xt7ghx15nd0h https://exploreuk.uky.edu/dips/xt7ghx15nd0h/data/mets.xml Federal Writers' Project of the Work Projects Administration for the State of Kentucky 1942 I. Agricultural societies.--II. Kentucky state fair. books Kentucky Department of Agriculture This digital resource may be freely searched and displayed in accordance with U. S. copyright laws. Kentucky Works Progress Administration Publications Kentucky State Fair Agricultural exhibitions Kentucky--Fairs Fairs and fair makers of Kentucky. Volume II text Fairs and fair makers of Kentucky. Volume II 1942 1942 2012 true xt7ghx15nd0h section xt7ghx15nd0h      _              &, ¤ s•
                               
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 AMERICAN GUIDE SERIES
EAIRS AND TAIR MAKERS
CDE KENTUCKY
A VOLUME II
KENTUCKY STATE EAI R
I
Compiled by Workers of the Ken*cuoI»:y "ITri.’cers' Project
of the Work Projects Administration in Kentwxcky
Sponsored by the Kenizucky Department of Agriculture

 { First Published in April, l942
° FEDERAL WORKS AGENCY
Brig. Gen. Philip B. Fleming, Administrator
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g NORA PROJECTS ADWIJISTRATION
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t Seward O. Hunter, Commissioner
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[ Florence Kerr, Assistant Commissioner
é George H. Goodman, State Administrator
 
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? Copyright 1942 by the Yentucky Department of AgTlOultUTG_
y Printed in U. S. A.
§ Reproduction of this book, or any parts thereof, except short excerpts for
§ inclusion in newswaoer or mayazine reviews, is expressly forbidden
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Q

 TABLE OF CONTE§2§
Volume II
Organization and Grounds ---——---—--- 191
Livestock and Livestock Products --————-— 209
Crops, Fome, Industry, Education -—--———- 258
Racing and Amusements —--————-————· 258
Local Fairs, 1902-40 --———----———-— 265
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 VOLUME II
‘ I Poland China, and Hampshire. The leading poultry breeds of the State are Rhode
V Island Red, Barred and White Rock, White Wyandotte, and the Single Combed White
and Brown Leghorn. ··
The Thoroughbred is one of the oldest of horses, derived from the light,
durable, swift horses of Arabia and of the Barbary coast. The standard-bred, or
A trotter, and the American saddle horse are essentially Thoroughbred, bred for
especial types of performance. The saddle horse is Kentucky's own, developed
T during the mid—nineteenth century in the Bluegrass, where during the same
period, great development of Denmark's trotting blood took place.
T `Nith cattle, a like fondness for the proved is evident. The Hereford is as
_ ancient as any English breed; was for hundreds gf years the plow-ox of the rich ‘
‘ farmlands of Herefordshire and the surrounding region, The Shorthorn is new in
2 name only. Formerly called the Durham, after the English county of that name, it
g came, improved by selective breeding but virtually unchanged in blood, out of the
_. ancient Teeswater and Holderness cattle of northeastern England. The Aberdeen-
Q Angus came out of the mists of time down from the hills of Aberdeenshire and
Q Angus, north of the Scottish border. Among dairy breeds, what is known in America
Q as the Holstein has been bred in Holstein and Friesland for at least two thousand
F years; and the Jersey and the Guernsey had, before coming to America, lived on
g the Channel Islands nearly that long.
Q The· Southdown and its. near relative, the Hampshire, won out more than
L a century ago over the many breeds of that time as the_best for the small farmer
E wanting a dual-purpose sheep-- one that produced a fleece of fine-textured wool,
Q and at the same time dropped lambs early enough to reach the "hothouse" or spring
g market. . , . - p _
Q The poultry breeds most frequently seen at the fair also are among the older
Q and well tested breeds.
E BACKGROUNDS OF THE MODERN FAIR
.2;  
;> The State Fairs, of which that of Kentucky_is an excellent example, origi-
Q nated in the temporary markets set up, in the long-forgotten days, where they
T would serve the bartering needs of the largest possible number of people. Out of
g such beginnings grew the great fairs of the Middle Ages-- fairs that continued
E for weeks and even for months, as did the fair at Nizhni-Novgorod, where buyers
5 and sellers from all over eastern Europe and western Asia met annually to inter-
E change wares and, incidentally, ideas. This great: Russian fair is cited as an
{ example of like fairs held throughout western Europe until the coming of modern
é transportation. . · . ,
g Lesser fairs of the same sort, temporary markets with all the accompanying
g side show business of clowning, music, dancing,.fortune telling, puppet theaters,
g wrestling, and the like grew up throughout Europe, and, by the time the English ,
d headed westward across the Atlantic, they had become a recognized part of the
§ British trading system. The great cattle fair at Smithfield, near London, in full
g flower during the latter part of the eighteenth century, is mentioned as a not-
E able market where breeders from all over England met, sold their cattle, and
Q carefully observed the type of stock land sort of finish for which buyers, repre-

 ¤
EEE; OF KENTUCKY ______ J ___*________ __;_l2Q_;
nggi senting the consumer demand, were willing to pay top market prices. Back in
and pastures, the leading stockmen of England, breeding in response to this denend,
38y, and finishing off the stock so produced according to the accepted standards of
hcde the time, laid the foundations of the Shorthorn breed and materially improved the
hite Hereford, Devon, and other breeds common in that country more than a century and
a half ago.
,ht’ Fairs of a similar general character, where tobacco, livestock, and all
T Or sorts of products of the farm and home were displayed and sold, were held in Vir-
for ginia during the Colonial period. The fairs at Alexandria and Fredericksburg,
)p€d chartered by the Colony and held prior to the Revolution, were of this "general
game market" character. Traces of these early Virginia fairs are found in the "salt
fairs" long ago held in `Winchester, Kentucky, and possibly in other Kentucky
communities. The primary purpose or such fairs was traffic in goods; the name,
; as and to a material extent the purpose, has survived in the fairs of today.
rlig Spain of the early nineteenth century was the chief source of merino, a fine
it wool much in demand` for the making of clothing. To escape the war then being
the weged in central Spain, Spanish sheep owners drove their flocks into Portugal
gn_ where they were sold for whatever they would bring. Some 20,000 of these
and "refugee" Nerinos crossed the Atlantic and were given homes in pastures along the
ica Atlantic coast, some of them coming as far west as Kentucky.· A great boom. in
and Merinos followed, and sheep shearings became popular. The best known of these
On was that annually held across the Potomac from Washington, on the Arlington farm
of George Washington Custis, whose daughter married Robert E. Lee. These shear- ·
ings were swanky occasions, attended by many of the elite of Washington society,
han and gave rise to similar shearings, in other places. One such shearing took
ner place in the year 1812, near Georgetown, Kentucky.
gig V ‘ Early Kentucky Fairs »
A In all probability Lewis Sanders, hearing of the Georgetown shearing, drove
ger the few miles between his farm on the Georgetown Pike and that of William Story,
where the shearing was held, and was an ‘interested spectator. In any event,
whether present or not, he must have heard of and been interested in the affair,
` for he was already deeply involved in the local Merino boom that shortly there-
after brought disaster.
igy On his farm, adjacent to Lexington, Sanders had at that time a flock of more
Of than two hundred purebred Merinos. He had doubtless heard of the successful
_€d stock shows already held by Elkhana Watson and his neighbors, in Berkshire
TS County, Massachusetts, for in l8l6 he enlisted the aid of a group of leading Ken-
r_ tucky stockmen and held the first of the long succession of fairs since held in
an the State. It was primarily a stock show, widely advertised, well staged, and
Tn largely attended. On that occasion the first Kentucky State Agricultural Society
was organized. Isaac Shelby, just retired as Governor, was its president. There
is detailed record of four subsequent fairs held at Fowler's Garden in Lexington,
ng the last occurring in 1819. Several county fairs were held during the same
S period. One in·Bourbon County and another in Jefferson are vaguely mentioned,
sg while Sanders, writing in the late l840's, mentions several others of which the
he " records are lost. (For a more complete story of early Kentuckv_fairs, see Chap-
ll ter III-of Part I.) ‘
Eg The fairs of Sanders* time disappeared during the business and financi-
¤_ al troubles of the l820's, only to be revived in much stronger fashion and far
J wider scope in the l830's. County agricultural societies were organized through-

 i - 194 - FAIRS AND FAIR MAKERS
out the leading agricultural sections of the State, and at least ninety-nine lo-
· cal fairs were held during the period of 1853-42. After the latter year the so-
cieties and their fairs went into eclipse-- all except that of Bourbon County,
which, with one year's omission, continued annually down to the close of the cen-
tury. During this period a State agricultural society was formed, and the Ken-
tucky Farmer, an agricultural paper that for four years exerted great influence
tgward the betterment of farming in the State, was published, but no State fairs
were attempted. The "hard times" of the l840's ended this cycle of fairs, and of
the valuable experiments in acre-yield crop production that accompanied them.
_ Fairs of the mid-Nineteenth Century
In 1857 a fair sponsored by the United States Agricultural Society was held
in Louisville on the grounds of the Jefferson County Agricultural Society. This
· fair, reported fully in Harper's Weekly of September 26 of that year, did much to
advertise Kentucky to the Nation at large. Meanwhile, fairs sponsored by the
g State of Kentucky, under the management of the State Agricultural Society, were
held during twelve of the fifteen years of the 1856-70 period. These fairs,
L traveling from one section of the State to another, gave local people in all
{_ parts of the Commonwealth opportunity to meet the great herds and herdsmen of the
i- State; brought the latest and best in farm equipment and machinery to the atten-
Q tion of farmers; and served as a traveling college of agriculture before the days
Q- of such an institution.
Q During the War between the States the fairs were suspended, all of them for
S a year or more, many of them for the entire period of the war. But with the
t season of 1866 the fairs of former days began to revive, and in addition new
E societies were formed. These fairs of the late l860's served as a neutral ground
S where men of the Blue and Gray could meet in friendship; the issues of the war
S forgotten in their common“ interest in agricultural matters. practically every
Q county in the Commonwealth, with the exception of the heavily timbered mountain
E3 region, held an annual fair throughout the post-war era that ended with the
S depression of the l890's. The fairs of the third State Agricultural Society
S closed with the Henderson Fair in l870. After this, great regional fairs, like
Q those held in Lexington during the l870's and after, competed with each other for
S the place left vacant. Bowling Green, Owensboro, Paris, Louisville, and Other
g centers staged outstanding fairs during the period.
ij The healing influence of the local and regional fairs of the late l860's and
E the l870's mark them as outstanding agencies for good, The new social contacts
Q they brought about helped life to resume much of its old-tire flavor. The younger
E generation met at them, made love, married, and looked toward the future.
{,3 ‘
{ The stock show still retained, perhaps increased, its numerical importance,
.é but divided honors with the speed events and riding exhibitions. Trotting was in
§ fashion. The exploits of Dexter, Goldsmithls Maid, Maud S, and other kings and
g queens of the oval were as widely known and much more keenly appraised than those
§ of today's fleetest standard-breds. Fact fair, down to the smallest, had its
Q local track favorites, and interest in their performances, usually held during
E the afternoon of the closing day of the fair, brought out practically the entire
§ ·countryside. The tournaments of the l870's revived the pageantry and riding skill
@ developed in the l850's and seen today at the Kentucky State Fair Horse Show-
~¥
Q During the same period the making of farm machinery and equipment was rap-
2 idly moving from the local blacksmith shop into the larger cities and into huge
i plants that turned out mowers, reapers, hay rakes, ard like machinery on a scale

 QQQS OF KENTUCKY g-____ - 195 -
lo- approaching mass production. Local salesmen for the manufacturers of this equip-
so- ment seized the opportunity offered by the fairs and began the practice, still
ity, continued on a grander scale at the Kentucky- State Fair, of exhibiting their
zen- wares and taking orders. A binder in operation, a threshing machine driven by
Qyg; steam power were the counterpart, in crowd drawing power, to the auto races and
ance airplane stunts of recent years. Household exhibits-- needle and crochet work,
iirs quilts, products of the loom. dairy, and kitchen-- were supplemented by products
1 of of the pen, pencil, and brush.
Amusement features` grew in variety and attractiveness. Bands, military
parades, walking matches, high-wheeled bicycle races, the already familiar merry-
go-round or "Flying Jenny," reinforced by‘a steam calliope, and balloon ascens-
ield ions vied with the vending of popcorn, candies, brightly-colored whips, caps,
This gimcracks and knicknacks, soaps, patent medicines, and ice cream. The inevitable
1 to basket picnic dinner under the trees, the speeches-- mainly political-- all this
the and more lent life, color, and variety to the occasion.
rere
.rs, Organization of the local fairs continued as late as 1890, but after that
all year there is no record of further material expansion befere the establishment
the of the Kentucky State Fair. The five-year depression that began in 1295 deflated
zen- livestock prices and destroyei, for a time, the market for purebred:. Already
.ays badly battered by seventeen years of adverse conditions, and faced by a still
more unfavorable future of inlefinite duration, the breeders of the State, who
had backed the fairs of the 1e50's and after, closed the gates of their fairs and
for bided their time. V
the
new By 1900 economic recovery was on its way and interest in the fairs revived;
lund but a blow had been given the old agricultural and mechanical societies from
war which few of them recovered. The State Department of Agriculture fostered farm-
·ery ers' institutes and farmers’ clubs; and fairs sponsored by the Elks and other
ain societies were attempted and for a time proved popular. But the lack of a State-
the wide rallying point for agriculture was felt by the livestock breeders of all
ety sections of the Commonwealth. Various ways of meeting the situation were consid-
ike ered. The one most favored was to revert to the program of 1856-- a State-
for sponsored traveling fair, moving from district to district within the Common-
her wealth, under immediate direction of able agricultural leaders representative of
all sections and interests within the State. The manufacturers of Louisville
pledged their support to such a program, and, in 1901, with such purpose in mind,
and the Kentucky Livestock Breeders’ Association, a society having State—wide member-
cts ship, was created. .
ger 4
TED STATE FAIR 1S ORGANIZED
ce, The first Kentucky State Fair was held on the Churchill Downs racecourse in
in Louisville in the early autumn of 1902. The most recent of record is that of
and 1941. Between these two dates lies colorful history covering four distinct
ose administrative periods: (1) that of 1902-5, during which the fairs were under the
its control and management of the Kentucky Livestock Breeders' Association; (2) the
ing fairs of 1906-11, when the management was in the hands of a board chosen by the
ire farmers of the State through the farmers’ institutes of that day; (5) the fairs
ill of 1912-58, during which period the management was vested in an agricultural
board appointed by the governor which had as one of its duties the holding of the
State Fair; and (4) the period, which began in 1958, of control by a State Fair
ap- board, within but structurally distinct frpm that of the existing agricultural
nge board. V .
ale - 4 .

 _ — 196 — FAIRS AND FAIR MAKERS ,
R THE KENTUCKY LIVESTOCK BREEDERS' ASSOCTATION
1 In 1901 the Kentucky Livestock Breeders’ Association, mentioned above, was
A organized under the following articles of incorporation:
I "Know all men by these presents that Gotteleib Letterle, J. Lewis Let-
terle, Frank G. Hogan, Jno. G. Roach, J.R. Johnson, G. A. Birch, J. L.
Shallcross, Caldwell Norton, E. R. Bagley, L. L. Dorsey, W. L. Scott,
J.‘N. Hornsley, T. L. Hornsley, `W. H. Giltner, E. W. Hieatt, E. W.
Sewell, G. C. Bird, M. O. Hughes, G.`W. Lyddon, J. D. Stodghill, W. H.
Hooker, H. D. Martin,` F. T. Ciserman, D. C. Heron, N. W. Heal, N. W.
Huss, W. H. Jefferies, Bart Stith, R. M. Smith, S. R. Chambers, H. Z.
' Churchill, A. Hunter Nason, have associated and become incorporated
and established a corporation upon the following terms: -
il "l. The name of the corporation shall be Kentucky Live Stock Breed-
,_ ers Association.
T, "Z. The principal office and place of business of the corporation
is shall be the city of Louisville, in Jefferson County, Ky.
E "The nature of the business to be carried on by the corporation shall
{ be encouraging and promoting interest in breeding, management, and
Q general improvement and development of pure bred live stock and hold—
T ing annual exhibitions and sales of live stock at Louisville, Ky.
E "The amount of capital stock of the corporation shall be five thousand
Q ($5,000.00) dollars which shall be divided into five hundred (soo)
t shares of ten ($10.00) dollars each.
@ "The corporation shall commence on the l5th day of January 1901 and
Q continue for a term of twenty—five (25) years next ensuing unless
Q sooner terminated according to lwv. .
i "The business of said corporation shall be conducted by the following
E officers and committees: to wit: a board of directors consisting of
L eleven members: a president, first vice president, second vicc presi-
ii dent, third vice president, secretary and treasurer. The president, `
Y first, second and third vice presidents, secretary and treasurer shall ‘
Q be ex—officio members of all committees." .
Q This organization deemed its purpose as most readily achievable through the
Q holding of a State=wide fair. Support of the movement was sought and obtained in
h , the Bluegrass area, and in 1902 Abram Renick, noted livestock breeder of Clark
3 County, introduced a bill in the house of representatives to establish a State
g fair. The Renick Act provided that: ·
  -
§ T§hereas, The State of Kentucky has fallen behind her sister States in
F the development of her livestock and her agricultural products, and
a has lost the prestige and high standing her livestock once gave her,
5 . and .
  ,
§ Tlhereas, ln former times breeders from all parts of the United
Q States, and even foreign countries, looked to Kcntucky for purebred
§ stock to improve their herds and flocks: and,

 EEE ‘ OF KENTUCKY - lQZ_;
"Whereas, Our neighboring States, viz., Ohio, Indiana, Illinois and
4 Missouri, are rapidly _forging ahead of us as breeders of livestock by
"&S the annual appropriations of large sums to equip and maintain State
fairs for the exhibition of the product of their respective States,
and the payment of premiums of such exhibits, we deem it necessary to
establish and maintain a State Fair in Kentucky for the exhibition of
livestock, and the products of the farm, orchard, dairy, poultry, and
such other interest as maybe helpful to all the people of our state:
therefore,
"Pe it enacted, Ry the General Assembly of the Commonwealth of Ken-
tucky:
` "That an annual State‘Fair for the exhibition of agricultural, mechan-
ical, horticultural, dairy, forestry, poultry and livestock, be, and
the same is hereby created, to be known as the Kentucky State Fair.
"That in order to relieve the said State fair of any political appear-
ance, the same is to be under the management and control of the board
of Directors of the Kentucky Livestock Breeders' Associatirn, A ;orpo-
ration organized and existing under the laws of the F‘ ..,», te or Kentucky
(having its principal office in the City of Louisville) and their suc-
cessors in office which Board of Directors are elected annually by the
stockholders of said Association. ‘
"That the sum of fifteen thousand dollars annually is hereby appropri-
ated, which appropriations are to be used as premiums alone; said fair
to be held Vat such time and place as the Board of Directors of the
Kentucky Livestock Breeders' Association may determine and the said
Kentucky Livestock Breedersf Association are to pay all other expenses
incurred. I.
"The sum of $l5,000_is to be paid annually on lthe first day of July
at which time the auditor shall draw his warrant on the State Treasury
in favor of _the treasurer of the Kentucky Livestock Breeders'
Association. , ‘
‘ "The, treasurer of said Kentucky Livestock Breeders' Association shall
execute bond with the State of Kentucky, in the sum of $l5,000 for the
faithful disbursement of such moneys according to the provisions of
zhe this act.
in _ r ’
irk "The treasurer of such Kentucky Livestock Breeders' Association shall,
ite within sixty days.after holding such annual State Fair, render to the
` auditor of the State of Kentucky, an itemized statement showing dis-
bursements ~of such appropriation, which itemized statement shall be
embodied in the state Auditor‘s annual report. ‘
o "Any part of such money unexpended, shall be refunded to the State of
Kentucky."' _
Gov. J. C. W. Beckham took no action on the Renick State Fair bill, thereby
allowing it to become a law without his approval on March 29, l902.

 . . - 198 - ' FAIRS AND FAIR MAKERS -
v Early Opposition Overcqmg
‘ Several serious problems soon developed to stifle attempts of the associ-
l ation to hold its first fair. The opposition that the bill had met in the senate \\\
` was renewed by opponents of a State-wide fair. Then, too, the management was .
" without funds to obtain permanent equipment, for no appropriation was made by the
legislature except the $15,000 that had been designated for premium use. _
Since no specific location for holding the exhibition had been stipulated,
the question of determining that point provided a means of easing the financial 7
problem, but at the same time opened a road to dissension between localities _
V bidding for the fair. ` ’ _
` State-wide fairs had been held previously by other States, but these pro- Q
.. vided no rules or precedents. A business policy to fit the needs of the State `
` was as imperative as were new classifications for the exhibits shown. The tempe- A
,. rance group, the anti-racing faction, and other similar component parts of the
A1 voting population had to be kept in line so that they would not oppose the legis-
{ lative appropriations that might shortly be asked, for on these grants the life
V of the fair in future years would depend. Racing, even to test a horse's speed,
p was prohibited at the first fair, although that fair was held at Churchill Downs, .
E home of the Kentucky Derby.
5 The arrangement: of exhibits, when completed, had a distinctive Kentucky
I flavor. Classifications established differed much from those found in other
E States, having been arranged to meet conditions in this State.
t "TRAVELIRQZNEAIRS OF ITS EARLY YEARS
L2
E The first Kentucky State Fair was held on the Churchill Downs racecourse in
Q Louisville, September 22-27, 1902. It was successful, not only in presenting an
Q adequate picture of Kentucky’s agricultural life, but in paying its own way. The
T attendance was 75,000; the gate, $17,000. Those who knew the State well believed
f` that Louisville was not the proper location for the fair, because the city did
Q not represent the livestock and agricultural interests. The grounds and build-
Q ings at Churchill Downs were generally admitted to be unsuited for the use of the
g fair. After the fair was over and sufficient time had elapsed to reach definite .
E conclusions, the Livestock Breeders’ Association announced that it would enter-
if tain offers from other cities in the State where the fair might be held in 1905.
Q All the fair then possessed was its record books and the legislature's appropri-
T ation of $l5,000_ for premium money. It was easy enough to move to any other
Q locality.
§ In soliciting bids for the 1905 fair the Livestock Breeders' Association
5 asked that the bidder provide suitable grounds and post an indemnity fund to
Q guarantee against loss ‘if the fair failed financially. Lexington made no bid,
§ for that city had a highly successful Elks Fair which had become an annual event. ·
E In no equitable manner could the State Fair and the Elks Fair be consolidated.
` Owensboro, considered the most important city in the western part of the State,
{ made an offer of suitable grounds and expressed a willingness to guarantee
E against loss up to $15,000. This offer and the prospects for success at Owens-
$ boro were more favorable than the inducements held out by Louisville and was
§ consequently accepted.
S The second fair, held at Owensboro, September 21-26, 1905, was a disastrous
E financial failure, due largely to lack of a proper co-ordination of effort. The
* 

 Eggé OF KENTUCKY p ~ » J — 199 -
local} exhibits ·were igood; the livestock from the Bluegrass scanty. Because of
OCi_ this deficiency, the fair failed _to draw_ a sufficient crowd to meet expenses.
nate The attendance was only 14,000. The guarantors refused to make good the losses
was \\\ incurred by the Livestock Breeders' Association. The_matter went to the courts.
the Pending their action, many bills went unpaid, among them bills for_ advertising
owed to country newspaper editors, who wielded powerful influence locally and
throughout the State.` · ° l l _ ‘
xiii ‘ " Meanwhile, the legislature convened and again appropriated $15,000 to the
ties Livestock Breeders' Association for premium use. A suit was instituted to test
the legality of the grant. 0n the premise that the appropriation_ was unconsti-
tutional, the auditor refused to- honor the demand of the association for the
prO_ money. The court later affirmed the constitutionality of the appropriation. As
bats a ·result of all this° confusion, the fair of 1904 lapsed and it was freely
np8_ asserted that no State Fair would ever again be held within the Commonwea1th:_
Tggi In “spite dof the unfavorable outlook, the association invited bids for the
iife fair of 1905. Lexington and Louisville responded, the commercial and manufactur-
Bgd ing interests of the latter city showing little concern about the matter. Lex-
VnS’ ington offered its fairgrounds andi adequate financial support, contingent on
’ being permitted to name half of the directors. This offer was accepted by the
association. Frank G. Hogan, Caldwe1l_ Norton, G. A. Birch, and Clarence‘ Sale
represented the Livestock Breeders' Association; M. A. Scovell, T. S. Harbison,
fiky J. S. Estill, and Desra Breckinridge, the city of Lexington, George A. Bain, lew-
“ Sr ington, served as secretary, Untiring efforts by the board produced the greatest
fair Kentucky had `yet seen, and the most profitable. The attendance rose to
82,000; total receipts were $45,000; a net revenue of $12,000 was reported. 4
B in it I ` LEGISLATIVE CHANGES- ‘ A ( _f' MV
STZE During pthe years 1904-08 Kentucky had, in the person of Hubert Vreeland,_of
Jefferson County, a strong and resourceful commissioner of agriculture, labqr and
zggg statistics who, in his first report as commissioner, pointed the way to ellarged
Llg_ use of that department, which was then interested in the organization of farmers'
the clubs as furnishing local centers for the farmers' institutes popular throughout
_ c the State. The bureau of agriculture, labor and statistics, as then constituted,
ilte was made up of two State officials-- the directorl of the State Agricultural
S32- Experiment Station and the commissioner of agriculture-- and three advisory mem-
Q' bers: E. R. Bagley, of Warren ‘County; Thomas W. Scott, of Woodford; and Guthrie
°}"l‘ M. wiiscm, Or Nelson. · ’ · ·
zner c , ·
‘ The suggestion made by the commissioner wasé
JIEH "... Believing that a larger representation of farmers on this Board
Digo would not only result in the Commissioner receiving valuable aid and
_nt’ _ suggestions in the work of holding institutes, etc., but that it would
;€d° _ have a tendency to create more interest and confidence in the depart-
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