A Grand Champion Day at the Fair

By Renée Bergstrom and John Gaddo, August 20, 2024

Grand Champion honey at the Fillmore County Fair. (All photos by Renee Bergstrom)

PRESTON, MN – Under bright blue skies on a perfect summer day, photographer Renée Bergstrom set out to capture a day in the life of a county fair.

The Fillmore County Fair, held in Preston, Minnesota, hosted its 166th fair in mid-July 2024. From cotton candy to blue ribbons to all kinds of livestock to bouncy houses, she documented the experience for young and old.

Nothing quite beats a good old-fashioned summer fair! Even better when it’s just around the corner in the heart of the Driftless.

Bergstrom’s county fair “a day in the life” montage can be viewed in its entirety in the following photo essay:

Here’s a sampling of selected photos from the essay:

4H entries line up for judging.

Intricate quilt work wins Barb Michel title of Grand Champion.

The perfect day for “blowing” gigantic bubbles.

Root River Rabbit 4Hers give their goats some exercise.

Root River Current’s coverage of the arts is made possible, in part, by the voters of Minnesota through a grant from the Southeastern Minnesota Arts Council thanks to a legislative appropriation from the arts & cultural heritage fund.

Contributors

Renée Bergstrom

Renée Bergstrom is a photographer, weaver and painter whose artwork is available at Lanesboro Arts. Renée loves to dig in the dirt so you may see her in her garden along the Root River Trail. She is currently a Public Voices Fellow on Advancing the Rights of Women and Girls with the OpEd Project and Equality Now. The cohort of twenty women is publishing thought provoking articles.

John Gaddo

John Gaddo is co-publisher of Root River Current. His professional career has included stints as a public media manager, journalist and audio producer.