CIRCLEVILLE – Yesterday June 4, 2018 Pickaway county fairgrounds went to work on phase one of the construction of the new county fairgrounds. In March they removed the 98 year old Sturm & Dillard 106 Locomotive. The 106 has spend its entire life here in Circleville. The locomotive was used in the rock quarries on Island road in the 1920’s. The Loco was placed on the Fairgrounds in the 1970’s and has sat there since. The Allentown and Auburn Railroad company will travel the loco to its final destination in Kutztown Pennsylvania. Auburn railroad will then restore the locomotive to running condition and use it as a attraction. The locomotive weighs 75,000 pounds about the weight of a tractor trailer truck.
The money the fairgrounds received from the sale of the locomotive they used to restore the grandstand that overlooks the horse racing oval on the fairgrounds.
Now phase on of construction has started with the destruction of two buildings on the property
Sciotopost talked to Pickaway County Commissioner Brian Stewart about the progress made on the fairgrounds. “I think today is exciting for us its the first tangible step towards the construction of the fairgrounds. All of the work that has been happening for years to this point is paying off, and it is on schedule. It’s happening now, and we wanted people to come to the fair this year and see that there is something very different. It’s the first step but a crucial first step. I think it will lead to a lot of excitement at the fair this year and it will lead to a lot of activities during the fair that will kick off a whole year of construction during the 2018 and 2019 season. The plan of the schedule by this time next year to have two show areas and five species building ready. All built in time for 2019 Pickaway County Fair. The New Fairgrounds deserve a lot of credit for cleaning up the old buildings for one more year. They have done a lot of cleaning and repairing and doing some things to be as safe and useful as they can be because the kids deserve that, but they will not hold a candle to the new buildings we are building. These buildings have been in service and unchanged since 1945, long overdue,” said Brian Stewart.
Here is a video I did before the buildings on the fairground went down. This is what they looked like and I got the chance to enter the barbershop for the last time.
