By Jill Hayward
The first meeting of the North Thompson Fall Fair Association was called by Ernie Schmidt, a member of the Chamber of Commerce, at the Chinook Cove Hall early in the spring of 1950.
Mr Josh Grey, agriculture representative assisted. Seven or eight men and three ladies attended.
The next meeting drew a large turnout.
There were numerous trips to Kamloops to the District Reps office over a very pot-holed highway to draw up the bylaws and the constitution.
Ernie Schmidt, Geordie Salle, Len Johnson, Harry Leavik, Bill Stewart, Clayton Gardiner and others did a lot of the footwork.
The Old Native Sons grounds and hall were sold to this new organization later for one dollar, and enthusiasm from Heffley Creek, the Squam Bay area through the North Thompson Valley to Darfield and Little Fort grew fast.
Many of these farmers and crafts folks had exhibited already in the Pacific National Exhibition and Kamloops fairs (the Kamloops Fair folded during the war).
4-H was also a big factor because the leaders wanted an outlet for their youngsters’ achievements.
Queens for the fair were chosen by numerous methods before “the pageant” as we know it today.
The Native Sons Hall burned during the winter of 1956-57 and 4-H achievements only were held in 1957.
The next year a new hall was built as an agricultural building for the crafts and vegetable exhibits.
Ten years later it was moved in three sections to its new home on the present East Barriere Lake Road site, after Fadear Creek Mill exchanged properties to use the old site for log storage.
Water was an impossibility at the old site. Many holes had been dug and proved nil so the move to Barriere was good because of the closeness to water.
Bob Corrigan’s class at Barriere High School sketched the plan for the grounds.
This was very much appreciated and closely followed, although many additions have been added in the 18 years since the move.
A lot on Dunn Lake Road was purchased and cleared for parking, and part was leased to the curling rink, which in turn houses all the crafts, farm and garden, baking, canning, and photography exhibits.
Ball games were the entertainment for the earlier fairs.
Generally they were the finals for the season for all of the North Thompson ball clubs.
Then gymkhanas and other horse events became popular.
The rodeo and pony chariot races became even more popular when the rodeo facilities, built by the Barriere High School Rodeo Club and the race track was completed.
The terrific success of the NTFF has not been due to the many beautiful Labour Day weekends with very few cloudy rainy ones, or taking in a lot of money in three days as most of it had to be paid out in the next three weeks, but to the hundreds of dedicated volunteers.
Their rewards have been many, with perhaps the greatest being that of seeing the little ones showing their first lamb or small calf, or exhibiting their pick of the hen or rooster from mom’s poultry house, to come up through the years to become good citizens and leaders of the community.
