Minnesota Public Radio, which started reporting from the Minnesota State Fair as far back as 1972, began a yearly tradition of live broadcasting from its booth at the corner of Judson and Nelson in 1991 (taking over the old WLOL-FM spot). The location has since become an important community spot for sharing ideas, intercultural representation, and topics unique to the Fair itself. MPR was the first media organization to have an entire day dedicated to them in the form of MPR Day, held the Friday before Labor Day in Dan Patch Park (formerly known as Carousel Park). The MPR booth has featured Gubernatorial debates, appearances by senators and important public figures, and live performances by a wide range of local musicians and writers. MPR hosts Gary Eichten, Cathy Wurzer, Kerri Miller, Bob Potter, Beth Friend, and numerous others, have filled the air over the past three decades with live Fair broadcasts that both informed and entertained. There was also the longtime broadcast of the Morning Show hosted by Jim Ed Poole and Dale Connelly, bringing their distinctive humor to the street intersection.
The Minnesota State Fair’s permanent 320-acre home along Snelling Avenue in St. Paul contains historical buildings which host a slew of exhibitors, plants, animals, arts, and plenty of jam. Big outdoor attractions include a multitude of food, Midway carnival rides, livestock (with smells), and daily shows and grandstand performances. It’s a busy, busy 12 days that MPR Archive has attempted to capture in this audio collection as varied as food on a stick. A report on Little Irvy, the freeze-dried whale…check! Andean folk band…indeed! Differences of the Pronto pup and the Poncho Dog…got it! Former U.S. Senator Rudy Boschwitz pitching his milk…yep! Here is your audio ticket to those stories…and so much more.
August 28, 2015 - MPR’s Cathy Wurzer and TPT's Eric Eskola co-host "Almanac" live at the MPR State Fair booth. Tom Scheck talks politics, Mark Seeley talks weather, Kevin Kling tells a Minnesota State Fair story, and Duluth musician Charlie Parr performs. There's presidential politics with professors Larry Jacobs, David Schultz and Kathryn Pearson; plus music and a baby lamb.
September 2, 2015 - MPR takes a look at the voices behind the food. MPR’s Tom Crann presents an interview with Stephanie Olson, owner of Blue Moon Dine In Theater located on the fairgrounds.
April 14, 2016 - MPR’s Tim Nelson reports on expansion plans at the Minnesota State Fair. The architects that created the West End Market for the Fair in 2014 showed off a makeover for the north end of the fairgrounds. The project includes a new exhibit hall, a more intimate amphitheater, and some changes to favorites like the Giant Sing Along and the Pet Center.
August 25, 2016 - All Things Considered’s Tom Crann talks with MPR reporter Nancy Yang about the history of Minnesota State Fair’s mascot, ‘Fairchild.’ The gopher character has been at the fair for 50 years. He even has a sidekick, Fairborne.
August 26, 2016 - MPR News producer Max Nesterak set out to meet some of those people that make the Minnesota State Fair, including one of the fair's mainstays...the bright pink haunted house. If you've ever walked by, you may have been heralded by its veteran promoter, Eric James.
August 31, 2016 - When most people are leaving the State Fair, some others are just arriving. A team of sanitation workers clean through the night emptying trash cans, cleaning toilets and scrubbing floors, among other things. MPR’s Max Nestrak interviews Jeffrey Martinez, a floor cleaner about his fairgrounds night shift in the Food Building.
September 2, 2016 - One of the most popular attractions at the Minnesota State Fair is the CHS Miracle of Birth Center. It takes hundreds of people to organize the live exhibit where you can see farm animals give birth. MPR’s Max Nesterak interviews veterinarian Florian Ledermann…and witnesses both a live birth and lost children.
September 2, 2016 - MPR’s Tracy Mumford takes a look at the history of one of Minnesota State Fair’s staples…the corn dog, which has been the unofficial food-on-a-stick of the Minnesota State Fair since 1947. That's the year the Pronto Pup came on the scene. And, yes: A Pronto Pup is a corn dog, despite what you might have been told.
September 2, 2016 - MPR’s Doualy Xaykaothao reports on Hmong Day at the Minnesota State Fair. The schedule offers a kaleidoscope of events, from honoring military veterans and registering voters in the morning to Hmong dancers and rappers in the afternoon.
April 14, 2017 - MPR’s Tim Nelson reports that the original deep fried cheese curd stand at the Minnesota State Fair is going away. The founder, who started the craze in 1975, says he's too old to keep it going and the State Fair decided not to let his family take it over. Fair officials say they're looking for something new.