The first Delaware State Fair was held in
Wilmington, with mentions of the "Delaware State Fair" being found in newspapers as far back as 1869. In 1878, the Delaware State Fair was moved to
Fairview Park Fair Grounds in
Dover and held September 24–27. The opening speaker of the 1878 Delaware State Fair was
Daniel Henry Chamberlain, former
Republican Governor of South Carolina, as well as guest speakers
J. Proctor Knott, at the time a
Democratic member of the
United States House of Representatives representing
Kentucky's 4th congressional district, and
Samuel S. Cox, then Democratic member of the United States House of Representatives representing
New York's 6th congressional district. In 1917, the state fair moved to
Elsmere where the Delaware State Fair Association had purchased property and built a fairgrounds within the town limits, in the area of the current Filbert, Birch, and Dover Avenues. The fairgrounds included racetracks, agricultural exhibits, and stages for various entertainment acts. The Association went bankrupt after the 1924 fair, and its assets were sold off. A new fair association was formed and held the Wilmington Fair, which was sometimes referred to as the Delaware State Fair, in 1927 and 1928 at the fairgrounds in Elsmere. The first fair on the current grounds was held in 1920 and was known as the
Kent and
Sussex County Fair. It lasted four days and was held on . The Kent and Sussex County Fair changed its name to the Delaware State Fair in 1962. Today the fairgrounds encompass over and feature concerts, wrestling, rodeo, races, agricultural exhibits, a midway, and other typical state fair demonstrations and events. The
Harrington Raceway & Casino is also located at the fairgrounds. The property also hosted a
Donald Trump rally for his
presidential campaign on April 22, 2016. The only cancellations were from 1942 to 1945 due to
World War II. Despite the
COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, the fair resisted cancellation, although safety modifications were put in place and concerts were cancelled. Masks were required up until recent years, and as of 2024, are no longer required to enter the fair. ==Concerts==