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Remember This? When women didn’t attend fairs

In this week's history column, taken from Thorold Township and Town, 1786-1932, we recall Thorold's rich agricultural heritage, and how the 1851 fair was held in a field near the City Hotel
fair-winners
Some of the winners from the 1848 Fair. From Thorold Township and Town

Agricultural shows have been held here since 1846. In October of that year, the first fair of the Niagara District took place at Beaverdams, at the farm and hotel owned by Ephraim Hopkins.The barn was used as a hall in which fruit, vegetables, cheese and butter, and grain of all kinds were shown.

The exhibits included a skein of silk in its natural state, made by the silk worms on the farm of Captain Radcliffe of Centreville. Radcliffe was a retired officer of the Royal Navy, who took a prominent part in the municipal, educational and agricultural life of the township. At this fair, his farm contributed also a quart of syrup made from the sugar beet.

In the field adjoining the hotel were exhibited the horses, sheep and cattle. Farmers and villagers from all parts of the surrounding country were present, but the gathering did not include women, as it was not the custom for them to attend fairs in those days.

About 100 persons sat down at dinner on this occasion, and speeches were afterwards made congratulating the managers upon the success of the exhibition. At about 4 o’clock in the afternoon, the meeting was brought to a close, everyone having been well-pleased with the experiment.

The Niagara District Fairs were held annually for five years, and since the expiration of that time, their place has been supplied by the township and county agricultural shows, and by the provincial exhibition. The last of the district fairs took place in 1851, in a field adjoining the site of the City Hotel in Thorold.

On April 17, 1847, there was formed the Thorold Township Agricultural Society, with the following as officers:  President—Duncan McFarland; Vice Presidents—the Rev. T.B. Fuller and John Williams; Treasurer—William Wright; Secretary—Robert Hobson.

The annual membership fee was five shillings, Halifax currency.

One of the articles of constitution stated that the society should hold a meeting each autumn for the exhibition of “domestic animals, agricultural implements, horticultural and mechanical productions, and such other articles as the Board may deem worthy of encouraging, at which meetings premiums shall be awarded from the society funds.”

A silver medal was awarded to the owner of the best farm in the township. The committee took into consideration the following points:  the state of the crops, the drainage, the stock of all kinds, the fences, barns and sheds, farm utensils, fruit trees, state of the soil, and the amount of help that each farmer received from the members of his own family.

Those entering their farms for competition were: Alexander Page, Robert Hobson and Robert M. Wilkerson. After inspecting these, the committee sent in the following report:

“We, the undersigned, appointed by the Thorold Township Agricultural Society, a committee to inspect the several farms entered with the Secretary, for the silver medal offered for 1848, after a careful and impartial examination of the three farms entered for inspection, do hereby declare it to be our unanimous opinion that, whilst the other two farms entered are in many respects very excellent and in some respects superior to the one to which we awarded the medal, yet, taken as a whole, that of Robert M. Wilkerson is the best. John Williams, T.B. Fuller, Wellington Smith.