Joseph Farley and his daughter Lilly Farley, 2, ride the carousel at the Clermont County Fair July 25.

Joseph Farley and his daughter Lilly Farley, 2, ride the carousel at the Clermont County Fair July 25.
By Kristin Rover
Sun staff

The Clermont County Fair drew approximately 90,000 visitors through the gates July 21-27, according to Fair Board Secretary Greg Simpson.

The fair featured a week of entertainment, food, rides, contests, competitions and many other activities at the fairgrounds in Owensville.

“It went fantastic,” Simpson said about the fair. “It went really smooth. That is attributed to the board and how hard they worked.”

Simpson said in addition to the fair board, the sponsors were great, and the board worked together well with all of the 4-H groups and advisors.

“It was a well-oiled machine this past year,” Simpson said.

Simpson said when it comes to attendance, they were just shy of their normal turnout.

“We had two rain days,” Simpson said. “Normally we have 100,000, but they rain held some off.”

Simpson said the busiest days were Wednesday, Thursday and Friday with attendance averaging around 20,000 each day.

“The tractor pull and demolition derby were big draws,” Simpson said.

Simpson said they had more than 130 businesses, groups, or organizations participate in the parade this year. He said it was the biggest parade they’ve ever had.

Simpson said Saturday, which is normally one of their busier days, was rainy for most of the morning but cleared up for the afternoon and evening.

He said fair week can be really hot, so it was nice to have cooler weather.

“It was a beautiful fair week,” Simpson said. “It was good for all the animals and all the handlers.”

Kelly Royalty, 4-H youth program director for the Clermont County Extension Office, said they also had a successful week.

“Everything went great,” Royalty said. “It was a fantastic week for us.”

She said the rain dampened a couple days during the week.

“The weather the rest of the week out-shined anything that happened,” Royalty said.

Simpson said the Clermont County Fair has withstood many hardships facing other fairs in the state. He said only 54 of Ohio’s 88 fairs break even or make money.

“A lot of fairs are struggling, but through the hard work and the work of the board members and advisors, we make sure we are viable,” Simpson said.

Simpson said they do some fund-raising leading up to and during the fair this year. He said they raise around $70,000 that will go toward improvements and other projects for upcoming fairs.

He said they are hoping to replace the grandstands and make improvements to the different animal barns and arenas in the coming years.

For more information about the Clermont County Fair, log on to their website at www.clermontcountyfair.org.