Iowa State Fair and Exposition Grounds Historic District

About this property

The Iowa State Fairgrounds is located on the east side of Des Moines, Iowa, United States. It annually hosts the Iowa State Fair in late summer. The state fair was begun in Iowa in 1854 and the current fairgrounds were established in 1886. The fairgrounds were listed as a historic district on the National Register of Historic Places in 1987 as the Iowa State Fair and Exposition Grounds. The Iowa State Fair was held in a different community every two years after it was first established. The first fair was held in Fairfield in 1854. The other towns that hosted the fair included Muscatine, Oskaloosa, Iowa City, Dubuque, Burlington, Clinton, Keokuk and Cedar Rapids. The state fair moved to Des Moines permanently in 1878. The fairgrounds were initially located on the west side of the city between East 38th Street on the east, East 42nd Street on the west, Center Street on the north and Grand Avenue on the south. In 1886 the fairgrounds were moved to the east side of town on University Avenue. The property had previously been the Calvin Thornton Farmstead. The original house and barn are still on the fairground's property. Other structures from the farm survived into the late 1940s when they were torn down. In 1886 the Iowa Legislature and the city of Des Moines appropriated funds and the first buildings were built. They were frame buildings that used boards and battens as exterior wall covering. They were mostly single-story structures that were built quickly and under a tight budget. Because they were poorly built they were constantly in need of repair. However, the buildings lasted into the early 20th century when they began to be replaced or expanded. Pioneer Hall remains from this period. The streets within the fairgrounds followed the same basic pattern as they do today, although they were unpaved and without curbing or gutters in the early years. A street lighting system was put in about 1890 when oil lamps were added. The following year 500 electric lights were installed on the grounds. The new buildings built in the early 20th-century were steel frame structures covered in red brick. They included a new Livestock Pavilion that was built in 1902, Agriculture Building (1904), Administration Building (1908). A new race track and grandstand were built in 1909 and the Varied Industries Building was built in 1911. Some of the frame buildings from 1886 were moved to a different location and continued to be used. A sewer system was added at this time. The streets remained unpaved, but curbing had been added. They were also oiled to control the dust and cinders were spread to improve their durability. A park triangle had been established at the intersection of Grand and Rock Island Avenues by 1920.

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Property data from the National Register of Historic Places, National Park Service (public domain).

Description adapted from Wikipedia under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.

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