82nd Adams County Fair offers concerts, demolition derby, carnival and plenty of free activities for families

MENDON, Ill. — “Experience the Difference” is the theme at this year’s Adams County Fair, which kicks off Wednesday, July 24 at the fairgrounds north of Quincy. The 82nd annual fair runs through Tuesday, July 30.

Highlights of this year’s fair include concerts by country music bands Diamond Rio and Sawyer Brown on the evening of Saturday, July 27, sponsored by Gem City Ford Lincoln and Phibro Animal Health. Other musical acts are Staggard, Clover, Silver Bullet Band and Stealin’ Copper. These acts will take the Buss Ag Services stage inside the beer garden throughout the fair.

The fair offers many free activities to children and families. The Family Fun Zone is a place where kids and parents can enjoy free entertainment. Inside will be a petting zoo, a lumberjack show and free agricultural activities from the University of Illinois Extension. A schedule of events is online at www.adamsfair.org.

“We strive to make this a place where families can make memories for a lifetime,” fair board member Melissa Shriver-Hackamack said in a press release. “We know parents want a night out with the kids, but it can really impact their wallets. Our fair board members understand, and that’s why we want to provide as much free entertainment as possible.  We also want our fair experience to be something different you can’t get anywhere else.”

The fair kicks off Wednesday with its Adams County Fair Queen pageant, the Little Miss and Mr. Adams County Fair pageant and the ninth annual Sweetheart of Adams County pageant. Pageant Night is sponsored by Prairieland FS.

Thursday is Veterans Night. Veterans and current military service men and women get into the fair for free with a military ID. The featured entertainment that night is bronc busting in the grandstand arena. Veterans Night is sponsored by Quincy Mack.

The adult and youth sand volleyball tournaments are set for Saturday and Sunday, with the Grace Race on Sunday morning. The fair will feature its traditional Little Jess Chrysler Dodge Jeep Ram bull riding night on Friday. Tractor pull action takes over the grandstand arena on Sunday and Monday, sponsored by R.D. Shaffer Trucking and Poage Auto Plaza. The prize purse is from Fuller Fertilizer.

The Demolition Derby is on Tuesday, July 30.  It is sponsored this year by Quincy Medical Group.

Nightly shows at the horse arena on the north side of the grounds are a popular feature of the Adams County Fair, which is the host of the second-highest number of horse shows in the state — only behind the Illinois State Fair. 

 The carnival area at the Adams County Fair will sell armbands nightly, allowing the customer unlimited rides for that evening. Carnival deals will be offered on two days of the fair.

Find the latest schedule of events at www.adamsfair.org. Follow all the action on Facebook and Twitter.