Posted on December 19, 2018
4th Largest County Fair and 13th Largest Overall Fair in North America
HAMBURG, NY – A national ranking of top fairs and exhibitions has named the Erie County Fair the largest county fair east of the Rocky Mountains, the 4th largest county fair in the United States and 13th largest fair overall in North America in 2018. The ranking of fairs, based on attendance, is published annually by CarnivalWarehouse.com. The “Top 50 Fair” list includes all county and state fairs, exhibitions and rodeo shows in the United States and Canada.
1 San Diego County Fair, Del Mar, CA 1,561,236 31 days
2 Orange County Fair, Costa Mesa, CA 1,470,636 31 days
3 Los Angeles County Fair, Pomona, CA 1,251,209 24 days
4 ERIE COUNTY FAIR, HAMBURG, NY 1,198,789 12 days
“This ranking is something that the entire Buffalo-Niagara region can take pride in accomplishing,” said Marty Biniasz, Erie County Fair Marketing Manager. “When looking at the ranking, you need to consider that the Erie County Fair out draws most state fairs in the United States. The west coast county fairs that rank above us benefit from a much longer operating season and are located in top 10 US population markets.”
In 2018, the “Best 12 Days of Summer” in Western New York State concluded with a final attendance of 1,198,789. This is a .46% increase from 2017 and was the second highest attended Fair in the Erie County Fair’s history. The all-time record was achieved in 2014 with 1,220,101.
The following is CarnivalWarehouse.com’s 2018 Top 25 Fairs:
1 Houston Livestock Show & Rodeo, Houston, TX 2,408,550
2 Texas State Fair, Dallas, TX 2,049,118
3 Minnesota State Fair, St. Paul, MN 2,046,533
4 San Antonio Livestock Show, San Antonio, TX 1,900,000
5 San Diego County Fair, Del Mar, CA 1,561,236
6 Eastern State Exhibition, Springfield, MA 1,543,470
7 Orange County Fair, Costa Mesa, CA 1,470,636
8 Canadian National Exhibition, Toronto, ON 1,400,000
9 Great New York State, Syracuse, NY 1,279,010
10 Calgary Stampede, Calgary, ALB 1,271,241
11 Los Angeles County Fair, Pomona, CA 1,251,209
12 Fort Worth Stock Show & Rodeo, Fort Worth, TX 1,214,000
13 ERIE COUNTY FAIR, HAMBURG, NY 1,198,789
14 Iowa State Fair, Des Moines, IA 1,130,260
15 Arizona State Fair, Phoenix, AZ 1,107,696
16 Washington State Fair, Puyallup, WA 1,100,000
17 Wisconsin State Fair, West Allis, WI 1,037,982
18 Tulsa State Fair, Tulsa, OK 1,025,000
19 North Carolina State Fair, Raleigh, NC 977,256
20 Ohio State Fair, Columbus, OH 908,306
21 Indiana State Fair, Indianapolis, IN 860,131
22 Oklahoma State Fair, Oklahoma City, OK 850,000
23 K Days, Edmonton, ALB 808,009
24 National Western Stock Show, Denver, CO 705,574
25 Pacific National Exhibition, Vancouver, BC 705,381
See complete list at: http://carnivalwarehouse.com/files/top50/2018list.pdf
About the Erie County Fair
The Erie County Agricultural Society is a private not-for-profit membership organization. Established in 1819, the Society is the oldest civic organization in Western New York. The mission of the Erie County Agricultural Society (ECAS), sponsors of the Erie County Fair, is to preserve and enhance, by educational endeavors, the agricultural and historical legacy of New York State. The Fair strives to fulfill appropriate aspects of the agricultural, educational, entertainment and recreational needs of Western New York. The 2019 Erie County Fair is scheduled for August 7th -18th. (www.ECFair.org).
