Gillespie County Fair & Festivals Association History
When the Gillespie County Fair & Festivals Association opens its 119th fair to the community in 2007, it will be celebrating an almost continuous history of family entertainment and participation in Fredericksburg, Texas.
The first Gillespie County Fair was held east of Fredericksburg in 1883 on what had once been Fort Martin Scott. The site had been purchased by John W. Braeutigam after the Civil War in 1870 and became “Braeutigam’s Garten,” a dance hall. The abandoned fort parade grounds were dragged by logs for use as the first racetrack. Turner Hall, in the 100 block of West Adams between Schubert and Travis Streets, was the second location called Central Park. The racetrack was two blocks long on East Travis Street.
In 1892, the 400 block between South Adams and South Lincoln became the third site of the Gillespie County fair. The area is still referred to as “the old fair grounds” and is the home of HEB Grocery store and the City’s Fair Park.
In 1976 the fair grounds moved to its current location adjacent to the county airport on Highway 16 South.
Racing has always been a large part of the entertainment. Horse races, especially, are a big attraction. Sulky, or trotting races, also have been held, as well as bicycle races. One year three elephants raced.
Baseball games were held on the track in front of the grandstands and suspended during a race. The players would line the fences and watch. Polo aroused interest here, and both Fredericksburg and Stonewall had teams during the early years.
The Golden Jubilee Fair was celebrated in 1935. The catalog produced for the occasion explained how the “Great Depression” had seriously affected the area, but the fair had continued under some trying conditions. Two banks closed in 1932, but the economy was picking up by the 50th Anniversary Fair and several of the merchants advertised on red and blue sheets inserted in the center of the catalog.
Annual fairs have been held since the founding of the Gillespie County Fair, with the exception of five years during World War I and World War II.
The 100th Anniversary was a spectacular centennial celebration. A parade that included all past fair Queens and Duchesses began the festivities in the traditional manner.
Today the Gillespie County Fair & Festivals Association is a nonprofit organization run by a 50 member volunteer board. The purpose of the Fair Association is to develop programs that encourage, instruct and promote the education of the youth of Gillespie County – with emphasis on the agricultural industry. In keeping with that purpose, the Fair Association has created one of the most dynamic scholarship programs in the area, granting scholarships to graduating seniors in the county on an annual basis. By 2006 over 350 students had received scholarships totaling approximately $200,000.
GCFFA is made up of 515 shareholders who own from one to seventy-five shares each. Thirty-seven voting directors and thirteen honorary directors govern the organization. The by-laws of the organization state that a shareholder may not receive payment for the services rendered as a Director. Each year, in addition to the shareholders and directors, over 300 individuals volunteer their time at the annual events and projects. The Directors and volunteers annually donate in excess of 30,000 volunteer hours to fairground programs and projects.
Each year the Gillespie County Fair Grounds is the site for over twenty major tourist-attracting events. Additionally, there are numerous other events held at the fair grounds, which regularly attract approximately 90,000 visitors to our community. Fair grounds facilities include the indoor, 15,000 square foot Exhibition Hall, Livestock Barn, and the covered Peddler Pavilion, as well as the race track, grandstands and 200 horse stalls. The Race Barn opened in April 2003 and provides simulcast pari-mutuel horse and dog races with a full service restaurant and bar.
Not only is the Gillespie County Fair Grounds the host site for events that have become major tourist attractions, such as the Country Peddler Show, the Texas Woodcarvers Guild, Four Wheel Truck Jamboree, Texas Presentations Antique Show, and the Antique Tractor Show, but the GCFFA also sponsors several events. Among these events are live pari-mutuel horse races, the 119th Gillespie County Fair, the hill country’s largest parade and, most recently, Flavors of Fredericksburg. Additionally, the Hill Country Antique Tractor and Engine Club reached an agreement with GCFFA to make the Gillespie County Fair Grounds their new home. The HCAT & EC will construct antique machinery displays and hold their annual event at the fair grounds.
