Celebrating 35 years at the Kent Agriculture Center, the Kent County Fair offers a fun-filled three days of entertainment and education. With great food! And lots of fun! The fairgrounds will open to the public each day, Thursday through Saturday, at 9:00 am, with exhibits and activities until the official closing at 11:00 pm. Admission is $2.00 per person which covers all exhibits and shows, except midway rides. There is plenty of parking – no extra charge – on the grounds. The fairgrounds are located near Tolchester at 21349 Tolchester Beach Road in the old US Army Nike Base.
County Fairs are the summer highlight for 4-H Clubs all across America. And the culminatiion of a year’s effort. Club members work twelve months raising animals, growing and preserving food, learning new skills, honing old skills. They do projects in photography, entomology, forestry, as well as numerous arts and crafts – all while having fun. For a slice of America, nothing beats a real county fair. And the Kent County Fair is as real as it gets.
On the first day, Thursday, July 20, the fair will feature poultry, rabbit, goat and dog shows, along with the fair opening ceremonies, the 4-H tractor driving contest and the selection of 4-H ambassadors. The Dog Show, part 1, starts at noon with demonstrations of fitting & showing followed by rally & obedience routines. The Dog Show, part 2, continues with agility & obstacle course components from 6:30 – 8:30 pm. You can get your face painted by Amber Wachowiz any time from 6:00 – 8:00 pm. If you miss Amber on Thursday, she’ll be painting faces again on Friday and Saturday from 5:00 – 7:00 pm. At 7:00 pm Thursday, you have your choice between a magician’s show and the lawn mower tractor pull contest. Or perhaps, if you’re swift, you can catch both. The fairgrounds on Thursday will be filled with the music of local songwriter John Bunts. Thursday’s menu features a fish fry and pit beef.
Also on Thursday evening at 7:00 pm, local talent will be showcased in “Kent County’s Got Talent.” This is the first-ever talent show for the Kent County Fair and is co-sponsored by Music Life of Chestertown. All local talent acts – individuals or groups – are invited to participate. Pre-registration is required. Send an email to Beverly Clarke [email protected] with your name and contact info and the type of act – singing, dancing, reciting, musical instrument, ventriloquism, gymnastics, animal tricks, etc. Then come see your fellow Kent Countians take to the stage.
Friday, July 21, starts off with livestock shows including the always entertaining swine show. The Hay Bale Toss for youth and adults begins at 5:00 pm. Then youth will strut their stuff in the 4-H Fashion Revue contest at 6:00 pm. A huge attraction at the fair is the greased pig contest Friday evening at 7:00 pm followed promptly by the pie-eating contest at 7:45 pm. Pony rides will be available from 3:00-6:00 pm. Entertaining fairgoers is the Caribbean steel drum sounds of Spark In Da Pan, all the way from Easton, Maryland, as well as the local rock and roll sounds of East Roc. The entree on Friday’s menu is pork bbq.
2013 Kent County Fair
Saturday, July 22, highlights include the dairy and horse shows as well as jousting from the Eastern Shore Jousting Association. You’ll need to get there early – 9:00 am – to see the Horse show, English and Western divisions. And there are two tractor pulls – the Antique Tractors square off at 10:00 am while the Pedal Power Tractors begin pulling at 12:30 pm. Delmarva Feed will sponsor the Corn Hole Tournament which begins at noon. Then get ready to gobble at 4:00 pm when the Youth Turkey Calling Contest begins. Cover band Vice Squad, featuring local DJ Keith Thompson, will supply the music leading up to the 4-H Livestock and Cake Auctions starting at 7:30 pm Saturday. Chicken bbq is the specialty for Saturday.
Chainsaw sculpture by Kent County native Josh Miller.
Kent County native Josh Miller will be on site all three days doing chainsaw carving demos throughout the day and some of his pieces will be auctioned off Saturday evening at the Livestock auction. Miller is a 1999 KCHS graduate currently living in Felton, DE.
On Sunday morning, the fair is not open to the public, but 4-H’ers along with their parents, leaders, and other exhibitors and participants will gather for clean-up followed by a tug-of-war, a Final Challenge, and the 4-H Awards presentation. All 4-H’ers are required to attend.
Throughout the fair, M & M Amusements will provide the rides. Demonstrations, contests, vendors and of course great food will be featured each day. Plan a visit to beautiful Kent County and spend a great day or two or three at the Kent County Fair. The minimal $2 per person admission includes all entertainment and exhibits except rides. It’s the best deal on the shore!
The full schedule for the Kent County Fair is available online. A map of the fairgrounds is below.
Map of Kent County Fair Grounds
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Elizabeth Hill says
I would like to encourage everyone to visit us at the fair. As the 4-H Educator, it is a joy for me to see 4-H youth exhibiting their projects at the fair. I know everyone else will enjoy it too! The fair is the culmination for many youth who have been working on projects, honing their skills for a whole year, and the fair is the opportunity to exhibit those skills for evaluation. Plus, there is so much to see and do. Plan on a visiting each day to see something new! Elizabeth Hill, University of Maryland Extention, 4-H Youth Development