169th Sauk County Fair Underway in Baraboo

The Sauk County Fair is happening in Baraboo this week. The fair, which runs from July 10 to July 16, is celebrating its 169th year.

You’ll find everything that makes a county fair great at the Washington Avenue grounds, from 4-H and FFA exhibits and competitions, to festival foods, and carnival rides.

The Sauk County Fairest of the Fair, Alice in Dairyland, along with truck and tractor pulls will be featured over the weekend. There will be presentations by the Sauk County Historical Society, Sheriff’s Department, a bags tournament, and lots of live music.

You can find the daily schedule here.

Along with all the information to help you enjoy your time at the fair, I discovered a fun blog post on the Sauk County Fair website, too. It was written nine years ago and claims the fair is still “viewed by many as one of the best county fairs in the state.”

There’s also some history to help us understand how this fair has stood the long test of time. It reads “The first fair was held October 16, 1855. It is believed that it was held by the old courthouse, which
stood a little east of where the Al Ringling Theater now stands. The fair was held the first ten years in
the downtown area. The fair grew into a success. In this time frame the Agricultural Society decided that
it was time to look for a permanent home for the fair. In the spring of 1870 a forty acre tract of land was
purchased east of Baraboo. This is the current location of the fairgrounds. The cost to buy that piece of
land was $1,540.00. A few years down the road the Agricultural Society sold twenty of those forty acres
for $600.00. Many buildings were put up and a fence was also put up. By 1890 the Sauk County
Fairgrounds was one of the finest in the state of Wisconsin.“

Whether 1890 or 2023, the Sauk County Fair may just be a great place to be.

Note: Our Baraboo radio station, 99.7 MAX FM, is proud to be a Grand Champion Sponsor of the Sauk County Fair. Look for the MAX FM crew in a Circus World wagon parked on the grounds during the fair.