Frontier Village

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Tucked away in the southeast corner of the fairgrounds, Frontier Village gives everyone the opportunity to experience a sliver of life as the original settlers in the Kittitas Valley knew it.

Here you have a chance to watch a blacksmith at work, learn to operate a crosscut saw, buy a soda, or a pickle and some nickel candy. The area consists of historic buildings, many of which were donated by valley families. One example is the schoolhouse. The building was donated by Freta Olds and functioned as an operational school in Manastash Canyon during the early 1900's. The village was envisioned during the early 1980's by Fair Board members who wanted to create an authentic experience for fairgoers.

Don't forget to try your luck by panning for gold at the old mine shaft!

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Historic Photos

Dr. John Robbins with his wife Elizabeth and five of their 15 children pose in front of their original log cabin house built in 1878 on Springfield Farm north of Ellensburg, Washington Territory. John Robbins and his large family arrived in the Kittitas Valley in May 1878. Shown in the photograph is one of the family’s horses Old Dick. In the 1980s, the cabin was moved to the Frontier Village at the Kittitas County Fairgrounds.

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