Augusta Fairgrounds
By the early 1960s it was apparent that the Sussex County Farm and Horse Show had outgrown the Branchville fairgrounds. Parking was limited and spilled out onto privately owned property, with local residents making enough money parking cars on their properties to pay for their taxes. In addition, internal pedestrian traffic was becoming dangerous due to the increased crowds of people within the crossings between the rings and the temporary stables. Lastly, the sheer size of the fair, which was entirely composed of temporary tent structures that had to be raised and then taken down at the close of the Fair, was becoming untenable.
In response to this, the Sussex County Farm and Horse Show formed a committee to locate suitable property to purchase for a new fairground. After limiting the number of sites to three, a farm owned by Bill McDanold’s located in Augusta, New Jersey was purchased in 1963. It would be, however, many years before the move to the new property would be made.
On or about 1972, construction at the new grounds began first with the creation of a pond and several access roads. Construction accelerated several years later and in 1976 the Sussex County Farm and Horse Show moved to its new location in Augusta. This new location became known as the Sussex County Fairgrounds.
The opening of the new fairgrounds, however, did not go smoothly. In celebration of the nation’s Bicentennial, each Sussex County township was encouraged to bring a float to the fairgrounds that would be paraded around the main ring on opening night. At the same time, admittance fees were collected not at the pedestrian entrance gates as they are today, but rather at the roadway access points as the attendees entered in their cars. The result is what many consider to have been the worst traffic jam to ever have occurred in Sussex County.
With property now under its ownership, the Sussex County Farm and Horse Show was able to construct permanent buildings. The first building constructed was the Walter Richards building, which houses the Home Economics Division exhibits, the art exhibits and, until 2006, the 4-H exhibits. Other permanent structures included the Livestock Pavilion, the Horse Show office, a variety of livestock stables, the Snook Museum and the Fair’s administration building. The Fair’s newest building is the Shotwell 4-H Building, opened in 2007 in honor of Phoebe and Ralph Shotwell for their many years of dedication to 4-H.
Read more about this topic: Sussex County Farm And Horse Show, History of The Sussex County Farm and Horse Show