Michigan State Fair

America’s first state fair, conducted by the Michigan Agricultural Society with the support of the legislature and local citizens, was held in Detroit on September 25-27, 1849. About eight hundred dollars in premiums were awarded for those “articles, productions and improvements” that were “best calculated to promote the agricultural and household manufacturing interests of the state.” The site of this annual fair was often moved until 1905 when it was given a permanent home here at the fairgrounds.

Plaque via Michigan History Center