Who Said "County Fair?"

Did You Know? - It was a chilly day in March of 1851 when a few local farmers and merchants got together and decided to show off their harvest, produce, cattle and wares to the community. Since those humble beginnings, Fryeburg Fair, Maine's Blue Ribbon Classic, is Maine's largest agricultural fair second in New England in size only to Eastern States in Massachusetts.

Today Fryeburg Fair sits on 185 acres and has over 100 buildings. The eight-day fair hosts over 3,000 animals including prize-winning draft horses, ponies, racing horses, oxen, dairy & beef cattle, sheep, goats, pigs, poultry, rabbits and much more. Maine's Blue Ribbon Classic is always during the first week in October.

Fryeburg Fair has flourished since that first fair when William Walker of Lovell won $3 for the best acre of corn and William Spring of Brownfield earned $1 for the best seed wheat. Frye burg Fair attracts more than 225,000 people annually.

Did You Know? - Whitewash cures through a reaction with carbon dioxide in the atmosphere to form calcium carbonate in the form of calcite, a type of reaction generally known as carbonation or by the more specific term, carbonation.

It is usually applied to exteriors, or interiors of rural dairies because of its mildly antibacterial properties. Whitewash can be tinted for decorative use and is sometimes painted inside structures such as the hallways of apartment buildings. A small amount can rub off onto clothing. In Britain and Ireland, whitewash was used historically in interiors and exteriors of workers' cottages and still retains something of this association with rural poverty. In the United States, a similar attitude is expressed in the old saying "Too proud to whitewash and too poor to paint." The historic California Missions were commonly whitewashed, giving them their distinctive bright white appearance.

Whitewash is especially compatible with masonry because it is absorbed easily and the resultant chemical reaction hardens the medium.

Did You Know? - In the early 1900s the Studebaker company made a variety of machines for street upkeep, including sprinklers and sweepers. Here's what the company had to say about its "Acme Street Sweeping Machine" at the time:

To be satisfactory, a sweeper must combine lightness of draft with durability, simplicity, ease of operation and efficiency of service. Our Acme sweeper, described in detail on the following pages, embodies all these features.

Wheels are the celebrated Metal Hub Archibald Patent, with rims riveted on each side of spokes. Front gear is full circle turn under platform, with solid collar Concord axle. Hind axle is made of cold rolled steel. Short coupling insures easy draft. Automatic broom adjustment. Simple in construction. Smallest possible number of working parts. No complicated mechanism. Nothing to get out of order. Workmanship and material are the best.

The operation of the sweeper is under the instant, absolute and easy control of the driver without leaving his seat. The Acme is what its name implies, the highest type of street sweeping machine construction. It is in every respect a superior machine, and may be relied upon to give uniformly satisfactory service.