The Tennessee State Fair is an annual
state fair
A state fair is an annual competitive and recreational gathering of a U.S. state's population, usually held in late summer or early fall. It is a larger version of a county fair, often including only exhibits or competitors that have won in t ...
, formerly held in
Nashville, Tennessee
Nashville, often known as Music City, is the capital and List of municipalities in Tennessee, most populous city in the U.S. state of Tennessee. It is the county seat, seat of Davidson County, Tennessee, Davidson County in Middle Tennessee, locat ...
. Until 2021, the fair was generally held in the second week of September, as well as the weekends surrounding it. The fair regularly had attendance over 200,000 people per year while located at the Nashville Fairgrounds.
[About , 2011 Tennessee State Fair]
/ref> The State Fairgrounds have been under scrutiny since Nashville Mayor Karl Dean
Karl Foster Dean (born September 20, 1955) is an American politician who served as the 6th Mayor of Nashville, Tennessee from 2007 to 2015. A member of the Democratic Party, he previously served as Nashville's Director of Law under Mayor Bill P ...
announced the closure of the fairgrounds in 2009. After much controversy, a referendum on the city's ability to redevelop the fairgrounds for other uses was held, with the voters choosing to increase the required votes to make changes from a simple majority to two-thirds majority. The Tennessee State Fair and Exposition Commission granted the Tennessee State Fair to the non-profit organization Tennessee State Fair Association through 2018. After 2019, the fair was moved to the Wilson County Fairgrounds in Lebanon
Lebanon, officially the Republic of Lebanon, is a country in the Levant region of West Asia. Situated at the crossroads of the Mediterranean Basin and the Arabian Peninsula, it is bordered by Syria to the north and east, Israel to the south ...
and held in conjunction with the much larger Wilson County Fair.
The Lebanon, TN Police & Wilson County, TN Sheriff's Office, besides security guards, serve as security.
History
The first Tennessee State Fair was held in 1855, but only lasted a few years. The property where the old fairs were held on was later used for the Tennessee Centennial Exposition
The Tennessee Centennial and International Exposition was an exposition held in Nashville from May 1 – October 31, 1897 in what is now Centennial Park. A year late, it celebrated the 100th anniversary of Tennessee's entry into the union in 17 ...
, and has since become known as Centennial Park.[Friends of Metro Archives Nashville and Davidson County]
/ref> The current incarnation of the State Fair began in 1906, and has been held annually, except for four years during World War II
World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...
, through the Great Depression
The Great Depression was a severe global economic downturn from 1929 to 1939. The period was characterized by high rates of unemployment and poverty, drastic reductions in industrial production and international trade, and widespread bank and ...
, a 1965 fire that destroyed the majority of the fairgrounds, a 1970 fire that ruined the fair's coliseum, and 2020 on grounds of COVID-19 pandemic
The COVID-19 pandemic (also known as the coronavirus pandemic and COVID pandemic), caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), began with an disease outbreak, outbreak of COVID-19 in Wuhan, China, in December ...
.Nashville Fairgrounds Stadium
Geodis Park, known during development and construction as Nashville SC Stadium and Nashville Fairgrounds Stadium, is a 30,109-seat soccer-specific stadium at the historic Nashville Fairgrounds in Nashville, Tennessee. It is the home of Major Le ...
for Nashville SC
Nashville Soccer Club is an American professional soccer club based in Nashville, Tennessee. The club competes in Major League Soccer (MLS) as a member of the Eastern Conference. The team spent two seasons in the USL Championship before joining ...
of Major League Soccer
Major League Soccer (MLS) is a professional Association football, soccer league in North America and the highest level of the United States soccer league system. It comprises 30 teams, with 27 in the United States and 3 in Canada, and is sanc ...
. Concerns included parking, location for the carnival and midway, and adequate space and facilities for farm animal and agricultural exhibitions. After not hosting the fair in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic
The COVID-19 pandemic (also known as the coronavirus pandemic and COVID pandemic), caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), began with an disease outbreak, outbreak of COVID-19 in Wuhan, China, in December ...
, it was announced in May 2021 that the fair would be moved to the Wilson County Fairgrounds in Lebanon, Tennessee
Lebanon ( ) is the county seat of Wilson County, Tennessee, United States. The population was 38,431 at the 2020 census. Lebanon is located in Middle Tennessee, approximately east of downtown Nashville. Lebanon is part of the Nashville Metro ...
, and held in conjunction with the Wilson County Fair in mid-August, earlier than the traditional September date.
References
External links
Tennessee State Fair websiteHistorical Fairground PhotosMetro Nashville Board of Fair Commissioners
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Fairs in Tennessee
Tennessee
Tennessee (, ), officially the State of Tennessee, is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders Kentucky to the north, Virginia to the northeast, North Carolina t ...
Annual events in Tennessee
Annual fairs
Events in Nashville, Tennessee
September
Tourist attractions in Nashville, Tennessee
Festivals established in 1906
1855 establishments in Tennessee