What an adventure this fair season has been so far! At the beginning of the season, the weather was not on my side. Between the rain and almost unbearable humidity, I lost out on a couple of fairs but I am also photographing fairs next year so the fairs I miss, will be on the list for next year!
When you start a project, either a film or a book, you never know how it the process is going to go and where the project will take you. I have met some incredible people at the fairs I have attended so far this year! Each fair has something unique to bring to the table of Maine agricultural fairs.
My first fair of the season was the Ossipee Valley Fair in South Hiram, Maine. I attended the draft horse show and I had the pleasure of meeting a family that was new at showing draft horses for the first time. John and Penny were their names and they asked me to photograph their horses and their beautiful wooden wagon. To see a new farm showing horses is great news for the fair industry. Ossipee Valley Fair hosts the largest parade in southern Maine. That is no lie. That parade was enormous! Antique cars, the fire trucks, homemade floats filled the center of the fairgrounds with a memorable display!
My second fair was the Waterford World's Fair. This fair is special to me because when I was 9 years old, I caught my pig scramble pig there. Waterford Fair is unique because it is how and old time fair used to be. When you get a delicious slice of pie at the food booth, know that the pie was made right down the street by a volunteer. Waterford Worlds Fair is a small fair but that day that I attended, I was rushing around trying to photograph as many of the events as I could. I found myself watching the blacksmith make various tools and engaging with fairgoers on the processes of blacksmithing.
My third fair was just a couple of weeks ago and that was the Topsham Fair. Topsham Fair was founded in 1855 by the Sagadahoc Agricultural and Horticultural Society. I found the fair to be quite amazing with a nice midway with a wide range of fair food options. Of course that is what I scope out first! I paid a visit to the Youth Dairy and Beef Show held at one of the show rings. The younger generations are crucial at keeping agricultural fairs alive.
I photographed some harness races at Topsham and found their museum which is located under their grandstand. As soon as I walked in I was caught off guard by a massive bookshelf filled with National Geographic magazines! I was wondering why there would be these magazines in this museum but after taking some time to read their sign, I realized that you can pick the magazine from your month and year of your birth! I found that to be a really cool addition to a fair!
This was just small portion of my adventures so far at these fairs and I can't wait to see more of Maine's agricultural fairs!
It was very late when I typed this up so I apologize for any spelling errors! HAHA