History
The fair was celebrated for the first time around harvest time from November 5 to November 20, 1828, as a showcase of the state's produce and livestock. During that time it was in direct competition with the fairs of Acapulco, Jalapa and San Juan de los Lagos.
The celebrations centered in the Parián (a word borrowed from the Filipino language), a market in the city of Aguascalientes, until 1848. In 1842 the outside balustrade of San Marcos Park was built in a plot of land donated by the Catholic Church. The balustrade is of neoclassical style and is still preserved to this day. Once San Marcos Park was completed the date of celebration was changed to April to coincide with the festivities in honor the patron saint San Marcos.
Construction of the San Marcos Plaza bullring started in 1896 and was completed in only 48 days. From that date bullfighting was included in the festivities. It was not until 1992 that the much larger Monumental Plaza de San Marcos was built, with a seating capacity of fifteen thousand people.
Since 1924 the winner of the beauty pageant has been crowned "Queen of the Fair". In 2006, after some electoral controversy, three queens were appointed.
In 1958 the fair was elevated to the rank of "National" by President Adolfo López Mateos.
On April 26, 2009, the fair was canceled due to the epidemic flu virus that was roaming on Mexico. This is the first time in 181 fairs that the fair is canceled.
Read more about this topic: Feria Nacional De San Marcos
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