VACATED. That word best describes my assessment of the Rice County Fairgrounds in Faribault during a recent walk there.
In the absence of people, the absence of animals, the absence of a carnival, the absence of exhibits, the place feels empty. No pulsating lights on the Midway. No smell of grilling burgers. No taste of sugary mini donuts. No shouts of kids. No feel of a prize stuffed animal clutched in arms.
If everything works out COVID-wise, this fairgrounds will teem with people come late July. Animals will fill barns. Ribbons will mark prize-winning 4-H entries. Greasy cheese curds will satisfy those who crave fair food. The sounds of music and clustered conversations and happy kids will create a steady buzz of noise. Little hands will grasp adult hands and teenage hands will lock in fair love. People will reconnect. Celebrate. Experience that which was lost last summer, during the height of the pandemic.
This is the fair I imagine as I walk past shuttered buildings, as I pause to photograph buildings and signs and expanses of open space.
And then I pause outside the 4-H building, Curtis Hall, to photograph the row of barn swallow nests mudded under the eaves. So many. Thirty-two. Too many. If there’s one bird I dislike, it’s the barn swallow. We have a history. As a child, I endured barn swallows swooping over me as I did farm chores. The swallows built their nests on beams above the barn aisle, my direct work route. I felt threatened by them as I shoveled manure into gutters, pushed a wheelbarrow full of ground feed down the aisle. My feelings for the swallow have not changed. Even though they eat mosquitoes, I still don’t like this bird.
That’s my sidebar from the fairgrounds, perhaps one you can relate to if you did farm chores like me.
Fairs are rooted in agriculture. Prize animals. Prize vegetables. A once-a-year opportunity to showcase the best of barns and of gardens. But today’s fair is much more. Entertainment. Creativity. And, above all, a place for communities to come together once a year in one place. To celebrate. To connect.
FYI: The Rice County Fair is tentatively set for July 21-25 in Faribault. Whether it happens depends on all of us. See my previous post.
© Copyright 2021 Audrey Kletscher Helbling
Minnesota Prairie Roots 
I enjoy the idea of fairs, but not so much the crowds. Small town fairs are definitely more fun. I hope the fair resumes this year.
That’s one of the aspects I don’t like either. The crowds.
I love county fairs. Absolutely love them. I have fond memories of going to the Ohio State Fair growing up and Chris and I have explored several county fairs and state fairs over the years as well. Always something fun to see.
What do you most love about fairs? I’m curious.
Sorry, I laughed about your dislike of barn swallows. I loved them until they made their nest in the hay barn and pooped all over the top layer of hay bales! What a mess!!! Thanks for sharing the empty fair grounds. I could almost smell the mini donuts and feel the love of meeting friends at the cattle and sheep barns after a summer of hard work in the hayfields. Carlton County fair is in August each year.
Ha ha on the barn swallows. I’ve never liked that bird.
It sounds like you have some sweet memories of the Carlton County Fair. Mini donuts are a favorite of mine.