By ANN ALLEN
Indiana Correspondent

COLUMBIA CITY, Ind. — There’s a down-home feeling about the Whitley Co. 4-H Fair that makes it seem as comfortable and familiar as a Sunday afternoon visit to Grandma’s house.

For one thing, the fair association owns and maintains the fairgrounds. Its philosophy is simple: The fair is for 4-H kids and their families.

Admission and parking are free. There is no carnival. The only rides available are on a free shuttle service.

The cost of operating the fair is offset by gate admission to two annual spectacles – the battles of combines and old school buses, in which friends pit their machines against those operated by other friends … and still depart as friends, sometimes carrying pieces of their bus or combine under their arms.

A half-scale Studebaker wagon raised nearly $2,700 at auction, the proceeds going to the Whitley County Agricultural Center and 4-H Learning Center located in a museum housing reminders of the evolution of farm living over the past century. With displays of antique equipment, tools, a model kitchen and quilting demonstrations, the museum – located next to a field of antique farm equipment – is alive with activity from morning until night.
While judging takes place on Sunday, the fair’s schedule includes a worship service. And, just like Grandma would provide, there are home-cooked meals available in addition to fair-operated food stands.

This farm news was published in the Aug. 1, 2007 issue of Farm World, serving Indiana, Ohio, Illinois, Kentucky, Michigan and Tennessee.