"This is not vaudeville; this is not burlesque; this is gen-u-wine hootchie cootchie, the kind your granddaddy knew." That was one barker's pitch in front of a "girly show" on the Midway at the Lehighton Fair of sixty years ago. Although I never went into a girly show, I've been told that on the last night of the Fair all the clothes came off.

The present-day Carbon County Fair not only lacks girly shows, but it also has no beer garden, no freak shows, and no tough-looking carnies with grease stains on their jeans and cigarettes rolled up under their tee shirt sleeves. Nor does it have anything like "Eeka, the Wild Woman of Borneo," who shrieked and roamed an enclosure in a halter top, and supposedly bit the heads off the snakes which shared her cage.

The old Fair had some great food stands. Dinky Memorial Church always sold wholesome food, but the stand that was the most fun was run by the Lehighton Trinity Lutheran Church. The church had a very "Dutchy" announcer who would intone that the stand had "oodles and oodles of noodles," and then tell passers-by to stop in and "get to know vat good iss."

The exhibit section of the old Fair was located under the grandstand. In the fifties Carbon County had four active Granges, and each year they would compete for top honors, setting up large displays of agricultural produce. Carbon County had many more farmers then, although I must point out that every year Christman Brothers farm was among the top winners in the vegetable category.

The Fair went into hiatus after the Lehighton Area School Board condemned the Fair Grounds in order to build the high school, but thanks largely to the Lions Club, the new Carbon County Fair, now located near Little Gap, is in its 11th year.

In its present configuration, the Fair has some of the same wonderful features as the old Fair. 4-H'ers still show their projects. Photographs and paintings are again on display, You can view old steam engines and old tractors. You not only can watch 4-H'ers show their animals, but you can also buy the animals at a subsequent auction. Most of our chicken flock was once 4-H projects shown at the Carbon County Fair.

A number of community groups also depend on the Fair to raise funds. Churches and service organizations set up food booths that actually sell semi-healthful foods, although artery-clogging fried items, such as deep-fried pickles, are still available at many stands. The Democratic and Republican Party booths register voters and pass out free candy and peanuts, and a variety of rides are available for the kiddies. Nightly shows—including a demolition derby and a tractor pull—keep adults entertained.

If you would like to participate actively in the Fair, check out www.carboncountyfair.com. You can exhibit veggies, fruits, canned goods, flowers, baked goods, wine, and all kinds of crafts and art work. Although the fair management did not pay out the full amount for prizes last year, I believe they wouldn't disappoint the exhibitors two years running, so register your entries. Here is a heads-up: you must have your entry postmarked no later than July 24. This year the Carbon County Fair runs from August 11th to the 15th. See you at the Fair.

Roy Christman