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Show Father, Son Serve on State Fair Board for 76 Consecutive Years - " ? Ja ( it 1 s -v , U l i 'Mf -Ml r hMk wP4 t'na Mhm For 76 consecutive years, from the first Utah Fair until today, a Winder has served on the State Fair Board. The late John R. Winder (right) was a charter member of the first board in 1856. serving until 1901 when he was succeeded by his son, Wiliiam C. Winder, ho ia till serving today. The elder Winder was president of the organization organiza-tion for 11 years and the younger Winder for 14. William C. Winder holds that eminent position today. Few families in any section of the nation have donated and devoted more time and effort to the building of a state enterprise than the Winder family of Salt Lake City, Utah. Ever since 1856, a Winder has been a member of the Utah State Fair, Board or the Deseret Agricultural & i Manufacturing Society, as it was known prior to 1907. The late John R. Winder served on the board from the date of organization organiza-tion in 1856 until 1901 when he was succeeded by his son, William C. Winder. The elder Winder also served as president for eleven years in two separate sep-arate terms, 1888-1890 and 1893-1901. 1893-1901. William C. Winder was chosen president in 1918 and has held that eminent position ever since. A tremendous change has taken place during the Winders' sei'vice. John R. was a charter member of the first Fair held just nine years after the arrival of the Pioneers. It was organized and sponsored by the Deseret Des-eret Agricultural & Manufacturing Society "with a view of promoting the arts of domestic industry and to encourage the production of articles from the native elements in this Territory." Ter-ritory." The Fair was held in the Deseret Store, located at the present site of the Hotel Utah. It was not until 1902 that the Fair was located at its present site near the Jordan River. Pride of the excellence of exhibits mjust have been the chief reward of the early exhibitors, for cash awards, not to mention the "diplomas" were mere pittances. The money prizes ranged from 50 cents to $3. To help finance the early Fairs life memberships member-ships were sold. William C. Winder was appointed on the board by Governor Heber M. Wells soon after Utah became a state. The Fair was held at that time under the auspices of the Deseret Deser-et Agricultural & Manufacturing Society. So-ciety. The name was changed to the Utah State Fair in 1907. "The Fair has also undergone many changes since I first became connected with it," stated President William C. Winder "Total premiums of about $5000 were awarded then. More than six times that amount 530,000 plus will be distributed this year. In those early days there was much more interest in horse exhibits than there is today. The horses were one of the real features of the Fair. The horse show today still plays a prominent role but the large entry lists of draft and riding horses have been replaced now by automobiles. "Whereas hundreds visited the j Fair then, thousands attend now7. The j steady progress and growth of the j state has made possible the erection of such fine buildings as the Manu-I Manu-I facturers', Agricultural and Poultry ; buildings, Coliseum, Cattle Barns 1 and Cement Grand Stand. Utahns j can well be proud of such a fine 1 plant. i "I am firmly convinced that the I Fair becomes more interesting every year and 1932 promises to be no ex-j ex-j ception. I hope everyone will take advantage of the opportunity to see 1 the expositions year after year. There is always something new always al-ways new ideas for those who will ' look for them." |