Old fair photos hiding in a family album? The Bowman Museum would love to see your Crook County Fair pictures from 1940–1980.

For more than a century, the Crook County Fair has brought the community together. What began in 1904 as the Central Oregon Fair, centered largely around horse racing and small exhibits, gradually grew into one of the region’s most anticipated annual gatherings. Over the decades the fairgrounds evolved — grandstands were rebuilt, livestock arenas added, rodeo traditions began, and generations of local families filled the grounds each summer.

By the 1940s through the 1980s, the fair had become a true community tradition. 4-H exhibitors proudly showed their animals, kids lined up for rides and games, neighbors gathered in the stands, and the fairgrounds buzzed with the energy of small-town life.

Now the Bowman Museum and the Crook County Fair are inviting the public to help preserve those memories.

If you have historic photographs from the Crook County Fair between 1940 and 1980, the museum would love to see them. Images of the fairgrounds, livestock shows, carnival rides, exhibits, contests, and everyday moments with friends and family all help tell the story of how the fair became a cornerstone of Crook County life.

These photographs will help bring history to life in an upcoming exhibit, celebrating the people and traditions that made the fair special.

Old photo albums, shoeboxes in the closet, and family scrapbooks often hold pieces of local history that might otherwise be forgotten. Sharing those photos helps ensure that the memories of past fairs — and the community that built them — are preserved for future generations.

For more information or to donate photographs, contact:

Carter Bond
Collection Manager – Bowman Museum
541-447-3715
Carter.bond@crookcountyor.gov