The Sterling Fair was started in the early 1800’s and was run privately by the Sterling Cattleman’s Association. The Sterling Cattleman’s Association was a group of farmers that pooled their resources to hold the fair at the Sterling Common using the three churches and the town hall. The fair continued through the late 1950’s when the fair unfortunately stopped because of a lack of volunteers.
The fair was reborn in 1981 for the Town of Sterling’s bicentennial, becoming a municipal fair run by the town of the Sterling. In 1981 the fair was held behind the fire station at the Memorial area. In 1982, the fair was moved to Houghton School, using the school grounds and the building. In 1999, because of how big the fair had grown and the construction of the new Chocksett School, Jimmy Simpson of Sterling Air and airport land owner Henry Ciborowski graciously agreed to let the fair use Sterling Airport to hold the fair and keep it alive.
In 2016, the Sterling Fair continued to be the largest free fair of its size in new England attracting between 30,000 and 40,000 fair-goers. The fair continues to run on a lean budget without a permanent home. It is run completely by volunteers, including the all-volunteer Fair Committee. Currently there are 20 Sterling Fair Committee members, but we need at least 10 more. These dedicated people work all year long, but kick into high gear a week before the fair along with another 50 plus volunteers that go non-stop until a week after the fair.
