The Town of Hamburg Police & the Erie County (NY) Sheriff's Office, besides security guards, are the fair's patrollers.

The region's first agricultural society was founded in 1819 with the goal of sponsoring a county fair to promote education and competition among farmers.

Dr. Cyrenius Chapin, one of Buffalo's most active energetic pioneers was elected President for the fledgling organization.

With the opening of the Canal in 1825, the Village of Buffalo quickly grew in size and economic stature becoming a city in 1832.

1850 marked the first year that the Fair was held outside of the City of Buffalo making its debut in the Village of Aurora.

Secondly, it was the year that famed newspaper editor and once candidate for President Horace Greeley spoke as a main attraction.

His speech at the Fair was a practical talk – on drainage, the use of tile and the canning of fruit which was just coming into vogue.

At a meeting held in September 1865 a resolution was passed to hold the fair in the town fitting up the necessary grounds and offering the best pecuniary inducements.

The Fair was highlighted by a high-wire walk over the Fairgrounds by Nik Wallenda, who crossed Niagara Falls on a tightrope two years prior.

The Giant Wheel continues to serve as a main icon of the fair, towering over the Strates Shows midway annually.

The 181st Erie County Fair was originally set to run August 12–23, 2020, but postponed as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic.

During World War II, the 1943 Fair was cancelled to support the patriotic rationing of gasoline and other vital wartime commodities.

James J. Dunnigan, a resident of Hamburg in New York was responsible for the opening of the raceway as far back as June 1942.

This entrepreneur chose Hamburg’s Erie County Fairgrounds to be the location of his project, which he undertook after the State of New York approved a bill permitting harness racing under the pari-mutuel betting system.

[3][8] In 1949, the one half mile oval on the premises hosted one of just eight inaugural stock car races for what was to become the NASCAR Cup Series.