{"nrhp_refnum":"05000993","name":"Essex County Fairgrounds","other_names":[],"category":"building","location":{"address":"3 Sisco St.","address_restricted":false,"city":"Westport","county":"Essex County","state":"NY","lat":44.186283686500076,"lon":-73.44834722210909,"geom_source":"nps_gis"},"listed_date":"2005-09-07","is_nhl":false,"nhl_designated_date":null,"areas_of_significance":["Architecture","Entertainment/Recreation","Agriculture","Social History","Education"],"significance_levels":["local"],"summary":{"what_it_is":"A county fairgrounds on 3 Sisco Street in Westport, Essex County, New York, overlooking Lake Champlain. It opened in 1885 and has 23 contributing resources, including a racetrack, Floral Hall, barns, and a Colonial Revival extension building.","why_significant":"The fairgrounds is nominated as a long-running county institution tied to the agricultural history of Essex County and the Champlain Valley. Four original features from 1885 survive: the Grandstand, Judge's Stand, Floral Hall and Racetrack. The other contributing buildings, from the first half of the 20th century, are utilitarian structures that show how the fair evolved. The site was chosen for its access to the lake, highways and railroad.","narrative":"Set beside Lake Champlain in the hamlet of Westport, the Essex County Fairgrounds has hosted the county fair since 1885. The original 30 acres, now part of a 44-acre site, hold 23 contributing resources arranged around a half-mile oval racetrack. Four features date to the opening year: the racetrack, grandstand, judge's stand and Floral Hall. Floral Hall, a cruciform building with an octagonal cupola and exposed trusses, remains the architectural centerpiece and was rehabilitated in 2004. Most other buildings are simple wood-framed barns, show rings and pole sheds from the first half of the 20th century, built for dairy cattle, sheep, horses and poultry. The Colonial Revival Cooperative Extension Building, dating to about 1923, marks the main entrance. The site was chosen for its closeness to the lake, two highways and the railroad, which made it easy to bring people and livestock. Together the buildings show how the fair grew as an agricultural institution for the county.","period_of_significance":null,"architect_builder":null,"architectural_style":"No Style: vernacular; Late 19th and 20th Century Revivals: Colonial Revival","criteria":[],"status_note":"Still used as a county fairgrounds. Floral Hall was rehabilitated in 2004 and is in excellent condition. The Cooperative Extension Building is in good condition, and several barns are in fair to good condition.","vacant_flag":false,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-sonnet-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.0-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 02:51:53.408789-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/lz/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_NY/05000993.pdf"},"photo":{"url_800":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/05000993/354a120f4b-800.webp","url_1600":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/05000993/354a120f4b-1600.webp","licence":"CC BY-SA 3.0","author":"Mwanner","credit_html":"<a href=\"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Floral_Hall,_Essex_County_Fairgrounds,_Westport,_NY.jpg\" rel=\"noopener\">Mwanner</a>, <a href=\"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0\" rel=\"license noopener\">CC BY-SA 3.0</a>, via Wikimedia Commons","source_page":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Floral_Hall,_Essex_County_Fairgrounds,_Westport,_NY.jpg"},"district":{"nrhp_refnum":"100006513","name":"Westport Historic District","url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/districts/new-york/westport-historic-district-100006513/"},"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/75317767","wikipedia":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Essex_County_Fairgrounds","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q5399694"},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/new-york/essex-county/essex-county-fairgrounds-05000993/"}