Every day at the Great New York State Fair, thousands of visitors walk by the stone buildings housing fair exhibits. Colored bulbs flash on the midway and light up the sky from the side of the Ferris wheel. The smell of deep fried everything hangs in the air — when it isn’t beat out by the fresh scent of livestock.

But in 1841, when the Great New York State Fair — the first of its kind — opened in Syracuse’s Old Courthouse, it looked very different from today’s exhibition. Today’s 375-acre fairgrounds were nonexistent, and the fair opened in different cities across the state each year before settling in Syracuse in 1890. Most visitors got to the fair by train or horse, and there wasn’t a midway until the 1950s.

Courtesy of the Onondaga Historical Society

In the fair’s 175-year history, traditions and exhibits have faded with fashion trends. But for a while, the fair seemed stuck in the past. It hadn’t received an investment in over 80 years.

Then, in September 2015, the fair got an early 175th birthday present when New York state Gov. Andrew Cuomo announced a $50 million overhaul of the state fairgrounds in Syracuse. His plan included removing the old grandstand and motor track, building an Expo Center to hold events, expanding the Midway and building a larger festival stage.

“This plan transforms the fairgrounds into a world-class set of facilities that can generate economic activity and jobs all year long,” Cuomo said last September in a speech unveiling the plan.

After all, work for the fair lasts longer than the 12 days the fair runs.

“The state fair is a 52-week business,” said Dave Bullard, the fair’s marketing and public relations manager. “We host more than 150 public events a year.”

Last week, Cuomo visited the fair on its opening day, known as Governor’s Day, to highlight things that have already changed.

Moriah Ratner | Staff Photographer

Big-name performances like this Friday’s Florida Georgia Line concert would’ve usually been held at the fairgrounds’ grandstand. But the grandstand was torn down in January, and now ticketed shows are being held across I-690 at the Lakeview Amphitheater.

Removing the grandstand has created more open space on the fairgrounds to build venues and hold events, Bullard said. The grandstand has been replaced by an RV park, and now there’s more space to hold free concerts in Chevy Court.

The fairgrounds’ racetrack was removed to enlarge the midway by three acres, which is now the largest in State Fair history.

“The midway wrapped around what used to be the racetrack in sort of a funky triangle, wide at one end and really narrow and crowded at the other,” Bullard said.

Now, the 15-acre midway hosts 75 different rides, 12 more than last year, Bullard said.

Bullard also said that many changes aren’t as visible. State funding allowed the fair to update its utility lines and move them underground.

“We’re a small city out here, especially during the fair, and during that time we need the same services any city does,” Bullard said. “The lights need to come on, the toilets need to flush, the power needs to be ready when somebody plugs in.”

Moriah Ratner | Staff Photographer

All these changes aren’t going unnoticed. Longtime fairgoer Laura Smith takes a 2-hour drive to the fair from Painted Post, New York every year.

“The free Chevy Court concerts are amazing,” Smith said. “There’s definitely more room to move around there and on the midway.”

Fair officials are also seeing the effects of improvements. Naomi Blumenthal, the fair’s superintendent of horse shows, said she has noticed less congestion around the horse show area. It’s not because there are less spectators, she said, but simply because there’s more space to move around.

Blumenthal said she has received some negative feedback about fair changes, mostly having to do with vendors that have moved. Some fairgoers, she said, have complained about not knowing where their favorite restaurants have relocated to.

“And I always say, ‘Well, once you find it, you’ll be happy again,’” Blumenthal said.

Moriah Ratner | Staff Photographer

Though the $50 million set aside for the fairgrounds has been spent, there may be more changes to come. Cuomo has tasked the state with looking into, but not guaranteeing, privatization of the fair.

Cuomo’s proposal was broad, Bullard said, so there’s no telling what may come of it.

The privatization could be as major as having a private vendor take over the entire fairgrounds, Bullard said, or private companies could simply invest in building new venues on the grounds that both they and the fair could use.

“But we don’t really know what shape that’s going to take, if any,” Bullard added. “Until then, it’s business as absolutely usual.”

Moriah Ratner | Staff Photographer

Through all these changes and new additions to the fair, there are some traditions that haven’t changed. Just looking around, it’s easy to see how the fair’s history is being preserved.

The newly-installed carriage gate looks a lot like its predecessor, despite seeing fewer carriages today.

And at its top, there are more than just one cornerstone marked with the year it was installed. There’s another one engraved with the year 1841, to remember when it all began.

Moriah Ratner | Staff Photographer

Published on August 29, 2016 at 9:19 pm

Contact Kathryn: kjkrawcz@syr.edu | @kathrynkrawczyk