2021 Minnesota State Fair comes to an end, cleanup begins

Ben Henry

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Despite a long list of challenges, Minnesota State Fair officials are calling the 12-day festival a success.

On its second Sunday, the fair had its 1-millionth visitor. For comparison, it took the fair seven days in 2019 to hit that milestone. Attendance numbers that have been shared thus far show it’s far from record-breaking but it’s still had a good turnout.

"There were pandemic challenges, there were short staffing issues, there were supply chain issues," Danielle Dullinger, a spokesperson for the Minnesota State Fair, said about the difficulties of pulling off the fair.

"We’ve done it, we had 12 days and it was amazing," Dullinger added.

[KSTP/File]

According to the fair’s website, 1,178,006 people went to the fair through the first 11 days of the fair.

On Labor Day 123,578 people attended the fair. It brought the total attendance for 2021 to 1,301,584. In 2019, 2,126,551 attended the fair.

As many do, some went multiple times. After missing out last year – and shedding a tear or two when she found out it was canceled because of the pandemic – Grace Ebert made it to the fair three times this year.

"This is the busiest day that I think I’ve seen," Ebert told 5 EYEWITNESS NEWS on Labor Day.

Despite the larger crowds, Ebert and her two friends said they felt comfortable because they were fully vaccinated.

As the fair comes to an end, it’s still hiring as the cleanup begins. Depending on their workload, officials say cleanup could last all month.