BRIAN PERRY/Governor and 1897 Fair
I recently reviewed newspaper reports of the Neshoba Fair – mostly from Louisiana papers – from 1897 through 1917. The Daily Picayune wrote in 1900, the Neshoba Fair is “an event not to be missed and long to be remembered” with “accommodations ample, with a bold stream of reed break spring water flowing through the delightful grounds.” The Times-Democrat noted in 1908, “It would be difficult in any other State than Mississippi to get six candidates, all busy men of affairs, to gather at a country fair, eight miles from any railroad, in order to discuss politics; and it is doubtful if anywhere except in Mississippi could a rural audience be found willing to listen all day to a political discussion of this kind.” The Times-Picayune reported in 1897 that while everyone was wondering who Governor Anselm McLaurin would appoint to fill the U.S. Senate seat of the late James Z. George, no one would know because McLaurin had left for the Neshoba Fair. After his return, a follow-up article described the governor as “greatly fatigued from loss of sleep” but he expressed “much pleasure and satisfaction from the trip.” (I’ll be sharing those articles and others each day of the Fair from @CapstonePerry on Twitter.)
The Fair has always been and continues to be much more than a political event. Many in attendance have little-to-no interest in the annual political speeches at the Pavilion on Founder’s Square. But it continues as the unofficial start of the general election in Mississippi.
Looking at the schedule for Wednesday’s and Thursday’s speeches, I’m struck most by who will not be speaking. Of national interest – and of those wanting a smooth and orderly Fair – Republican Presidential nominee Donald J. Trump will not be speaking. Trump had been invited by the Neshoba County Fair Association and the campaign considered a visit with U.S. Secret Service conducting a routine initial review of security protocols for a visit. But on July 5, the Fair Association released a statement that Trump would not be speaking. Certainly thousands of people would have flocked to hear him s (likely on Tuesday afternoon) but the logistical and security measures would have disturbed what will otherwise (politically speaking) be a subdued year.
Madison County Journal
7/20/16
