County Fair’s oral history event brings out young and old

Hundreds of people headed to the Winona County Fair on Thursday to enjoy the spectacles and entertainment — and to revisit memories with friends and family.
Attendees Thursday had a chance to share stories of previous years at the fair during Winona County Historical Society’s “I Remember When,” an ongoing oral history series the society is sponsoring.

Fair president Cindy Timm, who has gone to the fair since she was a kid, recalled when a monkey got loose from the petting zoo on two separate occasions in 1998 and 2004. The story made the front page of the Daily News, as well as USA Today and other national papers, Timm said.
“The best way to promote the fair is let a monkey loose on the fairgrounds,” she joked as she shared the story to an audience of about 20.

The monkey had escaped after a boy decided to jimmy open the lock on the monkey’s cage, she said. The monkey ran to the 4-H stand and stuffed its face with food, then decided to tease some cattle.

“He was jumping on the cows,” Timm told the audience, then handed the microphone to Winona County Historical Society board member and Daily News deputy editor Jerome Christenson, who moderated the event.
“A little monkey business at the fair,” Christenson said with a laugh.
John and Sue Meinke, sitting in the front row, chuckled. They came to the fair specifically for the event. John was taking a break from mowing the lawn, and Sue joined him after getting her nails done, she said.

Don Guidinger, center, of Winona is the first to share stories at the Winona County Historical Society's “I Remember When… Stories of the County Fair” event at the fair Thursday, July 11, 2013, in St. Charles, Minn. (Andrew Link/Winona Daily News)

“I’ve never been to anything like this before,” Sue said. “My husband is really into this stuff.”
John has lived in the area his entire life and enjoys hearing the history of the area, he said.
“I love Winona County,” he said. “Anything to do with Winona County I’m interested in.”
While the audience listened to people share memories, a group of young girls laughed and chased after each other in the grass about 30 feet away, making new memories at the fair.
“They were trying to put ice down my shirt!” 12-year-old Grace Berends said.
The group said they look forward to hanging out with friends every year at the fair and already had plenty of memorable moments this year — the best so far being chasing Grace with ice, said Grace’s friend Anna Ferden.
Timm said she also recalled running around the fair as a child. Now she’s making new memories on the county fair board — something she’s been a part of for 17 years.
“It’s like a family,” she said.

July 12, 2013 12:00 am •
By Tesla Rodriquez | tesla.rodriquez@winonadailynews.com