Final weekend for the Lee County Fair
The Southwest Florida & Lee County Fair will roll into the final weekend of its 99th edition with a continuation of entertainment, rides, exhibitions and fair fare.
Festivities continue tonight through Sunday at the Lee Civic Center, which has served as the venue since 1979 after the event spent nearly 60 years at Terry Park.”
Today, Friday, March 3, features the second Moonlight Madness from 8 p.m. to 1 a.m. where $30 gets you on all the rides. Fast passes are $15.
Saturday, March 4, offers $40 ridebands after price of admission.
Saturday is also First Responders Day, with free gate entry and a $40 wristband for all day. All must show their valid IDs and proof of service.
Gates open at 11 a.m.
The final Sunday, March 5, is the Last Blast Special, with $40 wrist bands all day plus gate admission. Gates open at 11 a.m.
For those who have one, a Mega Pass can be used any day of the fair.
Gate admission is $10 for adults and $5 for children. Kids 3 and under are in for free.
Retired and active military get free admission all day every day.
Although the fair is advertised as “Making Memories since 1924,” its roots run deeper.
In 1910, a carnival on McGregor Boulevard served as a precursor to the fair, featuring a Seminole Indian tribe that performed its tribal dances. The carnival ended in 1917 when the United States entered World War I.
Two years later, the first Lee County Fair was held at Terry Park, a former cow pasture located just a couple of miles east of downtown Fort Myers, on Palm Beach Boulevard. The Lee County Commissioners allocated $250 to staff for the first fair.
In 1924, the name was changed to the Southwest Florida Fair, which it has been named ever since, making just one move in all those years.
The fair is not all rides.
One of the main attractions is always the livestock. The kids at 4-H have put up the animals they have raised for months. Pigs, rabbits, chickens, beef and more are judged and auctioned.
There also are ribbons for artwork, crafts, fabrics and threads, home gardening, horticulture, photography, decoration and tablescapes.
As for the entertainment, there always are local performers on the civic center stage dancing and singing. The Cowboy Circus with Danny Grant is returning, but aside from that, it was still a little too early to determine who exactly will be there, Peak said in a January interview.
There will also be a new policy at the entrance gate, requiring all who come to the fair to have clear bags for safety and because the insurance company has requested it, as it has become a national trend at the larger venues.
The Lee Civic Center is at 11831 Bayshore Road, North Fort Myers.
Visit swflcfair.com for more information including daily specials, calendar of events and hours of operation.
To reach CHUCK BALLARO, please email news@breezenewspapers.com