The Warren County Fair will kick off on Sunday, June 29 with the annual fair parade and fair queen coronation. The fair will also include a week’s worth of events from 4-H competitions to attractions like the rodeo and demolition derby from July 1-5. 

The biggest day of the event however, will take place on Saturday, July 5 when for the first time in 25 years, live musical performances will return to the main stage, along with the pedal tractor pull, the rodeo and the fireworks show. 

“With the city’s commitment, and with the tourism (board) to make it possible we’ve got almost $120,000 invested on Saturday,” said Fair Board President Paul Owenby. 

Country music artist Byrdie Wilson will kick off the evening’s performance on the main stage at 6:45 p.m. followed by Ty Herndon at 8 p.m. and main act Montgomery Gentry at 9:30 p.m.

Herndon was nominated for best Southern Country or Bluegrass Gospel album at the 53rd annual Grammy Awards and is known for songs like “What Mattered Most,” and “Living in a Moment.”

Montgomery Gentry is a four-time winner and 27-time nominee at the Country Music Awards and is known for popular songs like “Where I Come From,” and “Something to Be Proud Of.”

Saturday, July 5, will also feature popular attractions like the baby show at 10 a.m., the greased pig scramble at 4 p.m. and the rodeo in the arena at 8 p.m.

The fair will represent the culmination of a year’s worth of efforts from the fair board and the volunteers that make it possible. Owenby noted that unlike other county fairs in the area, Warren County is staffed almost entirely by volunteers. 

“We’re all volunteers, we’ve all got other jobs. Nobody’s paid on this deal, that’s what impresses me the most, that people will take their time to commit to this level,” said Owenby. 

While the biggest attractions of the week will take place on Saturday, the week is still jam-packed with events and family attractions. 

At the fairgrounds on July 1-2, 4-H competitions like animal shows and exhibit judging will be ongoing throughout the day leading up to their culmination with the livestock auction at 7 p.m. on July 3. 

The demolition derby will also be held that evening at 7 p.m. along with the carnival at 5 p.m.

The carnival will also run from 5-11 p.m. on July 4 and 12-5 p.m. and 6-11 p.m. on July 5. 

Owenby said the carnival plans to bring 10 rides along with some food cars and they will have a kids korner this year for younger children with attractions like bounce houses. 

Laser tag, a popular addition from last year’s fair, will also be returning from noon-10 p.m. on July 4-5. 

July 2 adult tickets are $15 and children ages 5-12 are $10; July 3 adult tickets are $20 and children are $10; July 4 adult tickets are $25 and children are $15; and July 5 adult tickets are $30 and children are $15.

Children four and under are free every day of the fair. 

Owenby felt they were providing a significant amount of entertainment options for the ticket prices and wondered where they could be beaten. 

“For one $30 ticket for an adult, you can go see a rodeo, a concert and fireworks. I mean, I don’t know how you can get that in any cheaper than that,” said Owenby. 

He said while they do not have specific goals for attendance, with the Warrenton Tourism Board helping to fund the fair this year, they did want to see higher-than-average attendance. The tourism board provided the fair board with roughly $75,000 to help cover the cost of musical acts along with lighting and sound systems for the stage. 

Owenby said for the next couple years they hope to return musical acts and see if it has enough popularity to continue, but that he hopes it is a success this year. 

He said their break-even attendance for Saturday will have to be roughly 4,000 people, although he said if they could reach that 4,000-6,000 mark it would be a strong indicator to continue bringing big performers to the main stage.