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Ohio State Fair Attendance Just Short of a Record

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OHIO STATE FAIR

This year’s Ohio State Fair ended up just short of a record.

More than 921,000 people to the state fairgrounds – that’s the second largest fair attendance since the event was shortened from 17 days to just under two weeks in 2004. But that attendance figure is well short of the more than 982,000 fairgoers last year, and breaks a three year streak of attendance records starting in 2013. Fair General Manager Virgil Strickler isn't disappointed:

"Absolutely not. This was our second best fair ever in a 12 day fair. And look at all that hot weather that we had."

Strickler says he's pleased anytime the attendance figures top 900,000, and called the numbers that turned out “impressive.”

Previous fairs:

2015: 982,305 visitors
2014: 916,724 visitors
2013: 903,824 visitors
2012: 840,306 visitors
2011: 833,304 visitors
2010: 812,237 visitors
2009: 826,037 visitors
2008: 809,321 visitors
2007: 806,301 visitors
2006: 814,152 visitors
2005: 802,074 visitors
2004: 850,218 visitors

Karen is a lifelong Ohioan who has served as news director at WCBE-FM, assignment editor/overnight anchor at WBNS-TV, and afternoon drive anchor/assignment editor in WTAM-AM in Cleveland. In addition to her daily reporting for Ohio’s public radio stations, she’s reported for NPR, the BBC, ABC Radio News and other news outlets. She hosts and produces the Statehouse News Bureau’s weekly TV show “The State of Ohio”, which airs on PBS stations statewide. She’s also a frequent guest on WOSU TV’s “Columbus on the Record”, a regular panelist on “The Sound of Ideas” on ideastream in Cleveland, appeared on the inaugural edition of “Face the State” on WBNS-TV and occasionally reports for “PBS Newshour”. She’s often called to moderate debates, including the Columbus Metropolitan Club’s Issue 3/legal marijuana debate and its pre-primary mayoral debate, and the City Club of Cleveland’s US Senate debate in 2012.