The Chowan County Regional Fair returns Tuesday, September 29 through Saturday, October 3
The fair began in 1947 as the American Legion Fair, and the Edward G. Bond American Legion Post 40 still sponsors it today, with the Chowan County Regional Fair Association keeping it running. It’s one of the few all-volunteer fairs left in North Carolina, and everything you’ll see- the exhibits, the pageants, the stage, the barn- gets put together by people who live here and simply want to see it happen.
That work hasn’t gone unnoticed outside the county, either. The fair has taken home North Carolina’s Image Award for best medium-sized fair six times: 2007, 2008, 2011, 2016, 2018, and 2022.
Rides, exhibits, live music, pageants, fire spinners, a stilt walker, and a mechanical bull are all part of the lineup this year. Here’s what’s waiting for you out there.
When to Come and What It Costs
Gates and exhibits open at 4 p.m. Tuesday through Friday, and at 11 a.m. on Saturday. The exhibit building closes at 10 p.m. each night, and the midway keeps spinning until 11 p.m. on weeknights and midnight on Saturday.
Admission is $8 at the gate for anyone 36 inches and taller, and ride wristbands run $25, available every day at the midway ticket box.
Every Night Has Something
Almost every night comes with its own reason to show up, so it’s worth planning your visit around the calendar.
- Tuesday is Car Load Night. $75 gets gate admission and unlimited rides for everyone buckled into a seat belt in the car, up to six people. Anyone past six pays regular gate admission.
- Wednesday is for students. Kids in 8th grade and under get in free with a paying adult. There’s also a Youth Rally in the show barn from 5:30 to 7 p.m.
- Thursday is Senior Night. Free entry for anyone 60 and older, plus the Senior Fun & Southern Gospel Program from 4:30 to 9 p.m.
- Friday is a regular night: $8 gate, $25 armband, with the AJDC Dance Party at 5:30 and again at 7:30.
- Saturday is Military Appreciation Day. With a military ID, active military personnel and their families get in for $4, and ride wristbands drop to $15.
Live Music Every Night
There’s a performance on the outdoor stage every single evening, and it’s included with your gate admission:
- Tuesday: Vintage Cross, 6:30 p.m.
- Wednesday: Macedonia Baptist Church, 6:30 p.m.
- Thursday: Jason Johnson, 6:30 p.m.
- Friday: Donivan Carter, 7 p.m.
- Saturday: Fletcher White, 6:30 p.m.
Free Entertainment Beyond the Midway
Your ticket also covers a lineup of roaming and stage acts scattered across the grounds. The Flying Pages, MythiCreatures, and an Uncle Sam stilt walker are booked all five days, and Ember Fire Arts joins them Tuesday and Wednesday. Add the mechanical bull, the antique farm displays, the train display, and the Triple C Farm Party, all running daily, plus a different Junior Fair Board activity each night, and there’s plenty to fill the gaps between rides.
Saturday, October 3: The Busiest Day
If you can only make one day, make it Saturday, October 3. Gates open at 11 a.m., and from there the schedule stacks up fast: the Diaper Derby at noon, the “Little Miss” pageant at 2 p.m., and the “Miss Chowan County Regional Fair” pageant at 6 p.m., with Fletcher White closing out the night on the outdoor stage at 6:30.
Inside the Exhibit Building
The exhibit building is where the fair shows off what the county grows, bakes, sews, and builds all year. Alongside the regular exhibit entries and education booths, it hosts a table-setting contest, a giant pumpkin contest, and a scavenger hunt.
If you want to enter something, entries are dropped off before the fair opens: Saturday, September 26 from 1 to 5 p.m. and Sunday, September 27 from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Exhibits come back down on Sunday, October 4, from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m.
Come Out to Queen Street
A couple of housekeeping notes before you go: no glass containers and no alcohol on the grounds.
Otherwise, just come. Park, walk in, get something fried, ride something that spins, and go take a look at the pumpkins while the lights come up on the midway. We’ll see you out on Queen Street.
Chowan County Regional Fair · 1317 W Queen St, Edenton, NC 27932 · 252-482-4057 · info@ChowanFair.com · chowanfair.com
