The Ozark Empire Fair is celebrating its 88th year with a variety of events including food, entertainment, vendors, exhibits and more, running from July 25th to August 3rd with the theme “The Biggest Party of the Summer.”
Though the fair officially began at its current location in 1937, the fair has been held in the Springfield area since the early 1900s. According to information on the fair’s website, the fair began as a traveling exhibition of crafts and arts and crafts from Southwest Missouri. For several years in the 1920s and 1930s, the fair was held in the area around present-day Pickwick and Grand Streets.
The KY3 Grandstand events schedule will include musicians, vehicles and bullfighters.
Rock band Everclear will perform at the Ozark Empire Fair on July 25, 2024. (Photo by Everclear/Brian Cox Photo) Everclear and Marcy Playground will perform on Thursday, July 25. Everclear had chart hits in the ’90s with “Santa Monica” and “Father of Mine.” The Sugarhill Gang and C&C Music Factory will perform on Friday, July 26. The Sugarhill Gang’s 1979 “Rapper’s Delight” became the first rap single to become a Top 40 hit on the Billboard Hot 100 chart. The O’Reilly Outlaw Nationals Monster Truck Show will perform on Saturday, July 27. Skillet will perform at the Grandstand on Sunday, July 28. Reckless Kelly and the Jukebox Heroes will take the stage on Tuesday, July 30. The alt-country band formed in 1998 and had some of their biggest hits of the 2010s with “Long Night Moon” and “Sunset Motel.” Night of Destruction, a demolition derby sponsored by O’Reilly Auto Parts, will take place on Thursday, August 1. Extreme Freestyle Bullfighting, sponsored by Hardee’s, will take place on Friday, August 2. The annual Truck vs. Tractor Draw is scheduled for Saturday, August 3.
Tickets for each grandstand event vary in price and can be purchased on the fair’s website.
The fair also offers free entertainment at various locations, including new this year “Scott’s World of Magic Show,” a family-friendly magic show featuring magicians Scott and Anna, and “Off Axis Stunt Show,” featuring athletics and extreme sports like BMX riding and parkour, fair spokesperson Ashley Drury said.
Drury said other popular entertainers and events will also be featured, including “Rock ‘n’ Rolling Piano” and “Hedricks Exotic Petting Zoo.”
The fair opens at 4 PM on Thursday and opens at 11 AM each day thereafter. The Ozark Empire Fair E*Plex closes each day at 10 PM, with the rest of the fair closing thereafter based on demand and crowds. No re-entry to the fair will be permitted after 9:30 PM each day.
Admission is $15 for adults and $5 for children ages 6 to 11, with discounts available for advance purchase. On-site parking costs $5 but is not guaranteed.
The fair also offers discount days, such as $3 Day: Monday, July 29th, when admission is $3, rides are $3 each, and many food items are $3 each. The fair also offers free admission on select days for community service workers, military personnel, and students.
Joe Hadsall
Joe Hadsall is an education reporter for the Springfield Daily Citizen. Hadsall has covered the Ozarks for more than 20 years for The Joplin Globe, Christian County Headliner News and 417 Magazine. He can be reached at (417) 837-3671 or jhadsall@sgfcitizen.org. More articles by Joe Hadsall