T-L Photo/GAGE VOTA Belmont County Fair Board President Ed Campbell poses in front of the pirate ship ride that will be at the fair as it takes place now through Sunday.

ST. CLAIRSVILLE — When one thinks of the Belmont County Fair, they might conjure up images of rides, games, food and agriculture.

Most people probably don’t think of the 23 residents residents who make up the Belmont County Fair Board.

Fair board members have made the event happen for 175 years and intend to continue bringing it to the community for many more decades.

Director Debi Ault has served on the board for 33 years but according to Ault, her family has been involved with the Belmont County Fair Board since the inception of the fair in 1849. Ault’s son Bryan Hull also spent over a decade on the board and is currently the concessions manager.

“I can’t speak for the future generations, but my daughter has previously been on the board and is currently a 4-H adviser. All of my grandchildren have been in 4-H. I actually have a granddaughter who wants to get onto the fair board next year. So I think it is something they will continue to do, because we just all have a love for the fair and agriculture,” she said. “It’s a family affair.”

Ault’s mother, Eileen Wise, was a board member for the past 15 years but recently retired from her position. When the fair moved to its “new” location in 2010, Wise had a building constructed on the site that is called the Wise Building. It houses the open class entries for the domestic arts showcases during the fair. The Wise Building is also open year round and available for various rentals.

“It means so much to us because the Wise family has always been a part of the fair,” Ault said.

The Belmont County Fair is only one week long, but preparation for the fair takes place 365 days a year.

Fair board President Ed Campbell said that even though the fair just kicked off Monday, the board has already started working on the 2025 Belmont County Fair.

“We’ve already started calling different entertainment companies … we’ve already started getting the acts lined up and different things,” Campbell said.

He added that the board works all year long, but it isn’t just reaching out to acts far in advance to secure bookings for the following year. It is also maintenance of the grounds as well as figuring out what worked in past years and what didn’t work.

Campbell became involved with the fair by volunteering at it roughly 39 years ago. He eventually decided to become a board member.

“I’ve been involved ever since my children were small. They got into 4-H and stuff, so I started as a volunteer for several, several years and then got involved in the fair board. All together with being involved in the fair board and the volunteer side of it I probably got about 39 years,” he said.

To prepare for the fair, the board goes through several active shooter classes with the Belmont County Sheriff’s Office as well as meeting with the Belmont County 911 Call Center staff to ensure everyone on the fair board knows what steps to take in case of an emergency.

Campbell said that about a month before the fair, the board will start meeting more frequently to start mapping the fair out. The members take steps such as marking the midway out and putting everything in place for opening night.

“Our grand opening is on Monday, and our shows will start on Tuesday. From now until then we’re putting everything into place and setting everything out. We’re putting out our benches and picnic tables. There’s a lot of work that goes into it, and we work right up until the last minute to get it good to go,” he said.

The Belmont County Fair takes place through Sunday at 45420 Roscoe Road, St. Clairsville.