Wade’s ‘Best of Brown County’ Experience

The Brown County Chamber of Commerce announced the winners of the 2022 “Best of Brown County” awards earlier this year. The “Best of Brown County” was created to celebrate all that Brown County has to offer, including food and drink destinations, live entertainment, and local historic sites. Wade Linville (editor of The News Democrat, The Ripley Bee, and The Brown County Press) will be writing about his experience at all of the 13 locations that earned a “Best of Brown County” award. This is part 13, the final installment, of Wade’s “Best of Brown County” Experience featuring Brown County’s 2022 Best Family Fun, The Brown County Fair (Little State Fair).

When it comes to family fun in Brown County, the Brown County Fair takes the cake. The Brown County Fair comes around in the final week of September each year, but there are many people of Brown County who work almost year-round to make Ohio’s Little State Fair a success from year to year. With fun and entertainment for those of all ages, it’s no surprise that the Brown County Fair received the Brown County Chamber of Commerce’s 2022 “Best of Brown County” Family Fun Award.

There’s so much more than the games, rides and live entertainment that draws thousands to the Brown County fairgrounds each day during fair week, including the chance to spend time with family and meet up with friends.

“People love the fair,” said Brown County Fair Scott Township Director and Brown County Agricultural Society Secretary and Treasurer, Christy Lucas. “It’s the atmosphere, the sense of tradition. I know there are people who I haven’t seen in a whole year that I’m going to see at the fair. (And) I always look forward to some of the fair food…all of the fair food.”

Local 4-H clubs and FFA organizations help to make the Brown County Fair what it is. Whether it’s decorating the fairgrounds, helping out in vendor booths, or serving as a fair exhibitor; members of local 4-H clubs and FFA members can be seen working throughout the fairgrounds during the week of the Brown County Fair.

When speaking of fair food, the Brown County Fair is the home of the famous Brown County Pork Producer’s pork tenderloin sandwich, which was the winner of the Brown County Chamber of Commerce’s 2022 “Best of Brown County” Fair Food Award.

The truck and tractor pulls at the Brown County Fair are arguably among the best truck and tractor pulls in Ohio, and the annual cheer competition always draws a crowd to the Main Ring of the fairgrounds on Wednesday evening.

Visit the fair each year and you will see local Junior Fair exhibitors grow from children to young adults, and become familiar with the fair traditions that many Brown Countians have grown to love.

Not only have I enjoyed time at the Brown County Fair with family for more than 40 years, but I have covered events at the Brown County Fair as a local journalist for 17 years. This year, I was at the fair taking photos for The News Democrat and Ripley Bee Brown County Fair photo special section, and I came across a young girl with her mother while they prepared her lamb for show. Her mother was grooming the lamb while the young girl practiced her pose with her market lamb.

I snapped a fabulous photo of the young girl posing with her lamb, and then approached her mother to see if I could get the girl’s name. Her mother giggled, and then provided me with her daughter’s name, Macy Bolender. The girl’s name sounded a bit familiar to me, and then it hit me! I had taken Macy’s photo last year as she did the exact same thing, posing with her lamb in preparation for judging.

I asked her mother, “Didn’t I get a photo of her last year?” The mother confirmed that I did.

Over my years of covering the fair, I have witnessed firsthand how Junior Fair exhibitors benefit from their hard work and dedication.

To see Macy Bolender back at the fair once again to show a lamb and her family there providing her with support was, to me, what the Brown County Fair is all about.

Like Macy Bolender, there are many other Brown County Junior Fair exhibitors whose experience is shared with members of their family.

Last year, I watched as local 4-H member and Junior Fair exhibitor Darvee Plymesser prepared her mule for show, and this year I watched the 14-year-old earn Grand Champion for her market turkey, her mother Katey Plymesser, there to provide support every step of the way.

Years ago, my two children – Christian and Kayla – were members of a local 4-H Club and Brown County Junior Fair exhibitors. Both have since grown to adulthood, but I will never forget what fun we had as a family when they were showing animals at the Little State Fair.

Ask me, “What do I enjoy most about the Brown County Fair?” and my answer will always be “Spending time with family and friends.”