Strong Final Weekend Caps Successful Topsfield Fair 2022

TOPSFIELD, MA — As goes the weather so often go the crowds when it comes to the Topsfield Fairgrounds.

A seasonably sensational final weekend of mostly sunny skies and less-than-frigid nights led to a strong finishing weekend to the 204th Fair in its first COVID restriction-free run since 2019.

This year's edition included a record-breaking giant pumpkin, a record-breaking hot dog downer, some big-name entertainment and the introduction of a beer garden within the fairgrounds for the first time.

"People have been asking for it as long as I remember," Topsfield Fair spokesman David Thomson told Patch of the imbibing option on Tuesday. "The answer we got was always, 'no, no, no.' But they were able to do it this year. It was really well-received. People were able to enjoy it and there was not one issue with it."

Thomson said the grandstand was packed for both classic rockers Kansas and country superstar Trace Adkins on Thursday and Friday, respectively, with Chubby Checker twisting his way inside amid Wednesday's rain.

"The awesome thing about Chubby is that he has been in this business so long and is such a pleasure to work with," Thomson said. "He was more than willing to perform outside in the light rain. But he tends to draw an older crowd so out of consideration for them we decided it was best to move it."

Thomson said the giant pumpkin and racing pigs continued to be perennial crowd-pleases, while entry and exiting the fairgrounds were made easier with the use of the Fairview Farm satellite parking lot and shuttle service, as well as the new electronic ticketing system.

"The parking lot was a huge help," Thomson said. "It's a large parking lot that can hold up to 1,000 cars. People were able to pull right in there, which alleviated a lot of traffic on Route 1 to the fairgrounds.

"We even opened it earlier than we were planning at the end of the week based on the crowds."

Thomson said final attendance numbers were not yet available as of Tuesday but that the new ticketing system should make for a more accurate recording of how many folks made the trip to the Fair each day this year.

"People seemed happy with it," Thomson said of the online sales. "A lot of people took advantage of the advanced discount tickets or bought them that day once they knew what the weather would be like, so they did not have to stand in line when they got here."

(Scott Souza is a Patch field editor covering Beverly, Danvers, Marblehead, Peabody, Salem and Swampscott. He can be reached at Scott.Souza@Patch.com. Twitter: @Scott_Souza.)