Cameron County Fair

History:

Keystone Park was the first known location of the Cameron County Fair.  Keystone Park is where GKN Sinter Metals and Embassy Sintered Metals are located on Airport Road and where the West Creek branch now flows. According to History of Cameron County (1991edition), the first fair was held around 1901. The fair was under the sponsorship of the Cameron County Agricultural Association.  The fair was held each September until 1917. The start of the world War I and a severe flu epidemic put a halt to the fair that year.

The Cameron County Fair formed an association in 1967 as a committee of the Emporium Jaycees. The fair was held at the Pine Street Field. This fair worked in close partnership with the 4H program. After the field was sold in 1970 to Motor Coils a new location was pursued.

Mr. Henry Zimmer, a jaysee, made an offer to allow the fair to use a piece of land that had been the previous location of the Smokeless Powder and Picric Acid Plant. Paul Abriatis, another jaysee, loaned the fair committee bulldozers to prepare the land.

After many years of work the fair has grown into a lush green area with a concession stand, 4H building, exhibition hall, stage, animal display barn, and a 160 foot open front exhibit area. The largest exhibit hall(Beaver Hall) was named after fair director, Beaver Williams.  The Beaver Hall has been begun renovation projects in the  past few years by first updating the kitchen, adding a large new window and soon  replacing the ceiling tiles in the main floor area. Beaver Hall is frequently rented out for wedding receptions and family reunions.

The fair has been a good source a family entertainment and a place to exhibit great works of skillful craft and the fruits of agricultural labors.