History of Hunterdon County 4-H and Agricultural Fair

The Hunterdon County 4-H & Agricultural Fair was founded in 2000 to continue the tradition of a county fair in Hunterdon after the dissolution of the Flemington Fair in 1999.

Flemington Fair, a privately-owned venture on Route 31 in Raritan Township, was the local venue for the agricultural and 4-H exhibits since 1856. The Hunterdon Fair came about after shareholders decided to sell their land for development and it’s now the home of Walmart, Lowe’s and other uses.

When the Flemington Fair announced it would cease to exist as an entity and event, the Hunterdon County Board of Agriculture formed a committee to continue providing a way for 4-H club members to show their projects and the farm community to take part in agricultural displays and activities. The original committee consisted of several members of the board including Roger Everitt, George Conard, and Ken Totten. They approached the Hunterdon County Board of Chosen Freeholders (now called Commissioners) and obtained their support.

The Hunterdon County 4-H & Agricultural Fair, Inc. is a non-profit, all-volunteer group of farmers, 4-H leaders/alumni, and local residents.  Its mission is to celebrate our agrarian heritage by providing a county-wide Agricultural Fair for the residents of Hunterdon and the surrounding area to promote agriculture, present educational exhibits, provide family entertainment, and offer competitive events for the farm community.

For the first four years, the Hunterdon County 4-H & Agricultural Fair was held at the old Flemington Fairgrounds. During this period, a search was conducted for a suitable location to relocate the fair, resulting in the Freeholders purchasing land between Routes 179 and 202 (once site of the Ringoes Drive-in movie theater) to become South County Park and dedicating its main use as a permanent fairgrounds. The first Fair was held at the new site in 2004.  The park was later enlarged with the purchase of adjoining property, and now covers some 92 acres. It’s a cooperative partnership between the County of Hunterdon and the Fair organization.

The Fair group arranged construction of five permanent buildings and installed a state of-the-art, flexible, outdoor power grid and underground water system to provide for the many vendors and exhibits for the Fair and other events. The board continues to improve the facility to make it capable of hosting a larger Fair and a variety of other activities. This includes the construction of two more buildings. In recent years drainage improvements were made and many of the walking paths blacktopped to make it easier for patrons to walk about the lay-out.

The property is officially named the Roger K. Everitt Fairgrounds, in memory of the man who played a major role in creation of the Fair and served as its board president until his death in 2017.

The Fair organization is extremely grateful to the County for their support and equally gratified by the donations of funds, materials, and labor from individuals and businesses who have taken an interest in this most ambitious project. With the cooperation of the County, an additional 50 acres was added to the original 42 acres for parking and other large area needs.

The Fair has truly been a community effort and the dedication of the 4-H families and many area businesses and residents continue making it possible. The organization looks forward to a long future of successful, family-oriented events and community activities and entertainment.