The following text may have been generated by Optical Character Recognition, with varying degrees of accuracy. Reader beware!

8-Orenn Weely Times, Wednesday, December 19, 1984 The Orono Fair Familiar Places-Faces Town of Newcastle Bicentennial feature Rhonda Malomet What the CNE is to Toron- to, the Orono Fair is to -the Town of Newcastle. Signali- ing the end of summer, back to smooI andi a celebration of' ti1r's harvest, its a must event, what most of the area's older residents wouldn't miss for aimost anything. -l missed Fair Day (the Saturday) for the first time in my life and it was a catastrophe," says Kirby author, Sid Rutherford. He had to attend his grand- daughter's wedding.. Why is the fair so popular? "It's a special &y out," says- longtime fair organizer and manager George Carson. And the yearly tradition is such the former residents of Orono return to partake in the fair's friendly amrbience, and to see their old friends. Mrs. Carson says she saw an old school chum she hadn't seen in years at this past fair. The fair provides somtething for everyone, says George Carson. There's the Midway with its rides, games and blaring rock music, the livestock displays and the ex- hibits in the fair building. Auctions are held so that local farmers might sel lambs, steers, and shecep. This agricuitural component once domninated the Orono Fair as it did virtuaily aIl of Ontaria's country [airs. The impetus for these [airs was the desire "to improve the breed", says Sid Ruther- ford, co-author of Out of the Mists, a hîstory of Clarke Township. In the early s Gi Our fr with filled our fr let's riest TAYL SAND & GRIA Lloyd, Ron, Douc nineteenth 'century, there animais were known for the would be farmers in each speed they could travel, community who had the about one mile in three means-~ to import purebred minutes. Rivalry grew livestock [romt Great Britain. amongst the farmers who like Livestock in Upper Canada to race their horses. They was scarce and what was formed driving clubs which av ailable wasn't of the'best sponsored trials of speed quaiity. So these imported du-ring the [air. To ac- animaIs would be taken comnodate this a circular track around to different farms ini was eventualiy buiît on the different areas and would be [air grounds (between Park "stood for service". This is, and Centre Street) so the men for a fee, local farmers could could race their horses in high have their female animals wheeled carts. sired by the purebred. Racers had a certain m-ysti- As the livestock population que attached to them. They grew, farmers became com- were known as "sports" says petitive with one another. Rutherford. -These guys "They'd get together and were like the guys today who donate prize money and set a like to race their Mustangs." place like Orono or The sports were considered to Millbrook to show off the of- be dashing, reàdy to take a fspring, in the spring or fal, " chance. Saturday night was says Rutherford. AnimnaIs the big race, an exciting event that were judged to be of to cap off the [air. Farmers high quality înaturally would be one another on their fetch a good price at the auc- respective horses and side tion held at the end of these betting occurred amongst the early [airs.. spectators. "It was the begin- From the occasional ex- ning of mnodemi track hibitions developed betting," says Rutherford. agricultural societies which The races remain part of the held [airs and competitions fair today says Carson regularly. The first Clarke though the bettimg is more Agricultural Society, the controlled. forerunner of the presenit Rutherford also has vivid Orono Fair was organized in recollections of the Indian 1852. this was renamed the Medicine men who regularly Orono Fair in 1907. entertained fair goers with, Sid Rutherford has many their herbaI remnedies and mnemories of these Orono m-agic potions. "Thiere was Fairs of days gone by. He has- one guy who would ',lther up seen the evolution of some with a special bar of soap and traditions, the disappearance then the lather wouid disap- of others. pear. When he put his hands One memorable one was into water the lather re- the horse races. in the early appeared. It really workecd. I days many people owned bought some," admits blood horses, or 'Morgan' Rutherford. He also horses. These aIl purpose remembers 'pick-a-poo joy juice.' "God knows what it was but it was supposed to cure anythîng [rom a ingrown toenaiî to dandruff. A lot of people bought it." To many ( gU SO]apeople these attractions were a much appreciated form of W il entertainmrent after ail, there leine 0 ln jtn were no movies or televisions 1 qu in the carly days. For a whiie there was aniother entertainment tradi- rosty greetinigs are filled tion, in the drama presenta- cheer, at this fun- tion. Local residents would timne of year. To ail organize and present such tends we'd like to say, pîays as Ten Nights in a Bar- ;make this the mer- room and Uncle Tom's Christmas day!" Cabin. But it got monotonous after a few years because the same cast was us- cd in the same productions. The fair has also seen -O R tragcdy. Sadly in 1910, the festivities were marrcd by a WEL LTD. typhoid fever epidemic., Many people who hadi eaten g, Gary, Brian dinner at the local hotel con- tracted the disease, brought - - - - - - ýLontiniuecd page 9) May vour ChriStmaS be filled with the serenity andl quiet contentment that Is bom iîn the Spirit. Andl may ail your days be graced with Ihealth, happiness, peace and our deep gratitude. WALLACE AUTO SUPPLY THE APPLE -BLOSSOM SHOF MERCER'S GARAGE WATSON MARINE and CYCLE HWY. 115 TRUCK and AUTO REPAIR ROLP>H (Domionion)- HARDWARE M & M VARIETY Myles and Marilyn ORONO ELECTRIC PARTNER PLIJMBING andV HEATING LTD. MAJOR PLUMBING and HEATING LIMITED Russ, Duane, Joyce & Jason N . ......... . .......... . ............ ................ . ..........