Fair news & Updates

Published FEBRUARY 10, 2021 |  Cedar County News, 

HARTINGTON – This year's Cedar County Fair is not only expected to return to normal with a full slate of musical and family entertainment, but the fair will also feature something that's been missing the pat few years - a top quality midway and carnival. 

Cedar County Ag Society President, Greg Heine, said the Fair Board has signed River City Carnival of St. Paul, Neb., to operate its carnival at the Cedar County Fairgrounds this year. 

Some area residents may already be familiar with the third-generation Nebraska company , as they have operated the carnival at the Wayne County Fair for the past several years. 

River City Carnivals will bring 10-13 rides to town and operate them on Thursday through Sunday of Fair Week [ July 14th - July 18th, 2021]. 

Heine said the carnival includes, " a really nice lit up ferris wheel, and rides for younger kids and older kids.  They'll also have a good assortment of game and food stands."

Heine said he's very happy they could come to an agreement with the carnival.  

"We're glad to get them, they are a class operation. I think people will like them," he said. 

Heine said the search to find a quality carnival that is able to make its schedule mesh with that of the Cedar County Fair has been very difficult.  

" It's been a real challenge.  I've been talking to about 70 different carnivals from 12 different states.  We are very excited to have them.  We think they will be a very good carnival," he said.  "Finally, we found the perfect fit."

Finding a new carnival was also made more difficult by the fact that many of the small carnivals from the Midwest alone have gone out of business in the past five years, " he said. "When a carnival goes out of business, that means more fairs and events are scrambling to replace them."

Heine said the company has been in business for 75 years and mostly toured the south in the past.  It's a very clean, competent operation, he said. 

"They have a better management team than a lot of carnivals and they keep their equipment much nicer and cleaner than a lot of them," he said.  "You can just tell by how they take care of their machinery and equipment, that's kind of how you take care of the people, too."

This is just part of the plan to beef up this year's Cedar County Fair. 

Fair Board members announced late last year they will expand their entertainment line-up, adding a third night of concerts to the Fair, transforming Fair weekend into the CedarStock Music Fest. 

Up and coming country music singer Gabby Barrett has been signed to take the stage Sunday, July 18.  She will add to the already star-studded line-up of Lanco on Friday, July 16, and Jimmy Allen on Saturday, July 17. 

The five-day Cedar County Fair will open Wednesday, July 14 and run through Sunday, July 18.  The three-day CedarStock Music Fest concert series will be presented Friday through Sunday, as part of the Fair. 

Published November 11, 2020

HARTINGTON – The Cedar County Fair announces the addition of a third headline concert, Gabby Barrett on Sunday, July 18th, to their already star-studded line-up of Lanco Friday, July 16th, and Jimmy Allen Saturday, July 17th.

The five-day Cedar County Fair will be held Wednesday, July 14th – Sunday, July 18th with the 3-day concert series, CedarStock Music Fest, presenting Friday through Sunday. 

Barrett, who finished third on ABC’s American Idol in 2018, was nominated for “Best New Female Artist of the Year” at the September ACM awards - will be performing her top 10 single “I Hope” on November 11that the CMAs, at which she is also nominated for 2020 CMA Single of the Year. 

Vice President, John Brodersen added, “With all the unknowns following 2020, we are still looking at schedule changes but are excited to add CedarStock Music Fest as an annual event to our fair.” 

In the wake of the 2020 pandemic, the Cedar County Fair successfully held a scaled down “hybrid” version the fair while following the restrictions established by the Nebraska Department of Health. 

Board member, Alissa Bartling commented, “As disheartened as we were to postpone our headline events, we consider 2020 a great success, learning experience, and overall – an opportunity for us to get back to the heart of what the Cedar County Fair is about and really focus on our area youth programs and enhancing events.” 

As the Cedar County Ag Society plans for next year, they are optimistic navigating the uncertainty of what 2021 will bring, while remaining focused on the overall safety for youth, fair attendees, ticket holders, volunteers, and board members. 

Greg Heine, Cedar County Ag Society President, commented, “not delivering is just not an option for us,” he said. “As a small community fair we have the ability to be flexible and opportunistic, so we will continue to reshape and improve the Cedar County Fair within whatever boundaries we have to work with. We owe it to the people of our county and beyond.” 

He continued, with 2020 concert events having been brought to a standstill, the Cedar County Ag Society is dedicated to bring optimism and hope to the area. The Ag Society, like many fairs and festivals, are embracing technology to make them safer, including the decision to expand their digital ticket purchase options and extending their online ticket sale dates. 

Ticket purchase options for “Cedarstock” and the 3-day concert line-up will go on sale Black Friday, November 27th, just in time to make your holiday ticket purchases. Prices and packages will also be announced at that time.