There had only been eight United States Presidents at that time. By the end of 1841 there would be two more. There were only 26 States, with Missouri facing the western frontier. Horace Greeley began publishing the New York Tribune. The first wagon train arrived in the California territory…and in 1841 the Saratoga County Fair was also born!

2016 marked the 175th Anniversary of the Saratoga County Agricultural Society (SCAS), which presents the Saratoga County Fair. Formed in Ballston Spa, New York, in 1841, the SCAS pre-dates most of the Agricultural Fairs in New York State (and the USA), not to mention the Saratoga Racetrack in Saratoga Springs, the American Civil War, and even Canada becoming a Country.

The Saratoga County Agricultural Society is not an agency of the County of Saratoga. The SCAS is a recognized IRS 501 (c)(3) Non-Profit Organization guided by a 21 member volunteer Board of Directors, a few dozen Ad-Hoc volunteers, and a small group of employees that work varying schedules throughout the year.

The founding fathers of the Saratoga County Agricultural Society represented each Town in Saratoga County, with the first President of the Society being Howell Gardiner of Greenfield. Gardiner was also a Justice of the Peace for two decades, elected to the NYS Assembly three times between 1815 and 1831, and was also a member of the Electoral College casting his vote for James Monroe to be the 5th US President. Mr. Gardiner’s involvement in the SCAS set the stage for active involvement by politicians, businessmen, educators, and agriculturalists for now over 17 decades.

Over our first five decades, the Fair was hosted by Ballston Spa, Mechanicville and Saratoga Springs. One of the two Saratoga City locations, Glen Mitchell, featured its own rail spur and hotel. That location, just off North Broadway in Saratoga Springs, is roughly where the Maple Avenue Middle School is now. Finally settling high above the Village of Ballston Spa in the late 1880’s, the SCAS currently owns and maintains almost 80 acres of exposition and parking facilities in Saratoga County.

Pivotal names associated with the Fair throughout its history were also movers and shakers in Saratoga County in general; names like Curtis, Merchant, Wiswall, West, McGregor, Collamer, Batchellor, Kilmer, Ellsworth, Vischer, King, Middlebrook, MacElroy, Droms, and Clements. Looking through the records of the Fair, you will see names that are recognizable from your everyday contact with roads, landmarks, buildings and destinations all over Saratoga County.

Many businesses and organizations tout their “family like” structure, but in the case of the Saratoga County Fair, involvement in the Fair is a true Family Tradition. Names that have been associated with the Fair for many generations include Merchant, Middlebrook, Curtis, and Armer, just to name a few. To date, there has been an Armer family member on our Board of Directors since the mid 1940’s.

The Saratoga County Agricultural Society is dedicated to not only showcasing the accomplishments of each year’s participants in a wide range of competitions, but also in teaching about the history of Saratoga County while offering a glimpse forward to its future. One trip to the Fair in July and you can learn how it was done, how we do it now, and how it will be done in the future; and not just by display, but by the people who did it, do it, and will do it. In a social cli- mate that is more and more focused on what people have, the annual Fair is about what people have accomplished.

Yes, there are rides, games, demo derbies and tractor pulls, kewpie dolls and all that great Fair Food. But, remember, when you visit the Saratoga County Fair, you become part of a tradition that spans over eight generations of Saratoga County families.

Come, enjoy, and share the tradition of celebrating the past, rewarding the accomplishments of the present, and looking into the future, as we have been doing for over 175 years!

1841

First Officers:

President – Howell Gardiner, Greenfield. First Vice-President – Calvin Wheeler, Providence. Second Vice-President – Jacob Denton, Saratoga Springs. Treasurer – Hiram E. Howard, Milton. Corresponding Secretary – Archibald Smith, Ballston Spa. Recording Secretary – John A. Corey, Saratoga Springs.

Executive Committee:

Ballston – Isaac Curtis, Stephen Merchant. Charlton – John Low, Henry Ostrom. Clifton Park – Abijah Peck, Jr., Henry Palmer. Corinth – David Rogers, Edward Edwards. Day – E.M. Day, Amos Hunt. Edinburgh – Samuel Batcheller, Ira Beecher. Galway – Jesse H. Mead, Jeremiah Whitlock. Greenfield – Joseph Daniels, Henry Lincoln. Hadley – Charles Stewart, Harman Rockwell. Half-Moon – N.G. Philo, Stephen R. Smith. Malta – John Tallmadge, Seneca Hall. Milton – Seth Whalen, George B. Powell. Moreau – Thomas S. Mott, G.P. Reynolds. Northumberland – Walter Doty, Coles Golden. Providence – William V. Clark, Seymour St. John. Saratoga – Henry D. Chapman, William Wilcox. , Saratoga Springs – P.H. Cowen, John H. Beach. Stillwater – Lewis Smith, Yates Lansing. Waterford – John Knickerbocker, John Cramer (2d). Wilton – John Morris, Duncan McGregor.

1842

Officers:

President – Howell Gardiner, Greenfield. First Vice-President – Calvin Wheeler, Providence.  Second Vice-President – Jacob Denton, Saratoga Springs. Treasurer – Hiram E. Howard, Milton. Corresponding Secretary – Archibald Smith, Ballston Spa. Recording Secretary – John A. Corey, Saratoga Springs.