Mid-South Fair kicks off 156th edition
DeSoto center is host of 10-day event for 3rd year
Photo by Stan Carroll The 156th Mid-South Fair began its third year at the DeSoto Civic Center Friday, drawing folks to the midway for games, rides and food. The 10-day event runs through Oct. 2.
By Yolanda Jones
Memphis Commercial Appeal
Posted September 24, 2011
Cheryl White came with a strategy.
Fair food first, she said just before biting into a mustard-slathered Pronto Pup.
White was one of the first guests to cruise the midway on the opening day of the Mid-South Fair. A ribbon-cutting kicked off events at noon.
This is the 156th year for the fair, but only its third year at the DeSoto Civic Center in Southaven since moving from Memphis.
"We're here and love being down here," said Milton Rodgers, the fair's new executive director.
The fair is slated to call the Southaven facility home until 2015, but officials are looking at a possible long-term partnership.
"Tunica is completely off the table due to the recession," said Mid-South Fair president Belinda Anderson.
Anderson was referring to previous plans to relocate the fair to a 150-acre site in Tunica. Those plans fell through because of the economy, and the fair landed in DeSoto County instead.
For fairgoer White, a Memphis native who has been coming to the fair for 60 years, this was her first time at the event since it relocated to Mississippi.
"Curiosity finally brought me and my husband down here," White said.
Local vendors who bought booth space inside the Civic Center hope curiosity will turn browsers into customers during the fair's 10-day run.
Because of the lingering economic slowdown, entrepreneurs like Carrie Triplett of Walls have found it hard to sell their wares at other festivals and fairs. She hopes to turn her luck around at the Mid-South Fair.
"It has been a struggle," said Triplett, who sells hand-sewn items that include purses, children's dresses and blankets. "This is my first time at this fair, and I'm hoping things go well."
The fair runs through Oct. 2. Gates open at noon except Saturdays and Wednesday, when they open at 10 a.m. Tickets are $10, $5 for ages 5-12 and seniors 60 and older. Children 4 and under get in free.
Fair food first, she said just before biting into a mustard-slathered Pronto Pup.
White was one of the first guests to cruise the midway on the opening day of the Mid-South Fair. A ribbon-cutting kicked off events at noon.
This is the 156th year for the fair, but only its third year at the DeSoto Civic Center in Southaven since moving from Memphis.
"We're here and love being down here," said Milton Rodgers, the fair's new executive director.
The fair is slated to call the Southaven facility home until 2015, but officials are looking at a possible long-term partnership.
"Tunica is completely off the table due to the recession," said Mid-South Fair president Belinda Anderson.
Anderson was referring to previous plans to relocate the fair to a 150-acre site in Tunica. Those plans fell through because of the economy, and the fair landed in DeSoto County instead.
For fairgoer White, a Memphis native who has been coming to the fair for 60 years, this was her first time at the event since it relocated to Mississippi.
"Curiosity finally brought me and my husband down here," White said.
Local vendors who bought booth space inside the Civic Center hope curiosity will turn browsers into customers during the fair's 10-day run.
Because of the lingering economic slowdown, entrepreneurs like Carrie Triplett of Walls have found it hard to sell their wares at other festivals and fairs. She hopes to turn her luck around at the Mid-South Fair.
"It has been a struggle," said Triplett, who sells hand-sewn items that include purses, children's dresses and blankets. "This is my first time at this fair, and I'm hoping things go well."
The fair runs through Oct. 2. Gates open at noon except Saturdays and Wednesday, when they open at 10 a.m. Tickets are $10, $5 for ages 5-12 and seniors 60 and older. Children 4 and under get in free.
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