Powassan Fall Fair 2026: 129 Years on the Fairgrounds

A Labour Day weekend tradition of horse pulls, derbies, and small-town harvest spirit

📍 Get Directions Full Schedule

The Powassan Agricultural Society has run this fair every Labour Day weekend since 1895, and 2026 marks its 129th edition. Two days of heavy horse pulls, a demolition derby, live music, and barn full of traditional fair competitions await at the Powassan Fairgrounds.

🐴 Heavy horse pulls 💥 Demolition derby 👨‍👩‍👧 Family friendly 🎣 Beer tent (19+)

💡 Sunday costs more ($20 vs. Saturday’s $10) because it covers the Edge Motorsports Demolition Derby — if that’s the main draw for your group, plan around Sunday.

Why Go Schedule Essentials Getting There Tips FAQ

✨ Why This Fair Is Worth the Drive North

There’s a difference between a fall fair that’s been running for a few decades and one that’s been running since before Ontario had highways to speak of. The Powassan Agricultural Society was first incorporated in 1895 under the name South Himsworth, held its first fair on a boardwalk in front of what was then Powassan’s public school, and drew 28 exhibitors on gate receipts of $70. One of those first exhibitors showed a pair of bantam hens and won a bag of carrots for the trouble. Nearly a century and a quarter later, the fair is still run entirely by volunteers, and 2026 marks its 129th consecutive year.

The fairgrounds themselves carry their own history. The society bought the land from William F. Clark in the early 1900s, and in 1938 the O.W. Thompson Co. donated a large building that once stored the company’s annual harvest of fox pelts — that same building still serves as the fair’s exhibition hall today, filled every September with baking, preserves, crafting, needlework, and produce entries from across the district.

While the fair’s mandate has always centred on agricultural awareness, the weekend has grown well beyond livestock judging. Heavy horse pulls, a demolition derby, live country music, a climbing wall and rope challenge, and a beer tent now sit alongside the barn competitions — a mix that keeps drawing families from across the Almaguin Highlands and beyond for a genuinely old-fashioned Labour Day weekend. It’s the kind of event where the same families tend to come back year after year, and where the fair board itself — a current roster that includes a president, two vice-presidents, a secretary-treasurer, and more than a dozen directors — is entirely made up of local volunteers who keep the tradition going on top of their regular lives.

🗓 Weekend Schedule

Both days open at 10 a.m. and run a full slate of programming through the afternoon and into early evening.

📋 The Essentials

🚗 Getting There & Parking

The Powassan Fairgrounds sit at 55 Fair View Lane, on the same land the Agricultural Society has owned since the early 1900s, just outside the village core.

By car: Powassan sits just off Highway 11, roughly 25 minutes south of North Bay — the most practical way to reach the fairgrounds for most visitors coming from Ontario’s north or south.

Parking: On-site parking is available at the fairgrounds. Arrive earlier on Sunday if the demolition derby is your main destination — it’s historically the busiest part of the weekend.

💡 A Few Things Worth Knowing Before You Go

💵 Bring cash for the smaller stuff. Penny Sale tickets, Nevadas, and Bingo cards are the kind of small-town extras that tend to move faster with cash on hand.

💥 Get there early for the derby. Sunday’s Edge Motorsports Demolition Derby at 1 p.m. is consistently the biggest draw of the weekend — arrive well before start time for a good view.

🐔 Check out the Grow-A-Chick judging. Sunday at 11 a.m., a fun one for kids who’ve been following the program and a good example of the fair’s agricultural roots.

🧗 New this year: a mini putt has joined the rock wall and rope challenge at Climb n Fun, and the corn & trucks sensory bins are a fresh addition for younger kids.

🌾 Don’t skip the barn. The exhibition building — the same one donated back in 1938 — is packed with baking, preserves, needlework, and produce entries that are easy to walk past but worth a slow look.

❓ Common Questions