YORK, Pa. — Eleven years before the nation was founded, America's first fair was born in 1765.
Back then, it was a two-day agriculture market located in modern-day Penn Park that was held twice a year. In 1888, the York Fair moved to its current location in West Manchester Township.
Former Fair CEO Mike Froehlich says back then, the fair was just a time for people to relax and maybe boast about their animals.
"All the fairs, and especially the York Fair, [have] a timeline of history," he told FOX43 News.
From animals and horse races, the fair quickly evolved to have a modern-day attraction... the rides. By 1903, the York Fair had a miniature railroad and Ferris Wheel.
"Rides can only go in a few directions, around, up and down, but they add color to them, they add lights, they have different things. If you go back, rides really haven't changed that much," Froehlich explained.
One definite change is fashion.
Men used to come to the fair in suits and ties while women wore their Sunday best dresses. Now, it's a casual event.
Only twice has the Fair been canceled, both by pandemics. In 1918, it was canceled due to the flu outbreak, and in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
However, the Fair has run through World War I, II, the Korean War, Vietnam and after 9/11.
The iconic Market Street Gate was erected in 1921 to honor the memory of the York County natives who lost their lives in World War One.
Some famous faces in American history have paid a trip to the York Fair as well.
In 1906, 30,000 people welcomed President Theodore Roosevelt with a 21-gun salute. In 1960, then-Senator John. F. Kennedy made a presidential campaign stop at the fairgrounds.
Many entertainers have also been part of the Fair, from local bands to top-40 musical acts and comedians.
By 1926, the York Fair was a 5-day event that stayed that way until 1975 when it was extended to 9 days.
It wasn't until 1978 that the York Fair received its official recognition as the oldest fair in the U.S.
In 2019, the York County Agricultural Society Board of Directors voted to change the name to the "York State Fair" and move the event to July from September. The Fair has been held in the hot summer days for the past three years.
"We've had some ups and downs with the weather and COVID, but everyone is reacting fairly well to it," said Montgomery Stambaugh, the York State Fair marketing director. "All of our buildings are conditioned, we have multiple misting tents and two air-conditioned tents provided by the state."
However, one thing that hasn't changed over the year is the consistent price increases. Inflation is hitting the Fair, just like other things, hard this year.
"The things we have to buy to put on the fair have gone up so we've had to raise prices and it's across the board with food vendors, rides, admission, parking, everything," Stambaugh explained.
Fair organizers are trying to help out with some of that inflation. New this year is $2 Tuesday where admission and ride tickets are two bucks all day long. Some food vendors will even have $2 specials.