Carnival & Fair News

A streak of ideal weather, an engaged community and a Deggeller Attractions Midway with a host of new rides, the Maryland State Fair was one for the record books. The 2024 edition of the annual celebration of everything Old Line State made up for a heat-and-rain plagued 2023 fair, restoring this mid-Atlantic tradition to its pre-pandemic growth trajectory.

“It was one of the Maryland State Fair's best years ever,” said Andrew “Andy” Cashman,  Maryland State Fair General Manager. “Nearly perfect weather, new competitions, entertainment and all of the traditional favorites helped to make this one of the biggest fairs in our history.”

Back On Track

Attendance reached  589,380,  a 14 percent increase from 2023 with comparable increases in revenue including a record midway, provided by Deggeller Attractions. Last year, a heat wave plagued the event, suppressing turnout. It was also the second year of a post-lockdown addition of a third weekend. This year's robust gate indicated that not only has the market acclimated to a an extended event, but restored the attendance to its pre-COVID growth trajectory. “We definitely are back on track,” said Cashman. “With COVID, there was nothing going on and people were tired of being home and came out to the fair. But we are seeing something new this year because people are coming out to be at the fair, they want to come here to see and feel the experience. This year, we are programing more hands-on in our programming and creating a family atmosphere.”

What's been driving the resurgence is a growing number of younger families eager for the actual experience. “Young people like the idea of buying local and they want their children to learn where their food comes from. We have the rides they love  but we are so different from amusement park. We have more than 100 quilts in our competition, as well as many arts and crops. They and their children are fascinated. Young families are our growing demographic.”

This year, the event's 4-H/FFA and Open Class youth and adults presented thousands of farm and garden, livestock, horse, home arts and other exhibits. Fun and educational displays and hands-on activities included the U-Learn Farm, U-Learn Barn, Birthing Center, the Horseland Tent, Nature Play Space, and the Fair Museum. University of Maryland exhibited their UM Dairy Herd, UM Extension Master Gardeners built and taught at their Learning Garden, and Central Maryland Beekeepers extracted honey from the hive.



“There used to be 50 dairy farms in our country, now there is only one,” he said. So, to make up for that shortfall and reinforce the dairy legacy of Maryland, the fair reemphasized the cream of Maryland Agriculture in 2024 – and the local media paid attention. The Undeniably Dairy Celebrity Milkshake Contest – hosted by the American Dairy Association North East, the Maryland Farm Bureau Young Farmers, and the Maryland State Fair --  drew some of the fair's biggest crowds to  Park Stage as teams  made up of local celebrities and media outlets went milkshake-to-milkshake against each other. The Undeniably Dairy Celebrity Milkshake Contest Winner was WMAR-TV 2 News Megan Knight and Meteorologist Stevie Daniels, whose concoctions were all made with local ingredients. for the Shop Small Shake featuring local business ingredients.

The new dairy event and its fanfare was followed by a traditional milk industry classic – the 62nd Annual Maryland Dairy Princess Contest.   “We are most proud that we were able to educate many more individuals and families about the importance of agriculture, which is the main mission of The Maryland State Fair & Agricultural Society.,” said Cashman.

He added, “We strive to increase fun and informative hands-on agriculture education displays, programs, and competitions each year. Our agriculture education mission was successful this year as reflected in a post-fair online survey and a media poll:  the top draw to the 2024 Maryland State Fair was the farm animals, followed by the food, and the midway. Thankfully there seems to be a growing interest by new generations from all backgrounds in farming, which is critical for the future of our state, our country, and our world.”

Rides & Attractions

Maryland State Fair carnival Operator Deggeller Attractions presented an exciting and colorful midway with a variety of thrilling new rides, fun games, and flavorful fair foods on the Main Midway and in Kiddie Land. Other 2024 attractions included: The Wolves of the World, Pretty Bird Paradise and Mobile Studios Glass Blowing, Blacksmithing, and Wood Carving exhibits. Among this year's grounds acts were  SHIMMER Mirrorman, Robocars transforming vehicles, and the Strolling Piano.
To present the annual extravaganza to the public, the Maryland State Fair revamped its marketing campaign with a renewed emphasis on social media. The effort was led with a cleverly synergistic tagline Dream Big, which Team MSF incorporated into videos that showed the dreamer and the dream. “Our team came up with a combination, showing a calf being born, then a large full grown steer. We had a child in a swing in the backyard then show the Wave Swinger on the Deggeller midway. We showed a small baby pony then we showed the grown horse in the horse race at the fair, we had one with people planting corn, then a box of cornflakes. It was a very good campaign.”



The fair also contracted with Noise New Media to handle the bulk of the ticket-sales promotion. “We did much  more social media. With the social media company they were very good at selling tickets and promoting the concerts. It worked out so well. it seems like having them helped our presence. We added more contests and ticket giveaways to increase user interest and involvement.”

Social media have been more of a driving force this year, but to Dream Big the fair balanced the new media with the old media dependability. “ We have adjusted to the way that society is changing,” he explained. “Each year, we progressively move more budget dollars to social media, however much of our focus remains on traditional media which continues to be effective in our market.

New Fair Food

The fair featured 30 food vendors as well as three separate dining & drinking venues: The Maryland Foods Pavilion, Dairy Bar, and the Chesapeake Beverage Garden. In addition, the fair introduced a new fair cuisine contest –the Mallet New Fair Food Competition – which its official press released stated: “was well-attended. The Best New Sweet Fair Food was Tiki Tea's Chocolate Dipped Strawberry Iced Tea; the Best New Savory Fair Food as well as the Most Creative winner was The Turkey Stand's Turkey & Stuffing Waffles.”



From its emphasis on agriculture to its Dream Big marketing campaign, the 2024 Maryland State Fair solidified its space in the entertainment landscape of the area. For Cashman, the fair exceeded expectations not just because of the kindness of Mother Nature this year, but a commitment to keeping all members of its community  top-of-mind. “The Maryland State Fair seeks out exciting entertainment, traditional and new food, and vendors that will be of interest to our youngest through our eldest fairgoers.”