Vermont phÅ“nix. [volume] (Brattleboro, Vt.) 1834-1955, 1922-09-29
VALLEY FAIR SETS NEW MARK WHEN
ITS ATTENDANCE EXCEEDS 1880
Crowd of $500 First Day and Over $4,000 Second Day.
These Figures Being Conservative than 15OO
Automobiles on Grounds Before Noon Wednesday,
Story in Detail, Also Full Premium List.
It's all over.

It's all over.
The 37th annual Valley fair passed into
history Wednesday when the last rae
ing heat shortly before shutdown put an
end to the activities of the fair and the
tag end of tired but thoroughly satis-
fed crowd started for home. A total at
tendance of 22,500 was the mark con-
servatively estimated by President G. l..
Stickney of the Valley Fair association
yesterday, the first day having set
record by an attendance of $500. This
figure has been exceeded only by the at
tendance in the year 1908 when 22,597
were registered for the three-day fair.
1t is not unlikely that this years attend
ance will 90 beyond the 1908 record as
the attendance this year has been esti-
mated very conservatively. Wednesdays
crowd is thought to have exceeded $4,000.
Viewed from all angles, there is no
doubt that Wednesday was one of the
most successful days in Valley fair his
tory: The weather was all tfat could
be desired, and had it been possible to
order it for this special occasion, it could
not have been better. A balmy south wind
tempered with autumn sunshine provided
just the right background for the enjoy
ment of everything. The crowd was of
such proportions as to fill the grandstand
to capacity as well as the midway and
the exhibition buildings, all at one time,
and the program did not have dull
moment in it.
Aside from the displays in the regu-
lar departments the midway as usual
was n big attraction. 1t was fully as
large as usual, although the fair man
agement this year made a rule to accept
no concession that had not passed in
spection by Governor Hardness at the
state fair. NJ. ]. Hapgood of Peru. self
constituted censor of midway attractions.
was on hand bright and early. and after
morning of inspection took pains to
telephone The Phoenix that he never
had attended n show more 'punctured"
with devices which he held were against
the law of which he was author. Mr..
Hapgood was much pleased when on
Wednesday afternoon the sheriff and
states attorney closed the midway fol-
, lowing case in municipal court.
| On every hand were heard comments
| that this years fair was u well balanced
| show, and the thousands of people who
!, came by automobiles from far and near
had nothing but commendntion to offer
4 ovcr tie Success of the event. The pouitIT
show went on record as being one of the
best shown at any fair in New England
the automobile show was much better
| than those shown at fairs already held.
one reason being that later models in cars
We're shown at the Brattleboro fair; the
! exhibits of local firms were of extreme
ly high class and aroused more interest
than has ever been shown before the dog
| SHOW proved one OF tDe DeSJ features OF
, the fair. and the exhibits of cattle, veg
etables. fruits and other produce, together
with the boys and girls exhibits. were
| extremely creditable and showed the
progress that is steadily being made in
these directions.
From the time the starters bell rang
| for the first heat until dusk, there wasn't
! n moment of relaxation for the grand
stand spectators. The time between the
heats was filled with all kinds of diver
si0ns, including vaudeville band concerts,
parades of prize winning cattle and
, horses and the exhibition of the three
| horse and six-horse hitch which was q
! feature both days.
Never in the history of the fair were so
many automobiles parked as there were
yesterday. BY | O'Clock in the afternoon,
the entire space inside the race track was
vast sea of machines. and SIG auto
mobiles were counted there at o'clock
; Fully an additional 800 machines were
parked in the grounds at every conceiva-
bic point, and in addition a long line of
automobiles stood from the gates ut the
| entrance to Canal street, then down
Canal street to Farview street and on
! Fairview street to the Clark farm. An
other large group OF machines was parked
on the south side of the race track near
the woods between the fair grounds and
South Main street.
Compared with other New England
fairs that recently have been held, it is
pointed out that the Valley fair has been
one of the very few that have been really
successful. Many of the fairs have fallen
down in attendance, partly due to the
Eastern States Exposition at Springfield
which it is believed has cut deeply into
the fairs held in towns nearer Spring
field. The Valley fair, however, arranged
and presented a well-rounded-out pro-
gram which was extensively advertised
far and wide and the results of this pub
licity, which reached into not only Yer
mont and New Hampshire but Massa-
chusetts and Connecticut, apparently was
reflected in the attendance figures on both
days
The record Of attendance for the past
16 years is given herewith In conncc
ton with these figures it should be men
toned that the fairs mentioned previous
to 1919 We're threeday affairs, two-day
} fairs being resumed in 1919. No fairs
were held in 1916, 1917 and 1913 on ac-
count of the epidemic of infantile paraly-
sis elsewhere in the state: