Collection Guide
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Guide to the California Fairs Collection
MS 009
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Table of contents
Description
The Western Fairs Association, the California Joint Committee on Fairs Allocation and Classification, and Louis S. Merrill,
former director of the Western Fairs Association gave the California Fairs Collection, one of the major archival collections
on fairs and fairs management in the Western United States, to Cal Poly in 1982. In addition to extensive material on the
management of fairs in California, the collection also contains information on fairs in other Western states, as well as foreign
fairs and world fairs.
The Fairs Collection contains archival and printed material created in three separate offices: Western Fairs Association,
a non-profit trade association; Division of Fairs and Expositions, an agency of the California Department of Food and Agriculture;
and the Joint Committee on Fairs Allocations and Classification, a legislative group comprised of seven senators and seven
assembly members. In addition, material collected through the years by Louis S. Merrill, director of Western Fairs Association
from 1945-1972, has been added to the collection. An additional gift was made in 1999.
Background
Western Fairs Association
Extent
94 boxes, one flat file
Restrictions
Restrictions on Use and Reproduction
In order to reproduce, publish, broadcast, exhibit, and/or quote from this material, researchers must submit a written request
and obtain formal permission from Special Collections, Cal Poly, as the owner of the physical collection. Researchers should
also consult with an appropriate staff member regarding literary or other intellectual property rights pertaining to this
collection.
Photocopying of material is permitted at staff discretion and provided on a fee basis. Photocopies are not to be used for
any purpose other than for private study, scholarship, or research. Special Collections staff reserves the right to limit
photocopying and deny access or reproduction in cases when, in the opinion of staff, the original materials would be harmed.