Ex ffithrta SEYMOUR DURST When you leave, please leave this hook Because it has heen said "Ever'thing comes t' him who waits Except a loaned book." AEW YORK STATE FAIR AND AGRICULTURAL AND INDUSTRIAL EXPOSITION I841-SYRACUSE-1912 President Thomas F. Conway Secretary Stanton C. Shaver, Syracuse Thomas F. Conway, New York Charles A. Wieting, Cobleskill COMMISSIONERS Calvin J. Huson, Albany George W. Driscoll, Syracuse William H. Jones, Woodbury Vice-President Calvin J. Huson Treasurer Albert E. Brown, Syracuse Barry Murphy, Medina Ira Sharp, Lowville "View of Crowd near Manufacturers and Liberal Arts Budding HE ENCOURAGEMENT AND DEVELOPMENT OF AGRICULTURE IN THE STATE OF NEW YORK — THAT IS WHAT THE NEW YORK STATE FAIR AND EXPOSITION STANDS FOR FIRST. Like all great expositions it has horse racing, aeroplane flights and races, band concerts, midway attractions and always a Governor, and occasionally a President of the Nation, but it never gets away from the original purpose for which it was founded eighty years ago. And New York State agriculture is again in the ascendency. Who will say that this is not due in a large measure to the growth and development of the State's annual exposition ? At least, it must be admitted that many thousands of farmers have received new hope and fresh inspiration from the Fair's great educational features in the State Institutions and State Dairy build- ings. The lectures and practical talks by agricultural authorities and the exhibits and demonstrations by State agricultural schools form Lieutenant-Governor Conway a very important part of the Fair. Last year 1 28 farm boys — clean, alert, determined young men with the purpose of making farming a life work — went back to their homes in sixty counties scattering the knowledge gained at the Fair in all branches of agriculture. The State had these farm boys as guests for a week to stimulate greater interest in improved methods of agriculture and that they might tell hundreds of others what the State Fair really represents. This is one of the many ways the State Department of Agricul- ture has of working with the State Fair Commission. It means more than tilling the soil, sowing the seed and gathering the crops. The State's dairy interests yield, it is reckoned, about $60,000,000 a year. The horses on New York State farms have a value of close to $100,- 000,000, and good markets for the better types of heavy draft horses are to be found in the large cities. New York State has more cattle of the breeds valuable for dairy purposes than any other State and there is a constant demand for New York cattle from the outside. The sheep, swine and poultry raising industries have been growing richer with enlightenment as to the better breeds and the most ap- proved methods for handling stock. The fruit growing industry in this State has been developing wonderfully and will continue to develop. It is important that the farmer know these things. Syracuse gave the State Fair its permanent home but, it must be remembered, the State Fair does not belong to Syracuse. It is dis- tinctly a State institution, promoting the welfare not alone of agricul- tural interests but all interests which make the Empire State first. As such it is deserving of the support of the entire State. That the people have been coming to appreciate this is shown by the steady increase in attendance — 200,000 pass through the turnstiles in six days — and in the number, variety and character of the exhibits. That the State is willing — and has been willing — to go just as far in developing the institution as interest on the part of the public would seem to demand is shown in the adoption by the Legislature of the broad, comprehensive permanent grounds plan calling for the construction of a plant of steel, stone and brick at an outlay of $2,000,000 and on a scale never before attempted in this country. President Tafl at the State Fair, 1911 Manufacturers and Liberal Arts Building Thus far the State has spent about $700,000 for new buildings and the equal of these great, commodious structures cannot be found in any other State of the Union. While considering the wonderful success scored by the State in the exposition of 1 9 1 1 it is of some interest to recall the first New York State Fair. That, also, was held in Syracuse in the year 1 84 1 , the outcome of a movement perfected in 1832 when the New York State Agricultural Society was formed in Albany. The Fair of 1 84 1 had nine classes for cattle, the premiums in each run- ning from $23 to $40; two classes for horses with $40 in prizes in each; two for swine with prizes of $23 in each; also eight classes of implements, one of butter and one of cheese. About 1 0,000 people attended and the Fair was rated a big success. After that the Fair was shifted to different cities with varying success. Like many other fairs, an era of decadence set in, notwithstanding the help from the State, and in 1 889 it welcomed an offer from Syracuse of a resting place just west of the city. The site became the Fair's permanent home. The Fair continued under the auspices of the New York State Agricul- tural Society. Even with more permanent buildings — the best Fair buildings in the State at that time — an excellent geographical location and grounds of about 120 acres skirted by two important railroads — the West Shore and the Lackawanna — the Fair did not meet expectations. Something was lacking. The solution came in 1 899 when the State took over the plant and lodged the management of the exposition with a Commission. While slow in development during the first years of State control, the exposition, benefited by educational features and a management of depart- ments based upon careful study and a knowledge of the demands of the interests these departments were supposed to represent, soon went ahead at a rapid pace. The exposition of 1911 has been pronounced by agricultural and other authorities, the greatest in the history of the institution. The attendance, although held down by frequent spells of unfavorable weather, reached very close to 200,000. Governor T>ix Entrances to Three Buildings sl COUNTRY'S GREATEST CATTLE SHOW m* /A S it rightly deserves, New York State now has the greatest Dairy Sire annual cattle show. New York is the leading dairy State because of the number and the value of its dairy cattle. And nowhere east of the Mississippi can be seen a better beef cattle show than at the New York Fair. The classes in 1911 attracted record entries for nea rly all breeds. While the Holstein-Friesians did not equal the record of 1908, when the Fair had the biggest show of this breed ever seen in this country, the quality was pronounced of a higher standard. There were approximately 1 ,000 cattle on the grounds. The five herds of Red Polls shown included the three best herds in the United States. There were five herds each of Hereford and Aberdeen-Angus and four each of Devon and Shorthorn. Also there were two herds of milking Shorthorns. In the dairy classes the Holstein and Guernsey breeds were represented by seven herds each, Jersey by six, Brown Swiss and Ayrshire, four each; French Canadian and Dutch-Belted, three each; Galloway, Dexter and Kerry, one each. The quality generally was higher than in any previous year. Beef Sire In the Parade of Prize Winners, 1911 Young Stock — Brown Swiss Heifers under one year and Holstein Bulls under one Jjea Group of Bull Classes, 1911 EW YORK CITY is one of the greatest markets in the world for the heavy draft horse ; also it is one of the most important distributing points for horses of this type. Big corporations in Philadelphia, Washington, Baltimore, Boston and other large cities of the East look to the New York market for draft horses. Practically all of these have been supplied from the western states and Canada. There appears to be no good reason why New York farmers should not reap the benefits of this market. Teams of Six in Show Ring, 191 1 Governor and JHCrs. T)ix in Show Ring THE HEAVY DRAFT HORSES — Continued They can produce this type of horse as cheaply as any other and it appears to be only the matter of a start in the right direction in the draft horse breeding business. Horse Department A of the New York State Fair for farm, breeding and draft horses, established as a separate department two years ago at the suggestion of the Commissioner of Agriculture, is proving of great educational value to the New York farmer. Here are shown some of the best representatives in this country of the different breeds of heavy draft horses and the exhibition serves to let the farmer know the type of stallion to pick for his mares in order to market the get profitably. The show of 1911 was probably the best of its kind ever seen in the East. There were 294 entries comprising 345 horses, almost double the entry of the preceding year when the heavy horse department was started along new lines. This indicates that the Commis- sion's educational campaign was effective from the very outset. Splendid types of animals were seen in all of the classes for imported breeds — Perch- eron, Clydesdale, Belgian, Suffolk, Shire, French Coach and German Coach. The premiums in this department were approximately $6,000, over double the amount offered in 1910. As an encouragement to the beginner in the breeding business there were several classes for grade draft horses, some limited to horses owned by New York State farmers. $9,000 is offered in premiums for the 1912 show. Stallion Class 'Uypes of Stallions and Mares, 191 1 gjggils F RUIT GR OWING INDUSTRY^^ THE fruit growing industry in Eastern States has been developing rapidly. New York growers are anxious to compete with the big fruit interests of the West in the growing and handling of fruit for the best markets. Evidence of this is seen at the State Fair and with a view of encouraging this spirit, the New York State Fair Commission is giving more attention to commercial packs of fruit-boxes, barrels and baskets ready for market. It is recognized that New York can produce the finest quality of fruit, but the East has been behind the West in the methods of grading and packing. The State experiment station at Geneva has given much attention to this phase of the industry and the State Fair has offered opportunity for enlightening the growers. Members of the station staff, located in the State Institutions building, are ready at all times to give expert advice on this subject. The fruit department of the Fair has been growing steadily in importance. The exhibits of the county and local societies have been increasing in number and quality. The collections, attractively staged, have been of great educational value. The advantages offered growers were repeatedly demonstrated during the exposition of 1911. On the strength of attractive exhibits, associations took orders for barrels of apples at $4 a barrel which ordinarily would have sold for $3 or less. The display of vegetables, flowers, etc., also told of increased interest in this department. Four farmers' clubs had exhibits of vegetables as compared with two in 1910 and there were five large collections of vegetables as compared with four the preceding year. Besides the New York State Vegetable Growers Association had an instructive exhibit of vegetables in packages ready for market. Fruit and Farm Produce, 1911 Flower Exhibit in Horticultural Hall, 191 1 i^^^jRICH D AIRY INTE RESTS^^ AGRICULTURAL authorities who make a practice of visiting all of the big Fairs appear to be agreed that the exhibit in the Dairy building at the New York State Fair is far superior to anything of its kind in any other State. It covers every phase of dairying, fittingly representing an industry which yields $60,000,000 annually. In the Dairy Supply Department RICH DAIRY INTERESTS Continued The mammoth permanent building of rare architectural beauty harmonizing with the other new buildings, is well adapted to the purposes of the exhibit. A large amphitheatre offers an ideal place for tests and demon- strations and here, during the Fair of 1911, thousands reaped the benefits of the numerous educational features. The exhibits are cared for in large glass front refrigerators around the walls of the main hall and a system of judging before the opening of the Fair permits the visitors to pick out the prize products and learn the names and addresses of the successful exhibitors. Of the 270 butter exhibitors in competitive classes, 216 shared pro rata in the cash prizes — a remarkable showing of products considering that it was necessary to score above 90 points. There was an unusually large entry in the cheese classes and the quality was superior to previous exhibits. Three-fourths of these exhibitors shared in the prize money. An interesting feature in this department was furnished by a cheese from Lewis county weighing 5,527 pounds. The milk required in its manufacture weighed 55,243 pounds. Other novel exhibits were life-size busts of President Taft and Governor Dix, modeled in New York State butter. The individual exhibits numbered 952. The Dairy building offers the farmer an excellent chance to study the latest in dairy machinery and supplies and to learn the most sanitary and most profitable methods in following the industry. The educational feature will be emphasized during the Fair of 1912. The demand for space in the Dairy Machinery department taxes the capacity of the great building. All machines are driven by electric power. DEMAND FOR BEST SHEEP 'ITH a steady growth in the sheep breeding interests of the State has come a demand for better breeding stock. This is seen every year at the State Fair. New York farmers take advantage of the sheep show not only to study the various breeds but to obtain high-class stock. During the Fair of 1911 one exhibitor sold a ram for $500 and seven ewes at $100 apiece. Other breeders reported sales indicating a demand for a high quality of stock Some declared they had sold more sheep at the Fair than during the entire season prior to the Fair. There were over 1,300 entries in the sheep classes in 191 1, a number of exhibitors coming from the Middle West and Canada. The breeds included Shropshire — and it was probably the best Shropshire show ever known — Merino, Cotswold, Southdown, Hampshire, Oxford Down, Cheviot, Dorset Horn, Lincoln and Suffolk. Some of the most noted flocks in the United States were shown. Angora goats are also shown in the Sheep house, unusual interest being taken in recent years in the development of this breed. The premiums offered for sheep total $1,300, exclu- sive of special money prizes and cups. Arriving at the State Fair Prize Winning Sheep, 1911 GREAT HOG SHOW THE hog show at the State Fair was one of which representatives of New York agricultural interests may well feel proud. There was a greater variety and a greater number than ever before on the grounds. No national show was ever more complete. Counting the little pigs, the pens held nearly 1,000. The showing was generally accepted as indicating a growing interest in the best stock. The entries were heaviest in the Berkshire classes, there being nine herds of Berkshires. There were seven herds of Chester Whites and six of Duroc Jerseys. Other breeds represented were Poland China, Yorkshire, Cheshire, Victoria, Mulefoot and Hampshire. The size of the exhibit was sufficient to more than crowd the existing pens. The swine breeding interests of the State are gaining each year, and better accom- modations at the State Fair are one of the most essential improvements for the near future. Pending the erection of a permanent building, additional pens will be provided for the 1912 show. The premiums offered in this department approxi- mate $1600, in addition to the special prizes. Get of Yorkshire Sire Prize Winning Hogs, 191 1 STATE LEADS IN POULTRY »^ ^NE of the largest collections of land and water fowl ever brought together under one roof in the United States — that is what is said of the Poultry exhibit at the 1911 State Fair. There were about 4,300 entries in 700 pens and nearly 1 ,000 cages of pet stock, pigeons, bantams and purely ornamental breeds to add to the attractiveness of the show. A large tank in the center of the Poultry Building contained a variety of birds from the midget ducks to the great black swans and white swans. Most of the exhibitors in the Poultry Building were New York State breeders, although some other States and Canada were repre- sented. The White Leghorns led in the number of entries with Rhode Island Reds and White Wyandottes close behind. The Poultry department of the State Fair has grown until the building in which this feature is housed is no longer adequate or satisfactory. With the erection of the new Poultry Building called for in the permanent Fair plan the exhibition — and the general public which has shown genuine interest — will get the full benefit of this department. The Commission looks forward to the time when it may receive appropriations for the erection of an up-to-date building which will con- tain room for poultry, pet stock and dogs, and an amphitheatre for the education of the public as to the killing, dressing and packing of poultry. Barred Rock Champion ^^fg ENCOURAGING YOU NG FARMERS j^^Hg THE Department of Agriculture, with healthy young material gathered from the agricultural counties of the State, is trying along new lines to increase the number of farmers. Also in this way it seeks to improve farming conditions generally ; to give the soil the benefit of the most approved methods of agriculture. Farm {T}oys Listening to Lecture ENCOURAGING YOUNG FARMERS Continued Considering the State Fair as a great educational institution for the development of agriculture, no feature in 1911 stood out more prominently than the "One Hundred Farm Boys Company." There were in fact 128 young men — guests of the State Fair Commission — eager to gather all of the knowledge the Fair offers through exhibits, demonstrations and lectures. The farm boys, ranging in age from 15 to 19 years, listened to instructive talks, one by Governor Dix and by many leading agricultural experts, and engaged in interesting discussions touching all branches of the farming business. Individually the boys visited the exhibits in the different departments of the Fair and did a lot of quiet study on their own account. That the decision of the Commissioner of Agriculture for free scholarships for farm boys at the Fair will prove of inestimable value in the department's work, there is no doubt in the minds of authorities who kept in close touch with the band of youthful agriculturists. The week at the Fair, it was declared, afforded the boys education of a greater value than could have been gained through any other experience. Some returned to their homes with the announced determination, as the result of what they had learned, to stick to the farm rather than follow any profession. After returning to their homes the boys were given opportunity to write essays not exceeding one thousand words on what they saw and learned at the State Fair, and these were judged in competition. Prizes of value were awarded, such as, pairs of pure bred calves, sheep, pigs and chickens, also fruit trees, seed corn, etc. So far as possible, the alternates chosen in 1911 will be preferred candidates for the company this year. The requirement of an allotted number of hours work at the camp or in the live stock buildings has been eliminated, the time thus spent being devoted to assisting in the judging rings. Group of Farm Boys in Front of Grange Building FARM MACHINERY ^Tj^HE progressive farmer keeps in touch with the latest developments in farm machinery. It is important that he consider the effect of the ever-increasing line of mechanical helpers on the future of the farming business. The tendency is growing to guard against an unnecessary expenditure of physical energy and especially is this so with the young farmer element. The matter of operating a gasoline engine will hold far more interest for the young man about to embark upon a life work than directing a squad of hired men. There is much to study at the State Fair for the man who would advance his farming interests, but it is questioned whether he could put in a more profitable day than in the machinery department. This department of the Fair of 1 9 1 I , in size and variety, far sur- passed any display of former years. Every square foot of space allotted for machinery was occupied and the exhibits were more representative of the manufacturing industry than ever before. Nearly every tent where machinery was shown had a gasoline engine for motive power and the traction power peo- ple were not behind in showing machinery and the uses to which it might be put. The demonstrations were always witnessed by groups of farmers anxious to keep abreast of the times. Farm Machinery S^^^jTHE NEW CATTLE B U I LP I IM G ^HHg THE number and value of the herds exhibited at the State Fair have so increased with the years that larger and safer show quarters became a pressing need. This need has been amply met by the erection of a magnificent cattle building just completed at a cost of $200,000. This great building is 362 feet long and 286 wide and is of yellow brick, cast stone and steel construction and is uniform in detail with the other perma- nent buildings on the grounds. The building has a capacity of 928 animals, for which specially built iron pipe stalls are provided. Wide aisles separate the stall courses and a clear and unobstructed view of the entire interior may be had from any point within. i $200,000 Cattle Building to be Completed August 10, 1912 ^MmM, STATE INSTITUTIONS SSHH THE State Institutions Building joined with the Grange Building and by colonnades with the Dairy Building, held many interesting exhibits during the Fair of 1911. Samples of work accomplished, photographs, drawings and pamphlets were used in enlightening thousands of visitors in regard to State institutions about which little is known by the general public. The Craig Colony for Epileptics at Sonyea, Livingston County, the State School for the Blind at Batavia, and the Thomas Indian School at Iroquois, Erie county, send interesting exhibits each year showing the methods employed at these institutions and the work of the inmates. An exhibition by the Lunacy Commission illustrates in a forcible way how the feeble minded are given useful employment. The Prisons Commission exhibits a line of articles manufactured at the prisons showing the efficiency of the system under which convict labor is directed. The State College of Agriculture at Cornell University and the State Agricultural Schools at Morrisville, Canton and Alfred, demonstrate their courses in practical husbandry, while the State Experimental Station at Geneva has an annual exhibit which is intensely interesting to the progressive farmer. The Forest, Fish and Game, the Water Supply and Forestry Departments of the Conservation Commission and the Barge Canal Commission have working exhibits which attract universal attention. The State Labor Department has an exhibit of special interest to the wage worker and his employer. The State Sealer of Weights and Measures has a most important exhibit, valuable to all classes of people. The Depart- ment of Health lets the public know about its fight against contagious diseases and advantage is taken of the opportunity for extending the campaign for checking the spread of tuberculosis. The State Veterinary College, State Charities, the excise and educational and banking departments are represented. Exhibits of State Institutions f^mm^ THE WOMEN'S BUI LDI NG^S P^HERE is no resting place on the State Fair grounds more popular with women and children than the Women's Building and Hospital. Here every convenience and comfort is offered and in case of accident or temporary weakness or indisposition, physicians and experienced nurses are at hand. Every year hundreds of women with little children take advantage of the accommodations in the nursery. Musical programs and lectures in an auditorium with a seating capacity of 400 furnish entertainment. One of the purposes of this department is to educate visitors in the work of clubs and societies, the programs being furnished by women's clubs of all sections of the State. 19Bg@Bi DOMESTIC DEPARTMENTS^ CLASSES to the number of 755 with awards of approximately $2,000 give some idea of the extent of the Domestic and Art Department located in the Manufacturers and Liberal Arts Building. The exhibits in 1911 totaled 3,824, a new record for the department. The art work, fancy sewing and culinary and other domestic products never fail to attract the interest of a large percentage of Fair visitors. FOR MUSIC L OVER SWMmi* ALL Fairs and Expositions have music. No Fair would be considered complete without a band. However, few places in the country provide open-air entertainment for music lovers on the scale of the band concerts at the State Fair. For an hour every morning one of the leading musical organizations which has appeared before critical audiences in all of the large cities of the country is heard in Empire State Court, and in the afternoon a program, largely of an operatic order, is given in the race paddock. To the minds of thousands of State Fair visitors the band concerts provide one of the very enjoyable features of the exposition. 6 ■ B|l ■ IgEB] 1 ■ 4 - ■ Crowd about Band Stand in Empire Slate Court gj8Bg@Bi GRAND CIRCUIT RACES^^ GREAT percentage of the people who go to a State or a County Fair expect to see a horse race. Many would never know of the educational features of a great exposition were they not attracted by entertain- ment. Horse racing has furnished the feature of the bill of entertainment at Fairs in this country for over half a century and today there is no evidence of a waning interest. In fact Fair visitors have been demanding sport of a class equal to that of meetings promoted by the strongest racing associations. The New York State Fair is one of the few Fairs in the United States which provides light harness horse racing of the highest standard. This is possible through the fact that the State Fair mile track — one of the fastest circular tracks in the world — is a part of the Grand Circuit, the most important combination of racing associations in this country. Through its position in the Grand Circuit the State Fair meeting attracts each year the leading campaigners of light harness horses, and patrons of the Fair witness stirring contests and trials of speed by the kings and queens of the turf handled by the famous reinsmen. Approximately the sum of $40,000 is offered in prize money at the State Fair race meeting, this sum including $10,000 for the Empire State stake, a classic which attracts the attention of the horse world. The fact of the offering of $40,000 does not mean that the racing feature is a costly one for the State. Considering its worth as a revenue producing feature it is the cheapest attraction the Fair has. The State Fair meeting never fails to attract a large entry and the entrance fees come very near to meeting the amount offered in purses. But with the State of New York the race meeting is not merely a matter of providing entertainment for the crowds of visitors. It meets another purse. The horse breeding establishments in this State represent investments aggregating hundreds of thousands of dollars and the very foundation of this breeding business depends on the market for the light harness horse. The Fair with its Grand Circuit race meeting not only encourages an interest in the race horse and the roadster but improves the market for the farmer who raises hay or straw or grain. At the Races — Governor Dix and Lieutenant Governor Conway; Donald Dey, president of Evening Karnival; Adjutant General Verbeck, in charge of Military Day, 1912 ggj« AVIATION MEET AND MILITARY FETE ggfjgg THE exposition has for the past two years afforded the peo- ple of the State the best opportunities for studying the progress in aviation with heavier-than-air machines and for witnessing the most sensational feats of the bird-men. Last year daring aviators flew from the Fair grounds over Onondaga lake and the city of Syracuse for a distance of twenty miles, rose at times to an altitude of 5,000 feet and gave stirring exhibitions of diving and volplaning in showing control of the biplane. Weather conditions never interfered with the exhibitions. The daring bird-men flew in the wind as fearlessly as during a calm. Frequently dur- ing the week passengers were carried on the long trips through the air. For the 1912 Fair an aviation meet has been arranged on a scale never before attempted except at the international meets of the Federated /Eronautical Clubs of the wo rid. Three times every day during the Fair there will be a series of exhibitions and maneuvres by at least two machines, show- ing the progress made in the science of flight. The program will be concluded each day by a five or ten mile race with two or more latest type machines participating. On Saturday of Fair Week four or six biplanes will be seen in a thirty or fifty mile race around the Fair track. This great attraction will be the crowning feature of a day given over to actual demonstrations of the use of the aeroplane in time of war which will be given in conjunction with a novel military fete arranged by Adjutant-General William Verbeck of the New York State militia. In the military maneuvres every arm of the service will be represented by several regiments. Mounted cavalry and artillery will have the largest representation and exhibitions of troop and fancy riding, hurdle and obstacle races will be features. Scouting, bomb-dropping and target shooting from various altitudes, and pursuit races will introduce the aeroplane into this mimic war game. AVIATION MEET AND MILITARY FETE — Continued The aviation meet arranged for Saturday will be the feature event of the week, the aerial karnival which will have been in progress for six days culminating in a series of contests which will be open to the licensed aviators of the world. A special prize will be offered for the breaking of any world's record. $2,000 in prizes is offered in the events, which will include endurance, speed and altitude tests. Wright and Curtiss Machines in Flight, New York State Fair EQUINE ARISTOCRATS k NE of the horse show rings in the infield of the mile track at the State Fair is the scene of an exhibition on the order of the greatest horse shows of the world like the International at Olympia, London, and the National at Madison Square Garden, New York. In fact many of the exhibitors at the London and New York shows are seen at the State Fair. In 1911 the sum of approximately $8,000 was awarded to owners of the highest types of horses and ponies. Interesting competition is furnished by the finest high-acting coach horses; the pony classes arouse the greatest enthusiasm and the exhibitions by jumpers and hunters are always of the thrilling order. In this department of the Horse Show are exhibited Hack- neys, Shetland and other ponies under saddle and in harness, light and heavy harness horses, road- sters, tandems, four-in-hand teams, saddle horses, hunters and jump- ers and military and police horses. In succeeding Fairs the hunt- ers and jumpers will probably be seen on the mile track in to 1 % mile races and steeplechases with amateur riders up. Jumpers in the Show Ring In the Pony Classes, 1911 Best in All Types, 1911 MOUNTED POLICEl THE people of New York City have been waking up to the importance of the State's annual exposition. They are beginning to appreciate what it really represents. But a few years ago the Metropolis refused to extend interest beyond the Horse Show, which has always had the support of the leading exhibitors of the big cities of the East. Now wealthy New Yorkers are entering in the cattle, sheep, swine and poultry depart- ments. The Mayor of Greater New York visits the Fair and New York's Mounted Police — as fine a body of horsemen as there is in the world — spends a week at the Fair giving drills and exhibitions of horsemanship. The Mounted Squad furnishes one of the highly spectacular features of the exposition. That these officers were always ready for traffic duty or to assist the Fair Commission in an emergency was shown during the Grand Circuit races when a broken rein was responsible for a runaway on the race track. The wild chase after the horse by the first of the mounted police to reach the track was in full view of 50,000 people. Reining alongside of the runaway while galloping at full speed the officer leaned far out of his saddle, grabbed the bridle and pulled the horse to a walk without the slightest injury' to the animal or the driver who had remained helplessly in the racing wagon during a two mile run. Mayor William J. Gaynor was one of the distinguished visitors at the Fair of 1911 and he was accompanied by Police Commissioner Rhinelander Waldo. Prize Winners in Traffic Squad WMmis PERMANENT IMPROVEMENTS, 1912 l ^ris:-^ PERMANENT improvements made at the State Fair Grounds this year besides the $200,000 Cattle Building include an ornamental main entrance and terminal buildings for the New York Central and Lackawanna railroads. These are constructed of brick and stone and cost approximately $30,000. Coin-controlled turnstiles will be used at all the entrances this year. These operate automatically on the insertion of a fifty cent piece and will simplify the task of handling the crowds at the rush hours. The new exits provided at the railroad terminals are so many in number and so convenient in arrangement that all possibility of crowd congestion at these points is absolutely eliminated. IIIIIITHE STATE'S ATHLETES^^ THE plan for an annual athletic meet at the State Fair with a view to bringing together athletes from all sections of the State, was inaugurated at the Fair of 1911. The running races participated in by teams representing colleges, preparatory schools and high schools of many cities, furnishes a highly interesting feature. The relay races brought out a large number of promising young athletes and resulted in spirited contests. The appearance of Martin Sheridan and Melvin Shepard, holders of world's championships, added to the import- ance of the games. The State's Athletes — Schoolboys' Dash ^ MmM.W IGH CLASS MIDWA Y I^SWMm HILE the substantial foundation of the State Fair is furnished by countless exhibits of a high character and the many valuable lessons it teaches agriculturists, the exposition would be far from complete without features providing amusement and entertainment. The Fair grounds devoted entirely to the objects of a strictly educational institution would be a dull place for a big percentage of the 200,000 people who now go to the State Fair. Thousands would never receive instruction were they not attracted to instruction by entertainment. The New York State Fair Commission has provided amusement features of a character in keeping with the rest of the exposition. The Midway which is now a part of every important exposition is made up of many shows, clean, wholesome and above criticism in every way. Some idea of the standard maintained in the Midway may be gained from the knowledge that just one of the many attractions at the Fair of 1911 consisted of a complete Wild West Show. The Midway of the 1912 Fair will occupy larger and more central quarters on one of the main thoroughfares. There will be ten feature shows instead of one as heretofore and every show, free or otherwise, will be of the highest type available. On the Midway "mmwsh S yracuse entertai ns W^m^ THE MYSTIQUE KREWE OF KA-NOO-NO was organized with the object of providing free evening entertain- ment for Fair visitors. For the past eight years the Ka-Noo-No Karnival, consisting of brilliant spectacles, pageantry parades and band concerts, conducted on a scale as elaborate as that of the Mardi Gras of New Orleans, has been held in connection with the State Fair. It costs the people of Syracuse about $75,000 every year for the electric lighting — the center of the city is made as light as day — floats, costumes and decorations. Leading citizens impersonate the characters in the Karnival, the program of which changes every year, and in one floral parade 5,000 little school children march or ride on floats. The entire program, covering five days of the week, is free to the public. Ready for the Karnival Parades /ERY ARCHITECTURAL AND FINE ARTS LIBRARY Gift of Seymour B. Durst Old York Library