Jacktown Fair: Greene County’s long-standing tradition of summer fun
Dr. Roland “Rollie” R. Daniels waves to the crowd during the 2021 Jacktown Fair parade.
Marching bands and colorful floats will be prominent during the 2022 Jacktown Fair parade.
The 157th Jacktown Fair will take place Tuesday through Sunday, July 23.
In this 2018 photo, a horse-drawn wagon carries parade chairwoman and grand marshal Marcia Sonneborn in the Jacktown Fair Parade.
Attendees line the streets of Wind Ridge to watch the floats in the annual Jacktown Fair parade.
For the past 157 years, Greene County residents have enjoyed the annual summertime cluster of livestock competitions, games, musical performances, carnival rides and fair food known as the Jacktown Fair.
Each successive generation has built memories and family traditions around the annual event, billed as the nation’s longest continuously running fair.
This year the fair kicks off at 6:30 p.m. on Tuesday with the Jacktown Fair Parade in Wind Ridge, with Curt Marshall of Holbrook as grand marshal. A former high school teacher for the West Greene School District, Marshall also worked with the students at the school’s Future Farmers of America.
The parade will include both mini and full-size floats, trucks from area fire companies, antique cars, the West Greene School District Marching Band, groups from the school such as the softball team and state and local dignitaries.
The parade will also feature the reigning 2022 Jacktown Fair Queen, Morgan Mooney, the 18-year-old daughter of Ryan and Greta Mooney of Graysville, who graduated with honors from West Greene High School in 2021. The 2022 Jacktown Fair Princess, who will be crowned July 17, and the contestants vying to be this year’s Fair Queen, will also ride along in the parade.
The parade will also spotlight two float contests: a mini float contest and a full-size float contest. Contest entries in the mini-size category will receive prizes of $40, $30, $20, and $10. Floats can be constructed on a child’s wagon, a wheel barrow, garden cart, small cart, etc. The float can be hand pulled or pulled by a lawn size tractor.
Newly added last year, the mini float contest is an addition to the full-sized contest for which winning entries will receive $100, $75, $50, and $25. Both float contests will use this year’s fair theme, “Working Together to Keep the Tradition Alive!”
Float entries will be judged on their attractiveness, design, workmanship, use of the theme, originality and other elements. “In our annual parade, we usually have close to 100 units participate,” Sonneborn said.
A fireworks display will take place at 9:30 p.m. on Tuesday and Thursday, and the Cincinnati Circus Show is scheduled for 8 p.m. on Wednesday, Thursday and Friday. Admission is free, and ride, circus and grandstand event tickets are available for purchase at the fair. On Wednesday, children 14 and under ride free of charge.
For a complete schedule of events, go to www.jacktownfair.org.
The Fair is sponsored by the Richhill Agricultural Society, originally named The Richhill Agricultural, Mechanical and Manufacturing Association in its charter formed July 6, 1866. The first Jacksonville Fair (as it was initially named) occurred on Oct. 3 and 4 of that same year.
During World War II, a group of women organized a two-day fair to continue its longevity title. During the COVID-19 pandemic, a part-time fair with several contests kept that title alive.
Sonneborn said that the fair has had good attendance over the years, but that number of patrons is dependent on the weather.
“The reason the fair has been so successful for so long is because a lot of people volunteer their time and energy,” she added. “They’re proud of the fair, and it provides a lot of wholesome experiences for everyone.”