Montgomery County Fair

History:

Humble beginnings of a neighbor...started with a Farm!

While the Montgomery County Fairgrounds continues to recognize the contributions of agriculture and provide a lasting green space for the enjoyment of all residents of the County and the City of Dayton, one of the fairgrounds' neighbors has its roots in farming as well.

The University of Dayton started 160 years ago with the purchase of a farm and now, sitting along Stewart Street, from the Miami River to historic Woodland Cemetery, UD has become one of the leading universities and Catholic institutions in the United States.

The Montgomery County Fairgrounds is proud to be neighbors to such a fine leader in higher education.

The 1947-48 season was a turning point in University of Dayton's men's basketball. Tom Blackburn, a stern disciplinarian, took over as the Flyers new head coach and soon built the team into a national power that took six trips to the National Invitational Tournament and won a NIT championship.

This new era also began on a new home court - in the Coliseum on the Montgomery County Fairgrounds.

The Flyers' success (52-36), which included the second longest home winning streak in the school's history on the Fairgrounds' hardwood, over the first three years of Coach Blackburn's hall-of-fame career led to the building of the UD Fieldhouse (now Frericks Center).

As the Flyers' success continued, the cozy confines of the UD Fieldhouse soon gave way to one of the best basketball venues in the nation, UD Arena.