Fair on the Square Welcomes Summer Crowds Back to Delhi

Folks enjoyed the traditional Irish music scene by The Stoutmen Quartet

DELHI — Pleasant summer weather and clear skies helped bring a steady crowd to Delhi's Fair on the Square on Friday evening as residents and visitors gathered around Courthouse Square for another week of the long-running community tradition. After weeks of oppressive heat and lingering Canadian wildfire smoke, temperatures in the mid-70s created ideal conditions for families to enjoy an evening outdoors. The weekly festival continues every Friday in July from 5 to 9 p.m., featuring live music, food vendors, local organizations, children's activities, and entertainment centered around the village green. 

Children lined up for turns on the towering portable rock climbing wall while others bounced between games and activity stations spread throughout the square. Local vendors and information booths filled the sidewalks surrounding the Delaware County Courthouse as neighbors greeted one another and visitors explored what the community had to offer.

The evening was part of this year's America 250 celebration, with patriotic decorations, an expanded fireworks display, and a festive atmosphere highlighting the nation's 250th anniversary. At the gazebo, the Stoutmen Irish Quartet entertained the audience with energetic performances of traditional Irish music, drawing listeners from lawn chairs and picnic blankets throughout the park. 

Jeremy Fitch, co-chair of the Fair on the Square planning committee and deputy mayor of the Village of Delhi, said the event has become one of the area's longest-running summer traditions."This has been going on for 52 years," Fitch said. "It's a great community event."

While attendance appeared close to normal, he noted that several other festivals across the region may have drawn some visitors elsewhere.

"We're about average," Fitch said. "We might be down a little bit, but there are also a lot of other things going on in other communities. The weather really hasn't been our favorite this summer because it's been really hot, but tonight is gorgeous."

The evening concluded with fireworks sponsored by Delaware National Bank, continuing a tradition held on the first Friday of the festival each July.

Fitch also encouraged visitors to return for the season finale on Friday, July 31, when Fair on the Square will feature its annual soapbox derby and the increasingly popular trailer races. “People decorate five to eight foot trailers and race them through an obstacle course," he said. "The soapbox derby comes down Fourth Street Hill. It's a lot of fun."

With comfortable weather, live music filling the gazebo, children climbing high above Main Street, and families gathering throughout the square, Friday evening offered another reminder of why Fair on the Square has remained a summer tradition in Delhi for more than five decades.