The State Fair might be over, but for one Maryland man, the fun never really ends.
Robert Shipley has been with the Maryland State Fair for 72 years and says he does not plan on going anywhere.
“I started in 1946 as the office boy in the draft horse office and maybe in 1946 draft horses might have been the only horses shown at the state fair. And of course as an 11-year-old I swept the office out in the morning, handed out numbers to exhibitors, and if we got all of that done, we got to sell programs because they had programs for the entire fair and the programs cost a quarter and we got to keep a nickel for everyone we sold. That was really nice!” he giggled.
Now, Shipley has a building with his name on it and he is the Co-Superintendant and Horse Show Announcer for not only the state fair but other fairs in the area as well.
“I enjoy seeing exhibitors get excited when they win something, I also enjoy seeing so many good people and good horses.”
With a microphone in his hand and the overly apparent joy for watching young riders learn how to ride, you can tell that Shipley feels at home when at the fairgrounds.
