4-H Fair more than just for animals

By KEN de la BASTIDE

June 06, 2009 11:58 pm

Back in the day, the 4-H Fair was all about just pigs, cows and sows.
Nowadays, it’s more about learning to complete projects, arts and crafts, gardening, tractor pulls and, of course, a beauty contest.
Nationally, the 4-H program got its start in 1902 built on the four pillars of head, heart, hands and health.
In Indiana, 4-H began with a corn club in Hamilton County in 1904.
In 1925, 4-H came to Howard County under the guidance of the Purdue University Cooperative Extension Service.
Howard County’s first exhibition was in 1931 in Kokomo. By then, 4-H clubs covered the categories of potatoes, pigs, calves, sheep, horses, foods and nutrition, and clothing.
The fair moved to Greentown in 1946, said Jay Freeman, a member of the Lions Club, which sponsors the fair.
“I joined the Lions Club in 1974,” Freeman said. “We’ve grown a lot since then and bought more land. We bought a lot of acreage north and east — well over 100 acres.”

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