The California State Fair is back! Sacramento has been the permanent home of the State Fair since the 1859, but it has been held at a lot of different locations around the city.
In May 1854, the California State Agricultural Society was founded. The State Legislature created the society as there was a growing incentive to promote agriculture as the longstanding future for California, rather than mining. The society was authorized to hold an exhibition of livestock, manufactures, and productions. Later that year, on October 4, the society held the first California State Fair in San Francisco. A different city hosted the State Fair each year, until Sacramento became the permanent location in 1859.
Within Sacramento, the State Fair moved around over the years. From 1909 to 1967, the California State Fair took place at the State Fairgrounds at Broadway and Stockton Boulevard. On July 1, 1968, California Exposition (Cal Expo) fairgrounds opened as the new home for the California State Fair. You can check out the State Fair from July 12th to the 28th!
In this video, Jared letterpress printed a hand carved woodcut from the Lewis Winter Collection that was made about 125-130 years ago. This woodcut depicts a cow, one of the many farm animals you can see at the State Fair. Lewis Winter submitted many engravings for competition at the State Fair in the early 1890s. The text below, set in 24 point Caslon, states, “The CA State Fair is back!” This was printed with black rubber base ink using our Washington hand press, which was made in 1852.
