County Fair Officials Announce 2020 Decisions

Officials for the Madison and Jefferson County Fair announced last week how they would be proceeding with their events in 2020.

The Madison County Fair Board decided last week the event scheduled for August 12 to 17 is going to happen, but only with 4H and FFA shows.

"Sadly, due to COVID, the Board has cancelled all entertainment, indoor vendors, open class exhibits, parade, and the NRA rodeo. We are working on a plan to possibly host a ranch rodeo and a team roping. More details will be coming. This was a very tough decision for the Board to make but they feel the decision is in the best interests for the health and safety of the public and the community. We hope everyone will understand and we can move forward to make 2021 the best fair ever," the board stated in a release.

The Jefferson County Fair Board announced Thursday they have voted to cancel the 2020 fair due to the pandemic and concern for the health and safety of the community. The board is exploring potential community events for August 27 to 30.

Jefferson County Commissioner Leonard Wortman recently discussed the possibility of hosting the annual rodeo.

"The rodeo is an entirely different beast than the fair. As a general rule, most of the volunteers for the rodeo are younger than for the fair. Many fair volunteers would need to be inside. Everyone with the rodeo will be outside. I am going to suggest that we hold a three-day rodeo, Friday, Saturday, and Sunday, for a couple of reasons. I expect that we will have a lot of contestants. Doing three days will give the spectators more opportunity to come to the rodeo with fewer people in the stands. We can make this happen and still be safe. If someone does not feel safe around groups of people, then I would certainly expect them to stay home," he said.