Huntington Beach’s country fair
A LOOK BACK
It was 1943 and the war was going badly. With many of our Huntington
Beach boys fighting in the military, morale at the home front needed
a boost.
The burdens of our townspeople were being stretched to the limits.
What with nightly blackouts, air raid drills and the threat of a
surprise attack on oil fields, it was no wonder our residents needed
an outlet for their emotions.
Going to church helped, but with the town’s Fourth of July parade
canceled, residents needed some kind of community involvement to take
their minds off the war.
This came about in a round-about way when the Huntington Beach
Garden Club began to plan their small fall festival event for their
members in 1943.
And as their ideas grew, so did the size of the event. With the
help of Bill Gallienne and several local townspeople the Garden
Club’s fall festival began to evolve into an old-time, three-day
country fair.
There would be bands, prizes, carnival rides, a carnival midway
and famous people appearing. Main Street would be decorated with corn
stalks, pumpkins and an old-fashion husking bee.
Old surreys and hay wagons would be parked at street corners to
give the business area a country look. The Pav-a-lon would be
converted into a country “corn palace” with banners and beautiful
senoritas playing guitars, singing and dancing to early California
tunes.
The idea was suggested that local merchants and residents dress in
country attire and when this was presented to the people everyone
liked the idea. Eve Druxman and Jack Robertson were in charge of the
costuming.
As plans were being made, more and more of our residents began to
take part in the event that would be held on Sept, 14 through 16,
1943.
Nearly half the town volunteered to be on some committee and there
were more than 35 committees, from Farmers Committee to Canned Fruits
and Vegetable committees to Cacti Committee, Flower Committee. Well,
you get the idea, there were a lot of committees. Gallienne, of the
Huntington Beach Chamber of Commerce, prepared a 36-page booklet
explaining the how and what you can enter into the fair.
He mailed 2,000 of these booklets to the housewives living in the
Huntington Beach area.
Even our City Council got into the spirit of a country fair by
letting the fair be held in front of the pier and the use of the
Pav-a-lon.
Huntington Beach Mayor Tom Talbert authorized the use of city
equipment and police and firemen during the three-day event. Now what
would a country fair be without a “Fair Queen” and this fair would
have one, only this queen would be chosen a little differently.
She would be chosen by which girl sold the most war bonds up to
the day before the fair began and that girl would be queen.
Seven local girls entered the contest and these girls were Mary
Louise Chamness, Florence Dale, Lee Dodge, Colleen Gotschalk,
Hildreth Clark, Florence Pederson and Eileen Riley.
By now the fears of war were pushed to the back of the mind as
everyone started pitching in to make this event a big success. The
reception committee invited personal from several Army and Navy bases
to the event. Included were Col. Bennie Bierman, Col. Dick Hanley,
Capt. Clipper Smith, Capt. Marcus M. McCallen, Major Sam Houston
Flanagan, Ensign John Hawley and baseball legend Sgt. Joe DiMaggio.
At 8 p.m. on the evening before the opening of the fair, War Bond
Chairman George J. Wheat announced that Hildreth Clark had sold the
highest dollar amount of war bonds and would be crowned queen in the
ballroom of the Pav-a-lon on opening day.
The doors of the Pav-a-lon were opened wide at 6 p.m. as more than
2,500 people would came to watch Col. Dick Hanley of the Marines
crown Clark queen of the fair.
Music for the first day was provided by the Long Beach Women’s
Symphony, the U.S. Navy Coast Guard Band and the Huntington Beach
Girls’ Chorus under the direction of Ralph Hawes.
On the second day of the fair the doors were opened at 1 p.m. and
the day was known as Long Beach Day and at 2 p.m. a baby show was
given.
People came from all over to ride the Ferris wheel and partake of
the midway treats. The Main Street merchants got dressed up in their
best country clothes. That evening the Long Beach Municipal Band
played along with entertainment by the Vera Downs singers.
On the last day of the fair was Road to Romance Day and there was
a livestock how at the corner of Main Street and Orange Avenue. At
noon, the Old Settlers Picnic was held with Gallienne showing up in a
10-gallon hat, red flannel shirt, cut away coat, cowboy boots and a
big red dahlia in his buttonhole.
George Wardwell wore a full evening attire complete with a high
silk top hat and cane.
After the picnic a Milkmaid’s milking contest was held, and after
that came a parade of livestock down Main Street followed by a dog
show. Later, the 140th Infantry Band gave a concert in the evening at
the Pav-a-lon.
Louise Jenkins of the Garden Club was thanked for her untiring
efforts at making this event so successful. And for those three
wonderful days and the weeks that preceded it, the fair brought a
measure of joy and relief that lifted the burdens of war from the
hearts of every Huntington Beach resident that year.
* JERRY PERSON is a local historian and longtime Huntington
Beach resident. If you have ideas for future columns, write him at
P.O. Box 7182, Huntington Beach, CA 92615.
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