Topsfield Fairgrounds

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The colorful and often exciting history of Topsfield Fair began in 1818 when the Essex Agricultural Society, the non-profit organization that owns the Topsfield Fair, was officially granted a charter on June 12th of that year.

The goal of the fledgling Society, formed by a group of "practical farmers" who first met on February 16, 1818, was "to promote and improve the agricultural interests of farmers and others in Essex County." What began as the Essex Agricultural Society Cattle Show with its annual exhibits/fairs held in various sites around Essex County to showcase agriculture.

At that first show there were committee reports on working oxen, neat cattle, dairy, fat oxen and swine, Indian corn, potatoes and manure. The first premium was awarded to President Pickering for "superior performance of his plough."

The fair has been held annually since that first cattle show with just six exceptions, all out of the hands of the Society. By government decree it was suspended for three years during the Civil War and for three years, 1943, 1944 and 1945 during World War II.

Topsfield Fairgrounds sits on the former Treadwell Farm property. Dr. John Goodhue Treadwell of Salem bequeathed the farm to the Agricultural Society in 1858 for the "promotion of the science of agriculture."

www.topsfieldfair.org/