The Red River Exhibition (or "The Ex" for short and historically as Manisphere) is a ten-day festival hosted every summer, in June, in
Winnipeg
Winnipeg () is the capital and largest city of the province of Manitoba in Canada. It is centred on the confluence of the Red and Assiniboine rivers, near the longitudinal centre of North America. , Winnipeg had a city population of 749 ...
,
Manitoba
, image_map = Manitoba in Canada 2.svg
, map_alt = Map showing Manitoba's location in the centre of Southern Canada
, Label_map = yes
, coordinates =
, capital = Win ...
. The event takes place at Exhibition Park and features a
midway,
concert
A concert is a live music performance in front of an audience. The performance may be by a single musician, sometimes then called a recital, or by a musical ensemble, such as an orchestra, choir, or band. Concerts are held in a wide variet ...
s,
stage shows, and agricultural exhibits. The park is operated by the Red River Exhibition Association, a not-for-profit organization. Winnipeg's
The Guess Who
The Guess Who are a Canadian rock band formed in Winnipeg, Manitoba, in 1965. The band originated in 1962 and achieved an international hit single with a cover of " Shakin' All Over" in 1965 under the name Chad Allan and the Expressions. After ...
played there in 2015, and the
Crash Test Dummies
Crash Test Dummies are a Canadian rock band from Winnipeg, Manitoba.
The band is most identifiable through Brad Roberts (vocals, guitar) and his distinctive bass-baritone voice. The band members have fluctuated over the years, but its best k ...
played there in 1992.
The Ex was started in 1952 at the
Osborne Stadium
Osborne Stadium was a multi-sport outdoor stadium in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada. It operated from 1932 until 1956, and hosted Canadian football home games for the Winnipeg Blue Bombers and baseball games in the Mandak League. The stadium was a ...
complex near the
Manitoba Legislative Building The Manitoba Legislative Building (french: Palais législatif du Manitoba), originally named the Manitoba Parliament Building, is the meeting place of the Legislative Assembly of Manitoba, located in central Winnipeg, as well as being the twelfth pr ...
. It later moved to the
Polo Park Race Track and then to the
Winnipeg Stadium
Canad Inns Stadium (also known as Winnipeg Stadium) was a multipurpose stadium in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada.
The stadium was located at the corner of St. James Street and Maroons Road, immediately north of the Polo Park Shopping Centre and th ...
,
Winnipeg Arena
Winnipeg Arena was an indoor arena located in the Polo Park district of Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada.
The arena was the city's premier ice hockey venue from 1955 to 2004 and is best remembered as the home of the first Winnipeg Jets franchise, wh ...
, and
Winnipeg Velodrome
The Winnipeg Velodrome was a cycling facility built in Winnipeg, Manitoba for the 1967 Pan-American Games and managed by Winnipeg Enterprises. The facility was a banked short-track oval with a cement surface. The velodrome was located near th ...
facilities.
In 1997, it moved to its present location. The total amount of land owned at the western edge of Winnipeg . Red River Exhibition Park was built as a multi-purpose facility on only 90 of those acres leaving almost for future growth and expansion.
The annual fair continues to grow despite the fact its arrival is frequently accompanied by significant amounts of rain, (seven days out of ten in 2014). The record for attendance at the Ex is 223,183 paid visitors, set in 2011.
See also
Other Canadian annual fairs
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Canadian National Exhibition
The Canadian National Exhibition (CNE), also known as The Exhibition or The Ex, is an annual event that takes place at Exhibition Place in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, on the third Friday of August leading up to and including Canadian Labour Day ...
-
Toronto
Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, most pop ...
*
Calgary Stampede
The Calgary Stampede is an annual rodeo, exhibition, and festival held every July in Calgary, Alberta, Canada. The ten-day event, which bills itself as "The Greatest Outdoor Show on Earth", attracts over one million visitors per year and feat ...
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Calgary
Calgary ( ) is the largest city in the western Canadian province of Alberta and the largest metro area of the three Prairie Provinces. As of 2021, the city proper had a population of 1,306,784 and a metropolitan population of 1,481,806, maki ...
*
Edmonton K-Days -
Edmonton
Edmonton ( ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Alberta. Edmonton is situated on the North Saskatchewan River and is the centre of the Edmonton Metropolitan Region, which is surrounded by Alberta's central region. The city anc ...
*
Pacific National Exhibition
The Pacific National Exhibition (PNE) is a nonprofit organization that operates an annual 15-day summer fair, 10-day winter fair, a seasonal amusement park, and indoor arenas in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. The PNE fair is held at Hastings ...
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Vancouver
Vancouver ( ) is a major city in western Canada, located in the Lower Mainland region of British Columbia. As the most populous city in the province, the 2021 Canadian census recorded 662,248 people in the city, up from 631,486 in 2016. Th ...
*
Central Canada Exhibition
Ottawa SuperEX (officially the Central Canada Exhibition) was an eleven-day annual exhibition that took place every August at Lansdowne Park in Ottawa, Ontario. The exhibition provided exhibits, entertainment and amusements indoors in the buil ...
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Ottawa
Ottawa (, ; Canadian French: ) is the capital city of Canada. It is located at the confluence of the Ottawa River and the Rideau River in the southern portion of the province of Ontario. Ottawa borders Gatineau, Quebec, and forms the core ...
*
Canadian Lakehead Exhibition
The Canadian Lakehead Exhibition (CLE) is an annual regional fair in Thunder Bay, Ontario, Canada. Similar in nature to the Canadian National Exhibition in Toronto, it features local and regional artisans and farmers, a midway, concessions and nu ...
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Thunder Bay
Thunder Bay is a city in and the seat of Thunder Bay District, Ontario, Canada. It is the most populous municipality in Northwestern Ontario and the second most populous (after Greater Sudbury) municipality in Northern Ontario; its populatio ...
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Markham Fair
Markham Fair is one of Canada's oldest country fairs, an annual event established in 1844 and hosted by the Markham, Ontario and East York agricultural society. With over 700 volunteers working on more than 70 committees, Markham Fair is the larges ...
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Markham, Ontario
Markham () is a city in the Regional Municipality of York, Ontario, Canada. It is approximately northeast of Downtown Toronto. In the 2021 Census, Markham had a population of 338,503, which ranked it the largest in York Region, fourth largest ...
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Royal Agricultural Winter Fair
The Royal Agricultural Winter Fair (RAWF), also known as The Royal, is an annual agricultural fair that is held in Toronto, Ontario, Canada during the first two weeks of November. It was inaugurated in 1922 in the Coliseum, on the grounds of Exh ...
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Toronto
Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, most pop ...
*
Royal Manitoba Winter Fair
Royal Manitoba Winter Fair (RMWF) is an annual agricultural fair near the end of March, hosted by the Provincial Exhibition of Manitoba in the Keystone Centre in Brandon, Manitoba, Canada. The largest event held in Brandon, and one of the larg ...
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Brandon, Manitoba
Brandon () is the second-largest city in the province of Manitoba, Canada. It is located in the southwestern corner of the province on the banks of the Assiniboine River, approximately west of the provincial capital, Winnipeg, and east of the ...
*
Schomberg Fair -
Schomberg, Ontario
Schomberg (2021 population 2,656) is an unincorporated village in northwestern King, Ontario, Canada. It is located north of the Oak Ridges Moraine and south of the Holland River.
Schomberg is accessed via Highway 9, which links Orangeville an ...
*
Sooke Fall Fair {{Infobox recurring event
, name = Sooke Fall Fair
, logo =
, image =
, caption =
, location = Sooke, British Columbia
, years_active = {{years ago, 1919
, dates =
, genre = fall fair
, websi ...
-
Sooke, British Columbia
Sooke is a district municipality on the southern tip of Vancouver Island, Canada, by road from Victoria, the capital of British Columbia. Sooke, the westernmost of Greater Victoria's Western Communities, is to the north and west of the Sooke ...
*
Streetsville Bread and Honey Festival -
Mississauga
*
Western Fair
The Western Fair is a fair held annually in London, Ontario, Canada in early September.
History
The first Western Fair was held in September 1868 in downtown London, northeast of the current location of Victoria Park. Organizers had hoped to ...
-
London, Ontario
London (pronounced ) is a city in southwestern Ontario, Canada, along the Quebec City–Windsor Corridor. The city had a population of 422,324 according to the 2021 Canadian census. London is at the confluence of the Thames River, approximat ...
References
{{Reflist
External links
Red River Exhibition
Culture of Winnipeg
Exhibitions in Canada
1952 establishments in Manitoba
Recurring events established in 1952
Annual events in Canada
Festivals established in 1952
Summer events in Canada
Tourist attractions in Winnipeg
Annual events in Winnipeg