California Exposition and State Fair
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The California Exposition and State Fair is the annual state fair for the State of California. The annual event is commonly known as the California State Fair and the current site is commonly known as Cal Expo.
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[edit] 2006 Fair
The 2006 California State Fair ran from August 11-September 4. The free concert series included REO Speedwagon, the Village People, and more. The attendance was 941,502, up more than 20,000 from 2005.[1]
[edit] History
The California legislature created the State Agricultural Society to promote California's reputation for farming and industry. An agricultural exposition was organized and held in San Francisco in 1854, and California Historic Landmark #861 marks the site. Given that travel was difficult in that era, the next several annual expositions were moved around the state, to Sacramento, San Jose, Stockton, and Marysville.
In 1859 the exposition returned to Sacramento, and it was decided that a permanent site should be found. Capitol Park, a six block site bounded by E, H, 20th and 22nd Streets () was purchased and was home to the state fair for the next fifty years.
Growth in population and attendance forced the purchase of 80 acres just outside the city limits on Stockton Boulevard (), and the first fair was held there in 1909. Continued growth caused that site to be expanded by 75 acres in 1937. During and after World War II, from 1942 to 1947, the Fair was suspended and the fairgrounds were occupied by the Army.
In 1948 the state purchased a large tract of undeveloped land along the American River north of downtown Sacramento. Funds were not allocated to begin construction on this land until 1963, and the Fair continued at the Stockton Boulevard grounds until 1967. In 1968 Governor Ronald Reagan opened the Fair at the "Cal Expo" site, which covers over 350 acres at .
