CALF_News_Oct_Nov_2018

38 CALF News • October | November 2018 • www.calfnews.net T he Nebraska State Fair ended Sept. 3, Labor Day. This was the ninth year the fair has been in Grand Island. Nebraska City hosted the first fair in 1868, then the next 41 years Nebraska City, Brownville, Lincoln and Omaha would share hosting the fair. It wasn’t until 1909 when Lancaster County Fairgrounds at Lincoln became the perma- nent home until its relocation to Grand Island in 2009. Growing the fair in Lincoln became hard as the city grew around the grounds. University of Lincoln (UNL) wanted to expand as well, debuting plans in 2007 for a state-of-the-art research campus titled Innovation Campus. Its locale – the fairgrounds. In 2008, the Nebraska Legislature voted to move the fair to Grand Island. Groundbreaking for the new fairgrounds was in July 2009; knowing that year was the last fair in Lincoln, attendance soared to 367,203. 1997’s fair saw the highest attendance while in Lincoln at 389,171. August 2010 saw over 309,000 fairgoers in Grand Island enjoy 500,000 sq. ft. of new buildings, including three barns, one arena and two exhibition buildings. 2017 atten- dance was 379,108. 2018 numbers are not yet tallied. The fair continues to grow with new sponsors adding their names to new buildings or venues. One of the new buildings is the Nebraska Building, which opened its doors for the first time in 2014. This building houses not only the administra- tive offices but allowed the return of the Nebraska Game and Parks Commission. Partnering with UNL, the Nebraska Department of Agriculture and the Institute of Agriculture and Natural Resources, a new exhibit telling about all aspects of Nebraska Agriculture was developed. “Raising Nebraska: Your Food and the Families Who Grow It” shows how food gets from the farm to the fork, or the gate to the plate. As you enter, thanks to Reinke, a full-sized center pivot irrigation system is in full view. Young visitors love to take a simulated ride in a combine. This building and its extension, Raising Nebraska Outside, which shows a variety of crops and grasses grown in Nebraska, has a smaller pivot that waters the area. The Raising Nebraska building is a showcase for visitors year-round, as many tours bring their foreign and out-of-state visitors to truly learn about Nebraska’s No. 1 industry with- out breaking a sweat in the hot sun or getting dirt under their fingernails. Boasts a Rich History State Fair N e b r a s k a By Terri Licking Contributing Editor LEFT : The Birthing Center walls are covered with information about a variety of food animals. UNL veterinary students caucus in the birthing center behind a pregnant sow. Crates are employed for all sows, and visitors are reminded that the crates are humane and instrumental in the piglets’ safety. Cows are among the most popular exhibits in the Birthing Center. UNL veterinary students are on duty at all times to assist both livestock and curious humans. As animals give birth, they are gradually moved out of the room and replaced with other pregnant stock, giving fairgoers a chance to see a live birth at any time during the fair.