"Crowds throng to greatest fair in state's history," read a headline in the Herald on July 21, 1915.
"Eight thousand people attend formal opening."
As Grand Forks prepared for the fair, two draft horse barns were reserved, and there was need for additional stalls. There were 30 new sheep pens and 25 additional swine pens under construction.
Gov. L.B. Hanna was on hand to open the fair, which included one of the largest horse and cattle shows ever held in North Dakota.
And the big feature was the lineup of 1915 model automobiles. Fairgoers also were fascinated by auto polo performances. And the auto polo craze continued afterwards, with people using croquet mallets and hitting balls off running boards of cruising cars.
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All in all, records showed 72,000 total attendance at the fair of 1915.
Earlier in July 1915, the Barnum and Bailey Circus arrived in four special trains of 85 cars from Fargo. On July 6, 1915, there was a parade.
''Barnum & Bailey has come down from the days of our grandparents and is destined to go on forever," the Herald reported.
Because of the war in Europe, the circus had procured what was known as cream of the crop entertainers from afar. There was a black bear that rode a bicycle around the stage. Trained ravens flew through six rings of fire.
Earlier in July 1915, Fords and owners of Fords had a great day in Grand Forks. More than 200 Fords wended their way into the city over rough and muddy roads. They came from the North Dakota communities of Park River, Grafton, Drayton, Niagara, Forest River, Inkster and Fordville.
The program's feature was at Lincoln Park, where there was a tug of war between farmers and city men. The farmers dropped the city men all over the lot. Married men were superior to single men when it came to the ballgame seen by an estimated 1,000 people in the park.
In other news 100 years ago:
▇ The cornerstone of the new St. Mary's Church was put in place. It contained an edition of the Herald and a history of the parish by its founder, Bishop James O'Reilly. And there was a picture of M.J. O'Driscoll, the first pastor.
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▇ Boys of this city must stay away from the river, according to a notice in the Herald. Recent high water was adding to the number of boys swimming in "the shallows," and "it is impossible to tell when a boy might step into a deep hole and drown. Police of this city are determined boys must stay away from the river.''
▇ Peter Casper, 82, who first visited Grand Forks in 1878, arrived in the city as a guest of Dr. R.R. Foster. In early days of the city, Casper was a miller. He also ran the Caledonia Mill for the Hudson Bay Co.
▇ Six of the 1915 graduates of Rush Medical College in Chicago were members of the 1913 UND graduating class. Some would go into active practice at once. The graduates finished with high credit to themselves and the university.
▇ As July 1915 drew to a close, the Grand Forks County Commission decided to gravel the Meridian Road and Wonderland Trail-if it was possible to get the work done at a reasonable price.
The total population of Grand Forks at the time was reported as 13,550, with 63 "colored people," as African Americans were termed. There were 2,459 houses.
