Over 125 Years of St. Croix County History

The St. Croix County Fair is a tradition that has been enjoyed for generations. This year’s fair proved once again, to be a wonderful event with record number attendance.

The Department of Aging was once again honored to recognize the valuable contributions of twelve outstanding older adults during an award ceremony on Friday afternoon. Honorees, from around the county, were nominated for their ongoing commitment to improve the communities in which they live.  St. Croix County is very fortunate to benefit from the example of older adults who celebrate living and enrich the lives of others.

St. Croix County has rich traditions with fairs being held here for at least 125 years or more.

New Richmond held a fair for many years with buildings being constructed on the west side of town at the present location of the hospital. Hudson also reportedly had a fair for a few years. Hammond hosted a fair in the 1930’s and 40’s and into the early 1950’s. Dairy cattle were displayed in the county highway shops while other exhibits were in the school building. Glenwood City hosted an agricultural fair in 1895. In 1910 the first inter- county fair was held (St. Croix and Dunn counties) at the site of the former lumber mills.

A fair has been held almost continuously with the exception of a few years, one being the polio epidemic in the mid-1940’s. The Glenwood inter-county fair was designated as the St. Croix County Fair in 1948 by the St. Croix County Board of Supervisors. None of the original fair buildings survive and the hills are now covered by trees, quite different from the first fair when the barren hills were the backdrop.

The county fair continues to prosper with an increase in the number of exhibits and maintains the tradition of a free fair. A fund raising drive currently underway for the St. Croix County Fairgrounds will result in new buildings and programs to serve the county for decades to come. For more information on this "Renovations for Generations" fundraising drive please contact Chris Libbey, president of the Friends of the St. Croix County Fairgrounds, at 651-247-0395.

The Glenwood Area Historical Society is always looking for material about earlier fairs. Stories, fair books, posters, photographs, and entry tags are all of interests. Anyone interested in donating materials may contact Joan Ludtke at the society. The address is Box 55, Glenwood City, WI 54013. Phone number 715-265-4390 or email fairnookswi@hotmail.com. Thank you for helping us preserves the history of the great fairs in St. Croix County.