State Fair

The 2024 Minnesota State Fair runs Aug. 22 to Sept. 2. For all of the events at the MPR booth and Dan Patch Park, go to mpr.org/statefair.

Let it all out: Tell us why you hate the fair
The State Fair has been unleashed: Twelve days of delectable fried foods, adorable baby farm animals and long-standing family traditions. Or, if you look at it another way, it’s nearly two weeks of traffic, sweaty crowds, people chugging milk and strangers parked on your front lawn. The State Fair may be the great Minnesota get-together,…
The incredible life of the Minnesota State Fair police chief
Art Blakey has been chief of police for the state fair for 37 years. This will be his last. As he gets ready to retire, he looks back on his long career in law enforcement and those hot summer days at the fair.
State Fair reassures Minnesotans: Our rides are safe
Rides get three rounds of inspections, including an initial inspection when they're trucked in and assembled on the fairgrounds, a daily inspection by ride operators and a utility inspection by state electrical inspectors, said general manager Jerry Hammer.