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A one-year hiatus had an effect on attendance and the number of exhibitors at the Houghton County Fair. The board held its annual meeting last Thursday, electing members and naming officers for 2022.
A recap of the most recent event revealed that 19,427 people attended over four days in August, down by over four-thousand from 2019. The number of exhibitors plunged by 37 percent and the overall entry count fell by 990. The board said that local youth clubs were hamstrung by the pandemic, unable to meet for over 12 months, and that is the predominant reason for the participation drop.
A bright spot for the fair was the Junior Market Livestock Auction, which grossed a record. Thirty-five exhibitors sold off seven beef steers, 17 hogs, and 11 lambs for $170,000 on a cumulative basis.
The board also gave an update on renovations. The floor of the Exhibit Building was replaced, along with the installation of two electric overhead doors at the venue, at a cost of $88,442. The 2022 fair will take place from August 25th-28th.
