September 15 , 2022 The Beacon • 17
Coshocton County Fair memories last a lifetime
By Jen Jones
When you talk about the Coshocton County Fair , most people will say it ’ s the fair food they are most looking forward to , or parents may talk about their children showing animals . Children talk about the rides they hope are there . While some things have stayed the same over the years , people remember many things that are no longer there .
Joe Guinther remembers , in the late 1950s , dealers used to have mobile homes at the fair that you could go through , and more dealers had new cars on display .
Te r r i B r e n n e m a n Derby remembers watching the giant taffy maker . “ It was more fun to watch than eat .”
Sally Lipps shared a memory of a game she enjoyed playing . “ Guns that shot the corks . Pay for two turns — the first one to see how far the sight was off , the second to compensate and win the prize . My boyfriend , one year , was a bit frustrated with me because I won my own prizes , and I was a pretty good shot . The last one I remember winning was a big , red stuffed dinosaur that looked like Dino .”
“ I remember the photo booth and the organ . I believe the organ was a calliope ,” Loretta Hatfield said . “ The photo booth was a trailer you went in and got your picture taken . I remember the couple that ran it was older . I have several pictures of my parents and I taken from there . I was pretty little in some but have one from fourth grade , I believe .”
Jody Bowman said her favorite thing to do at the fair was get a wax Disney character out of
While some things have stayed the same over the years , people remember many things that are no longer there at the Coshocton County Fair .
a machine near the commercial arts building .
“ It was a vending machine that had different dies of Disney characters . You put your money in and chose the one you wanted , and through the window , the two sides would come together , and then liquid wax would be poured into it . You had to be patient , and then the dies opened up and the character dropped into a chute . It would still be warm . Only place I ever saw this was at our fair in the late ‘ 60s , early ‘ 70s ,” Bowman said .
When Dick Cushman was a child , he was fascinated by the log home he saw at the fair .
“ It was a huge log of redwood — probably 10 feet in diameter and maybe 20 feet long — that they had carved a small house into it . Had a front room , kitchen , bedroom and small bathroom , sort of like the travel trailers of today but round and long . Doors at either end or a couple windows . Was pretty cool to go through it . You had to pay a donation to tour it . It had electric lights but no running water ,” Cushman said .
He thought it was at the fair in the mid- ’ 60s .
Barbara Rehard Dedics said she remembers
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Free for those who qualify . Call or come in to see if you are eligible . seeing a lady who was supposed to be the fattest woman .
“ She was called Happy Dot . I believe she weighted over 600 pounds . This would have been about the late 1950s , maybe 1958 . Another was called , I think , the alligator man . Had scaly skin and a beard . I remember after the fair my brother was heading back to his Navy base , and he saw the person driving a car , leaving Coshocton , probably about 1955 or ‘ 56 ,” Rehard Dedics said .
Karen West also remembers seeing these people and a two-headed calf . “ It scared me as a child to walk past those big banners showing the alligator man and twoheaded calf .”
Cheryl Nelson said it made her sad to see the calf .
Judy Smith also remembered the “ fattest ” lady . “ I was embarrassed to have gone in there . She looked right at me and said , “ Honey , I have the same stuff as you , just more of it . My parents told me not to go see those sights , but my girlfriends talked me into it .”
Sharon Thomas ’ memories of the fair revolve around family and 4-H .
“ We went as a family and even my grandparents and grandmother . We packed a lunch and met at noon , spread out a blanket and ate lunch together . When I was 9 , I joined 4-H , Keene Hill and Valley Girls , and took sewing and cooking projects and had our display along with other 4-H clubs . It was fun decorating our booth evenings before the fair started . I joined 4-H in 1961 and was a member of that club for nine years ,” Thomas said .
Dancing waters was one thing Marty Hughes Darling remembers from the fair .
“ Dancing waters was water shooting up and down at different levels with colored lights on it and music . Back then the schools gave fair passes to the students . Does anyone remember the Kewpie dolls and those little silver bracelets that we had our names engraved on ?” Hughes Darling said .
“ Growing up , I couldn ’ t wait to see Smokey the Bear , and somehow , he always knew who I was . Mom always hated me bringing home a gold fish that would be dead in a few days from winning a game . Of course , French fries with vinegar , waffles , caramel apples and walking through every barn was a must . Our Girl Scout and 4-H booths were fun to design , and we were all proud of what we made . And who could forget getting out of school early to go ?” Sheila Seward said .
Susie Smailes remembers there used to be a disc jockey and dancing for teens on the midway .
Debbie Umstott said she laid down on the track so a motorcycle could jump over her . “ There was a pretty large group of us on that track , and I definitely ate dirt . They just asked for volunteers to come out on the track , and we did . I must have been 15 or 16 .”
Della Jackson has a very unique memory of the fair . “ I put a painting in for an art contest . I remember going and seeing that I had won
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Join us for our popular Senior Coffee , Walk & Talk program ! Monday / Wednesday & Friday 8:00AM - 10:00AM and had a ribbon . When I went to get my painting , it was gone and the ribbon also . Years later when I worked at Coshocton Hospital , I ran into a lady , and she asked who I was . When I told her , she said , ‘ I have your painting and ribbon at home .’ She liked it , so she took it because she knew my parents . I never did get it back .”
Pamala McMorrow said , “ I remember going when I was very young , probably 6 , back around 1964 . We didn ’ t have much money . My mom gave my sister a dollar to share . I think we got in free but had a quarter for a ride and another quarter for something sweet . We just walked around for the rest of the day . That was fun for us — just getting to be there .”
Memories of the peanut man are what Todd Shaw shared .
“ The old peanut guy used to come up in the grandstand when I was a kid and yell , ‘ Get your peanuts , hot roasted peanuts .’ People would pass them down to you from seat to seat in brown paper sacks , and you would send your money back the same way . This must have been in the late ‘ 60s and ‘ 70s . I think he
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