entertainment the whole family can enjoy, from livestock shows and demolition derbies to games and carnival rides."

Other county fair attractions typically include queen pageants, truck and tractor pulls, musical concerts, and 4-H exhibits. Thirty-seven county fairs feature harness racing. Eight offer thoroughbred racing and seven offer quarter horse races.

"County fairs are part of Illinois' agricultural heritage and give visitors a chance to learn about the state's top industry while spending time with family and friends," added Charlyn Fargo, bureau chief of County Fairs and Horse Racing.

The Illinois Department of Agriculture supports the efforts of the volunteer boards that organize county fairs by providing funding for award premiums, the maintenance of facilities and agriculture education programs. In fiscal 2008, this support totaled more than $8 million.

The 2008 county fair season concludes Sept. 14 when the Gallatin County Fair ends in Ridgway and the Okawville Agricultural Products Fair closes in Washington.

The full schedule is listed below.

[Text from Illinois Department of Agriculture file received from the Illinois Office of Communication and Information]

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2008 Illinois county fair schedule

County	Date	Town	Fair association
Adams	July 24-30	Mendon	Adams County Fair Association
Bond	July 30-Aug. 5	Greenville	Bond County Fair Association
Boone	Aug. 5-10	Belvidere	Boone County Fair Association
Brown	July 28-Aug. 2	Mount Sterling	Brown County Fair Association
Bureau	Aug. 20-24	Princeton	Bureau County Ag Board
Calhoun	Sept. 4-7	Hardin	Calhoun Apple Advisory Club
Carroll	Aug. 4-9	Milledgeville	Carroll County Fair Association
Cass	July 13-19	Virginia	Cass County Fair Association
Champaign	July 8-12	Fisher	Fisher Community Fair
Champaign	July 18-26	Urbana	Champaign County Fair Association
Christian	Aug. 27-Sept. 1	Pana	Pana Tri-County Fair Association
Christian	July 8-13	Taylorville	Christian County Ag Fair Association
Clark	June 8-15	Marshall	Clark County Fair Association
Clark	June 22-28	Martinsville	Martinsville Ag Fair Association, Inc.
Clay	July 12-19	Flora	Clay County Ag Fair Association
Clinton	July 13-19	Carlyle	Clinton County Ag Association
Coles	July 27-Aug. 2	Charleston	Coles County Ag Association
Crawford	July 19-26	Oblong	Crawford County Fair Association
Cumberland	Aug. 17-23	Greenup	Greenup-Cumberland County Fair
DeKalb	Sept. 3-7	Sandwich	Sandwich Fair Association
DeWitt	July 15-19	Farmer City	Farmer City Fair Association
DuPage	July 23-27	Wheaton	DuPage County Fair & Expo Association
Edgar	July 19-26	Paris	Edgar County Fair Association
Edwards	July 16-26	Albion	Edwards County Ag Fair Association
Effingham	Aug. 2-9	Altamont	Effingham County Fair Association
Fayette	July 5-12	Brownstown	Fayette County Fair Association
Ford	July 6-12	Melvin	Ford County Fair of Melvin
Franklin	July 10-17	Ina	Franklin County Fair Association
Fulton	July 21-26	Lewistown	Fulton County Fair & Racing Association
Gallatin	Sept. 6-14	Ridgway	Gallatin County Fair Association
Greene	June 14-21	Carrollton	Greene County Ag Fair Inc.
Grundy	July 2-6	Morris	Grundy County Ag District Fair
Hamilton	July 3-12	McLeansboro	McLeansboro Fair Association
Hancock	July 16-20	Augusta	Hancock County Fair
Henderson	July 13-19	Stronghurst	Henderson County Fair Association
Henry	June 24-29	Cambridge	Henry County Fair Association
Iroquois	July 16-21	Crescent City	Iroquois County Ag & 4-H Club
Jasper	June 29-July 5	Newton	Jasper County Ag Association
Jefferson	July 18-26	Ina	Jefferson County Youth Fair
Jersey	July 5-13	Jerseyville	Jersey County Fair Association
Jo Daviess	July 18-20	Elizabeth	Elizabeth Community Fair
Jo Daviess	July 31-Aug. 3	Warren	Jo Daviess County Ag Society
Kane	July 16-20	St. Charles	Kane County Fair & Ind. Expo
Kankakee	July 30-Aug. 3	Kankakee	Kankakee County Fair and Expo
Kendall	July 31-Aug. 3	Yorkville	Kendall County Fair Association
Knox	July 29-Aug. 2	Knoxville	Knox County Fair Association
Lake	July 22-27	Grayslake	Lake County Fair Association
LaSalle	Aug. 28-Sept. 1	Mendota	Tri-County Fair Association
LaSalle	July 9-13	Ottawa	LaSalle County Junior Fair Association
Lawrence	July 26-Aug. 2	Sumner	Lawrence County Junior Fair Association
Lee	July 24-27	Amboy	Lee County 4-H Fair & Junior Show
Livingston	Aug. 6-9	Cullom	Cullom Junior Fair
Livingston	Aug. 13-17	Fairbury	Fairbury Fair Association
Livingston	July 14-17	Pontiac	Livingston County Fair Association
Logan	July 29-Aug. 3	Lincoln	Logan County Fair Association
Macon	June 10-15	Decatur	Decatur-Macon County Fair Association
Macoupin	July 14-19	Carlinville	Macoupin County Fair & Ag Association
Madison	July 20-25	Highland	Madison County Fair Association
Marion	July 25-Aug. 2	Salem	Marion County Ag Fair Association Inc.
Marshall-Putnam	July 9-13	Henry	Marshall-Putnam Fair Association
Mason	July 21-25	Havana	Mason County 4-H & Junior Show
Massac	July 11-19	Metropolis	Massac County Youth Fair
McDonough	July 7-11	Macomb	McDonough County 4-H Corp.
McHenry	July 30-Aug. 3	Woodstock	McHenry County Fair Association
McLean	July 30-Aug. 3	Bloomington	McLean County Fair Association
Menard	July 15-20	Petersburg	Menard County Fair
Mercer	July 6-12	Aledo	Mercer County Ag Society
Monroe	July 20-27	Waterloo	Monroe County Fair Association
Montgomery	June 18-22	Butler	Montgomery County Fair Association
Morgan	July 9-13	Jacksonville	Morgan County Ag Fair Association
Moultrie-Douglas	July 6-12	Arthur	Moultrie-Douglas County Fair Association
Moultrie	July 25-27	Sullivan	Moultrie-Sullivan Junior Fair
Ogle	July 30-Aug. 3	Oregon	Ogle County Fair Association
Peoria	July 11-19	Peoria	Heart of Illinois Fair
Perry	June 13-21	Pinckneyville	Perry County Ag Society
Piatt	June 24-29	Cerro Gordo	Piatt County Junior Fair Association
Pike	June 25-29	Griggsville	Western Illinois Fair Association
Pike	July 14-19	Pleasant Hill	Pike County Fair Association
Pulaski	Aug. 11-16	Pulaski	Pulaski Civic & Community Fair
Randolph	July 11-20	Sparta	Randolph County Fair
Richland	July 4-12	Olney	Richland County Farm & Fair Association
Rock Island	July 15-20	East Moline	Rock Island County Ag Fair & Expo.
St. Clair	Aug. 5-9	Belleville	St. Clair County Fair Association
Saline	July 20-26	Harrisburg	Saline County Ag Association
Sangamon	June 18-22	New Berlin	Sangamon County Fair & Ag Association
Schuyler	July 1-6	Rushville	Schuyler County Fair
Scott	July 27-Aug.1	Winchester	Scott County 4-H & Junior Ag Show
Shelby	July 28-31	Shelbyville	Shelby County 4-H & Junior Fair
Stark	July 25-28	Wyoming	Stark County Junior Fair Association
Stephenson	Aug. 19-24	Freeport	Stephenson County Fair Association
Tazewell	July 28-30	Pekin	Veteran's Memorial Fair Association
Union	Aug. 16-23	Anna	Southern Illinois Fair Association
Vermilion	June 24-28	Oakwood	Vermilion County Fair & Expo
Vermilion	Aug. 3-9	Georgetown	Georgetown Ag Fair Association
Wabash	July 19-25	Mount Carmel	Wabash County Youth Exhibition
Warren	July 20-26	Roseville	Warren County Ag Fair Association
Washington	July 5-12	Nashville	Nashville, Washington County Fair
Washington	Sept. 12-14	Okawville	Okawville Ag Fair Association
Wayne	July 12-19	Fairfield	The New Wayne County Ag Fair
White	July 25-Aug. 2	Carmi	White County Ag Society
Whiteside	Aug. 12-16	Morrison	Whiteside County Central Ag Society
Will	Aug. 20-24	Peotone	Will County Fair Association
Williamson	Aug. 2-9	Marion	Williamson County Ag Association
Winnebago	Aug. 12-17	Pecatonica	Winnebago County Fair Association