Lafayette (LA) Daily Advertiser, October 28, 1997

Horse races highlighted early Jefferson Davis fairs

October 1895 event drew large crowds for contests, exhibits

by Jim Bradshaw

He said:

"In the summer of 1895, my newspaper, the Jennings Times advocated the idea of starting a fair in Jennings. The idea aroused a deep interest on the part of the citizens, and finally a mass meeting was held and a board of directors was elected. The twelve men met on a Saturday afternoon in the city hall and organized by electing S. L. Cary as president, E. E Rowson as vice president, and a treasurer whose name escapes me." P. M. Kokanour was elected secretary.

"Stock was quickly sold and the 40-acre tract south of the business section of Jennings was purchased. Work was soon started on the half-mile race track and the several exhibit buildings, and 150 pens and stalls for exhibit stock and race horses. The date of the first fair was the third week in October; a race program was arranged, with two harness races daily on five days and two running races daily. Purses ranged from $50 for pony races to $150 to $400 for harness races, best three heats in five. A fair number of race horses were booked, and the liberal premium list for farm and home products brought a grand display when the fair opened.

"The event was well advertised and for 100 miles in every direction. S. F. B. Morse was general passenger and ticket agent of the Southern Pacific Railroad.

"He was appealed to for excursion trains on three days of the fair from Beaumont, Texas, 90 miles west, and from Morgan City, 80 miles east, with low rates of fare. Mr. Morse wrote that the railroad's experience with excursions had not been satisfactory, and that the only way they felt justified in acceding to our request was to ask us for a cash guarantee of $150.

"Our president did not feel like raising the amount, so as secretary I went to E. F. Rowson and asked him to join me in buying a draft for $150 and sending it to Mr. Morse. This we did and the excursions were promised. The Southern Pacific joined us in liberally advertising the excursions.

"The fair opened on time and when the excursions, 12 to 14 cars, pulled in from each direction, the cars were loaded to the steps and both conductors, who I knew personally, told me they could not work the train after it left Lake Charles and Crowley. Three weeks after the fair closed, Mr. Morse wrote me that the excursions paid handsomely and he returned the $150 draft that Ed Rowson and I had sent.

"Well, the fair drew grandly and was a success. The opening address was made by Gov. Murphy J. Foster, after U. S. Senator; Prof. Wm. C. Stubbs, director of Audubon Park Experiment Station in New Orleans, brought a grand agricultural exhibit, and kept up the practice as long as I had any connection with the Jennings Fair.

"We had fine races and R. J. Harvey of Harvey's Canal, 10 miles west of New Orleans, entered his bay gelding, Tom Tipton, in the free-for-all race. Mr. Harvey drove the pacer and at the end of the meeting assured me he would return with Tom Tipton the next year and try to give us a track record for the state. He did and gave a record of 2.15 that stood for some time.

"We did not give such large purses, but we did pay all purses and premiums 100%, something the horsemen said was seldom done at any of the other meetings; but that at the close of the races, the purse winnings were usually scaled down deeply. The first year we had Geo. Z. Love of Ohio, who gave three fine balloon ascensions on three days. The fair drew large crowds...."

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