Our State Fair Is a Great State Fair— But Then You Already Knew That

When the Iowa State Fair turned 150 years old in 2004, the celebration included release of Shanley’s book, Our State Fair—Iowa’s Blue Ribbon Story, a coffee-table book of history that’s both rich and fun. Shanley will take us on a sit-down tour of the Fair via her book—its unique (and unsteady) start; the competition; the entertainment (not something those Founding Fathers favored); the ag extravaganza of Iowa; the super structures (listed on the National Register of Historic Places, no less); and, finally, a potpourri of everything else that’s helped mold the experience into an Iowa treasure. Shanley asks you to bring along a couple of your own stories to share, if you wish. She believes that your memories are as rich as the tales in the book.

Image: Kurt Ullrich, John Deere Agricultural Building, 2013, black and white photograph, 21×25 ⅛ in., collection of the artist

This talk is free and sponsored by Humanities Iowa and the Henry Family Foundation.