The Coffee County Fair will open its gates next Saturday, Sept. 18, to Coffee countians and more. The fair will run from Sept. 18 through 25 at the Coffee County Fairgrounds, located at 99 Lakeview Drive in Manchester.
As is tradition, the fair will kick off Saturday with the annual Fairest of the Fair and Miss Teen Coffee County pageant contests. Miss Teen Coffee County will begin at 5:30 p.m., followed by the Fairest of the Fair at 8 p.m.
Sunday, Sept. 19, is dedicated to the young ones, with the Baby shows and Toddler Show taking place from 1 to 5 p.m. Babies birth to 6 months are at 1 p.m., followed by 6- to 12-month-olds at 2 p.m., 12- to 18-month-olds at 3 p.m., 18- to 24-month-olds at 4 p.m. and toddlers aged 2 or 3 at 5 p.m.
Theme nights and gate prices
Monday, Sept. 20, will start the week with special gate pricing and theme nights, with “Fun Night” happening that evening and rides available starting at 6 p.m. A special $3 gate fee will take place from 4 p.m. Monday will also see Nick’s Kids Show take place at 5, 6 and 7 p.m. The Little Miss Coffee County Contest will also take place at 6 p.m. this day.
Tuesday, Sept. 21, will see the popular $20 hand stamp from 6 p.m. to close, followed by the $2 Ride Day on Wednesday, Sept. 22, from 6 p.m. to close. There is also $1 off the price of admission for those who bring in a canned food item Wednesday.
Tuesday will also see Nick’s Kids Show take place at 5 p.m., as well as the Wool & Woolies Show, followed by the Junior Miss Coffee County (6-8 years) at 6 p.m. and the Junior Miss Coffee County (9-12 years) at 7:30 p.m. Wednesday’s programming includes the senior citizen’s program at 9 a.m., Nick’s Kids Show at 5, 7 and 8:30 p.m. and music from Rubiks Groove at 7 p.m.
Thursday is the two-for-one rides day, where the first person pays and the second person rides for free. This will take place from 6 p.m. to close Thursday, Sept. 23, and is only applicable to tickets. Thursday will also have a Kids Show at 5 p.m., followed by American Superstars at 6:30 p.m. and the Monster Truck show at 7 p.m.
Friday, Sept. 24, will be another $20 hand stamp day for the rides, valid only from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. On this day, closing tickets will be available starting at 6 p.m. The midway will be closed from 5—6 p.m. this day.
Other programming for Friday includes the Youth Field Day at 10 a.m., the kids show at 3, 5 and 7 p.m., the Ultimate Oldies at 7 p.m. and the Tennessee State Pullers Tractor Pull at 7:30 p.m.
Finally, Saturday, Sept. 25, will be “2 for $22” hand stamp day for the rides from 1—5 p.m. only. Tickets are also available for the rides. The midway will once again be closed from 5—6 p.m. this day. Programming on the final day of the fair includes the Outlaw & Mini Rod Tractor Pull at 10 a.m., Nick’s Kids Show’s final three performances at 3, 5 and 7 p.m., the Pedal Pull at 2 p.m., Mule races at 5 p.m. and the Mud race at 7 p.m.
Livestock shows
The livestock barn schedule kicks off Saturday, Sept. 18 with poultry, rabbits and eggs from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Entries continue the next day from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Entries for the Open & Junior Sheep takes place from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. Monday, Sept. 20, followed by the Open Sheep Show at 6 p.m.
Tuesday, Sept. 21, begins at 4:30 p.m. with the rehearsal for the Wool & Woolies Show, followed by the show at 5 p.m. and Junior Sheep Show at 6 p.m.
Wednesday, Sept. 22, the barn will be the home to cattle, with the entries for the Open Dairy Cattle coming between noon and 4 p.m., followed by the show at 6 p.m.
The next day, the barn will be claimed by the Junior Dairy Cattle competitors. Entries will take place from noon to 4 p.m., and the show will take place at 6 p.m.
Friday, Sept. 24, will see the barn jam packed starting at noon, with entries for the Open & Junior Beef Cattle (Angus, Red Angus, Limousin, Simmental, Chi-Angus, Charolais, Commercial Heifers) coming until 5:30 p.m. The show for that group begins at 6 p.m.
Finally, on Saturday, Sept. 25, entries for the Open & Junior Beef Cattle (Hereford – Polled & Horned, Brandgus, Beefalo, Longhorn, Shorthorn, Other Breeds and Showmanship) will come in from 8—10:30 a.m., followed by the show at 11 a.m.
Arts and crafts
On the artistic side, school art will be displayed from Monday, Sept. 13 to Thursday, Sept. 16. On Saturday, Sept. 18, from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m., entries vying for a Best in Show ribbon include adult art, junior arts & crafts, adult and junior photography, adult kitchen arts (canned goods only), junior kitchen arts (canned goods only), adult clothing, adult quilting & afghans, junior needlework & handicraft, adult needlework & handicraft, Christmas corner, adult & junior honey, horticulture and flowers (potted plants only) and crops, fruit & gardening. These items will also be on display from 1—5 p.m. Sunday, Sept. 19, along with the Junior Education booth.
The Coffee County civic organizations and clubs that will be manning all the food booths are Wesley Heights United Methodist Church, Hillsboro Masonic Lodge, Coffee County Rescue Squad, Rotary Club/4-H Club Funnel Cakes, Christian Life Church, Cyclones, Raider University Baseball and the Tullahoma Takedown Club.
The fair has been bringing family friendly entertainment to Coffee County for 160 years, according to fair organizers. Admission for the fair is $5 per person each day, except for Thursday and Friday starting at 4 p.m. and Saturday, Sept. 25 at 8 a.m.
