Cleveland County Fair 2021

The local county fair is a staple for many families across the nation, and Cleveland County is no exception. From crafts and food to livestock and games, there’s something for everyone. Stick horse races, baby crawls, petting zoo, power lifting, wiener dog race and  wiener dog costume contest are particularly entertaining, whether you want to be a participant or an audience member cheering someone on. Local bands providing entertainment in 2021 included Justin Fox Band and The Wise Guys.

Exhibits

Exhibits bring entries in three categories: Open, 4-H and Oklahoma Home and Community Education. Open entries include youth through adult contests while 4-H and OHCE are for those members only. County Extension Director Brenda Hill-Alta recruits superintendents and judges for the exhibits. Superintendents are volunteers who assist people when the bring in their entries. To ensure fairness, judges usually come from outside the county.

Best of Show Winners:
Ethan Narramore, 4-H Sweepstakes; Scout Eitel, Pumpkins; Trisdon Mestseff, Open – Youth Canning; Jonathan Hughes, Youth Bread; Trisdon Mestseff, Youth Fairy Gardens;  Sharon Sharp, Developmentally Disabled;

Dereck Reed, Color Photo; John Roberts, Fair Photo; A. Porch, B&W Photo;

Alex Graves, Horticulture; Marilyn Brookhaus, Floral; Donna Felty, Clothing; Alex Graves, Knitted; Susan Gee, Crafts; Kellie Gleason, Crochet; Darlene Poteet, Arts; Sandy McClure, Quilts; Maureen Azizian, Needlework; Sandy McClure, Scrapbooks (1); Chelcee Holden, Cards; Chelcee Holden, Scrapbooks;

Joyce Tinsley, Canned Fruit; Tamara George, Cakes; Diana Jones, Cookies; Cassie McCormick, Dried Foods; RE Hall, Confectioners; Mary Miller, Jellies; Sandy McClure, Bread; Steve Fitzgerald, Pickles; Rita Hunt, Canned Vegetables; Maria Kindel, Eggs;

Hopewell, OHCE Food Preservation; Corn, OHCE Quilt; Sandy McClure, Night Owls, OHCE Food Cakes; Clothier, OHCE Clothing; Clothier, OHCE Cookies; Friendship OHCE Fine Arts; Friendship, OHCE Home Furnishings; Hopewell, OHCE Needlework; Sandy McClure, Night Owls, OHCE Wall Hanging; Pleasant Valley, OHCE Breads; Busy Bees, OHCE Horticulture; Friendship, OHCE Photography; Debi Leo, Hay; Pleasant Valley, OHCE Candy;

Livestock

The annual Cleveland County Horse Show, hosted the weekend prior to the county fair is a favorite for many in the horse community. It’s also great entertainment for spectators or for anyone who wants to know more about the sport. Horse show attendance was down a bit in 2020 due to the pandemic with 40 entrants. In 2021,  that number was back up with 55 competitors.

2021 Horse Show


Fair board members facilitate the livestock shows and arrange for judges from other counties to ensure fairness. Most of the participants are from 4-H and Future Farmers of America (FFA). Livestock entries this year included: Beef - 23, Swine – 13, Sheep – 67, Meat Goats – 26, Dairy Cattle – 41, Dairy goats – 46, Rabbits – 15 and Poultry – 264.

Fun Competitions

Popular community contests open to all with no entry fee included auctioneer, arm wrestling, baby crawl, stick horse races, tractor pull, wiener dog races and wiener dog costume contest. In total, more than $1,500 in prize money was awarded in wiener dog races and costume contest with additional prizes baskets bringing the total value of awards to approximately $3,000. About 75 wiener dogs competed in the race this year.

Awards

Special this year, was the dedication of the fair to Dale Horton. The fair board presented a plaque honor Dale to his family. Fair Board members recognized Lily Stubbs and Sue Calvert as 2021 Fair Patrons and Earl, Jennifer, Abigail and Tyler Jenkins as the 2021 Fair Family. 

Win, lose or draw, the celebrity cow milking teams had fun. Congrats to our three county commissioners who took first, second and third place, coincidentally, placing the same as their districts: 1st Place Rod Cleveland, 2nd Place Darry Stacy and 3rd Place Harold Haralson. The County Clerk's Office team, "Udder Chaos" won for the least amount of milk, but they were delighted with their trophies and mugs. Also participating were Sheriff Chris Amason with the Cleveland County Sheriff's Office team and OEC Fiber who won the Best Costume.

GroupPlaque
Group Buckle

Carnival & Vendors

In 2021, Cleveland County fair board members fully committed to putting on the best fair ever and it showed. Cleveland County leadership, staff and fair board members were excited about bringing the full fair back after limiting the 2020 fair to exhibitors and family members only.

Not only was the carnival back, a new carnival vendor brought a full-scale carnival back to the fair, including adult rides as well as the traditional kiddie rides associated with recent fairs.

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