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Upcoming festivals in Central Ontario & Cottage Country →Meaford & St. Vincent Fall Fair 2026: 169 Years Strong
A full day of livestock shows, homecraft, and old-fashioned fun on the Saturday of Labour Day weekend
Date
Sep 5
Cost
$10 adult
Where
Meaford, ON
Hours
9–5
Now in its 169th year, this Grey County classic packs a saddle horse show, cattle and sheep judging, antique tractors, live chainsaw carving, and a curling-club exhibit hall bursting with pies, quilts, and prize vegetables into one Saturday in Apple Country.
🐴 Saddle horse show
🪓 Chainsaw carving
🥧 Exhibit hall baking
🚜 Antique tractors
💡 This is a cash-only event, and dogs aren’t permitted unless they’re marked service dogs — plan your ATM stop and your pet-sitter accordingly.
✨ Why This One’s Worth the Trip to Grey County
The Meaford & St. Vincent Fall Fair has been run entirely by volunteers since it started, and 2026 marks its 169th consecutive year — making it one of the older continuously-held agricultural fairs in this part of Ontario. There’s no paid staff behind any of it. The board of directors, the show committees, the people at the gate — every one of them is a volunteer, and planning for next year’s fair reportedly starts the moment this year’s wraps up.
What makes it worth the drive up into Grey County is the sheer range packed into a single Saturday. There’s a full saddle horse show with barrel racing and pole classes, a cattle show spanning multiple breeds with a “Cattle Battle by the Bay” junior competition, a dairy show, a sheep show, and a poultry show covering everything from bantams to pigeons to geese. Meanwhile, the Meaford Curling Club fills up with an exhibit hall’s worth of homecraft — quilts entered into provincial competition, home baking, canning and preserves, cut flowers, vegetables, fruit, amateur photography and art, scrapbooking, and antiques.
Add antique tractors and cars on display, live chainsaw carving with Kane Sibley, a Cow Patty Bingo fundraiser supporting the local Georgian Shores hockey team, and live country music running most of the afternoon, and you’ve got a fair that genuinely earns its “something for everyone” reputation. Meaford calls itself the Apple Country of Ontario, and the fair’s agricultural roots — livestock, produce, and the people who work the land around Georgian Bay — are on full, proud display.
🗓️ Fair Day Schedule — Saturday, September 5
The public fair day runs 9 AM to 5 PM. Everything below is included with your gate admission.
9:00 AM — Exhibit Hall opens at the Curling Club
9:45 AM — Pee Wee Beef & Dairy Show
10:00 AM — 4-H Beef Club Achievement Day
10:00 AM — Saddle Horse Show
10:00 AM — Poultry & Children’s Show of Pets
10:00 AM – 3:00 PM — Antique tractors, trucks & cars on display
10:30 AM — Junior Cattle Show, “Cattle Battle by the Bay”
10:30 AM – 3:30 PM — Games area: axe throwing, plinko, inflatables & bouncer
12:00 PM — The Beef Show, followed by the Dairy Show
12:30 PM — Sheep Show
12:30 – 3:30 PM — Live country music, bring a lawn chair
All day — Children’s Activity Tent, chainsaw carving with Kane Sibley, Cow Patty Bingo
3:30 PM — Silent Auction pickup in the Exhibit Hall
4:30 PM — Exhibits may be picked up at the Curling Club
5:00 PM — Curling Club closes
9:45 AM — Pee Wee Beef & Dairy Show
10:00 AM — 4-H Beef Club Achievement Day
10:00 AM — Saddle Horse Show
10:00 AM — Poultry & Children’s Show of Pets
10:00 AM – 3:00 PM — Antique tractors, trucks & cars on display
10:30 AM — Junior Cattle Show, “Cattle Battle by the Bay”
10:30 AM – 3:30 PM — Games area: axe throwing, plinko, inflatables & bouncer
12:00 PM — The Beef Show, followed by the Dairy Show
12:30 PM — Sheep Show
12:30 – 3:30 PM — Live country music, bring a lawn chair
All day — Children’s Activity Tent, chainsaw carving with Kane Sibley, Cow Patty Bingo
3:30 PM — Silent Auction pickup in the Exhibit Hall
4:30 PM — Exhibits may be picked up at the Curling Club
5:00 PM — Curling Club closes
🐄 Livestock & Judged Shows
The agricultural heart of the fair runs all morning and into the early afternoon, with exhibitors coming from across Grey County and beyond.
Saddle Horse Show
Cattle Battle by the Bay
Beef Show
Dairy Show
Junior Sheep Show
Poultry Show
Pee Wee Beef & Dairy
4-H Beef Achievement Day
Children’s Show of Pets
A nice touch for anyone following the junior competitors: this year’s sheep exhibitors can take part in the “Labour Day Sheep Showdown,” earning combined points by showing the same lamb at both the Meaford and Durham fall fairs on the same day.
🥧 Exhibit Hall & Homecraft
The Curling Club fills up with judged entries across dozens of categories — this is the part of the fair where you’ll spend the most time actually browsing.
Quilts & Homecraft
Baking & Pastry
Canning & Preserves
Floriculture
Vegetables & Fruit
Amateur Photography
Amateur Art
Scrapbooking
Antiques & Collectibles
Junior Class
Two entries are worth calling out: a Pecan Pie Special baked in memory of a longtime fair supporter, and a Culinary and Canning Auction where anyone can bid on the pies, jams, and baking that fairgoers entered — half the winning bid goes back to support the Agricultural Society.
🎈 Kids & Games
Between 10:30 AM and 3:30 PM, the games area runs axe throwing, plinko, and other challenges alongside inflatables for kids up to age 6 and a bouncer for all ages — all included with your gate admission. There’s also an all-day Children’s Activity Tent and a dedicated Junior Class of exhibits — mini-scarecrows, farm scene dioramas, baking, and creative writing — built specifically for entrants up to 18.
🐷 Look for the Cow Patty Bingo fundraiser running all day, supporting the Georgian Shores Team Europe hockey program (ages 12–16).
📋 Essentials
🎟️ Admission
Adults 13+ are $10, ages 3-12 are $5, and children under 3 get in free. This is a cash-only event — no cards at the gate.
🐕 Dogs
Not permitted on the grounds unless they’re properly marked service dogs.
🍎 Farmers Market
A small farmers market runs alongside the fair, with local produce, honey, and maple syrup for sale — proceeds support participating growers, with donations over $20 issued a tax receipt.
📞 Contact
Meaford & St. Vincent Agricultural Society — 519-794-0574, [email protected].
🚗 Getting There
The fair splits across two adjoining sites: the Exhibit Hall inside the Meaford Curling Club at 130 Collingwood Street West, and the Meaford Fairgrounds next door, where the livestock shows, games, and antique vehicle display take place. Vehicles hauling trailers should use the Parker Street West entrance to reach the fairgrounds directly.
📍 Get Directions to the Meaford Curling Club
❓ Common Questions
Details may change — always confirm on the official Meaford & St. Vincent Agricultural Society website before heading out.
Location
Get DirectionsMeaford Curling Club & Meaford Fairgrounds, 130 Collingwood Street West, Meaford, ON, N4L 1M2
