Cakes, carnival contests, cows and cheese: MoCo fair opens Friday 

Here’s what vendors, organizers and exhibitors are looking forward to most at this year's 'Barn in the USA' event

By

&

August 14, 2026 11:45 a.m.

Share

The annual Montgomery County Agricultural Fair opens to the public Friday afternoon, but the fairgrounds have been bustling all week with organizers, vendors and exhibitors preparing to receive visitors. 

On Thursday afternoon, people of all ages lined up outside the Home Arts Building carrying baked goods, knitwear and other handicrafts they planned to enter for a chance at winning a blue ribbon. The main office was swarming with folks looking to pick up tickets for family and friends. Kids with 4-H escorted bleating sheep from trailers into the pens they would call home for the next nine days. Among their neighbors will be the cows and calves of the Mooo-ternity Ward and Milking Parlor.

“Every year we look to have a safe fair where families can build generational experiences and keep coming back,” Marty Svrcek, the fair’s executive director, told Bethesda Today in an interview on Thursday. 

The theme of this year’s fair is “Barn in the USA,” a nod to the United States semiquincentennial. Patriotic barn decorations and two rodeo shows will mark the occasion, Svrcek said. 

- Advertisement -

Linda Harris, co-chair of the cakes division in the Home Arts building, said she plans to enter more than 30 items this year across categories including cakes, pies, quick breads, yeast breads, cookies and candies. Some of her entries, she said, were still “in process” on Thursday. 

“Even though we’re volunteers, we all bake, we all sew, we all crochet, we knit,” Harris told Bethesda Today. “So we look forward to the competition among our friends.” 

Suzette McKnight will be running 12 carnival games this year alongside her daughter, granddaughter and sister-in-law. When done right, she told Bethesda Today in an interview near her Drag-a-Fish stand, trips to the fair become a family tradition. 

“We love to come to the fair and make people happy,” McKnight said. “Our job is to put smiles on their faces, so everybody has a good memory, a lasting memory of when they came to the fair.” 

Sponsored

Maryland Dog Bite Laws: What Victims Need to Know About Liability and Compensation

Pooks Hill: Where History, Hospitality, and Community Come Together

Featured Now

Shannon Sullivan works inside what he calls “the coolest place” at the fair — the walk-in fridge behind The Big Cheese. There, 550-pound wheels of Wisconsin cheddar sat waiting Thursday to be sliced up for thousands of grilled cheese sandwiches and other cheese products for visitors to enjoy.  

“I have been at the fair for 47 years,” Sullivan said. “I took over running the cheese booth from my grandparents who were doing it before me — just one of many multi-generation families here on the fairgrounds.” 

The fair officially begins at 3 p.m. Friday and will be open each day through Aug. 22. Admission is free each day for children age 11 and younger.  

Parking is available on site for $20 per car. The fair will also offer free shuttle buses this year from the Montgomery College campuses in Germantown and Rockville.  

Digital Partners

Originally published at Bethesdamagazine