2025 Canterbury Fair is July 26th
CANTERBURY, NEW HAMPSHIRE—The 67th annual Canterbury Fair, a celebration of small-town community, will take place in the town’s historic center on Saturday, July 26th, beginning at 9:00 AM with the Woodchuck Classic 5k Road Race and 2k Chipmunk Classic Kids Run.
The Canterbury Fair will also include children’s games, face painting, a used book sale, live music, antique vehicles, demonstrations of traditional handicrafts, delicious food to satisfy every craving, and a huge “What-Not” tag sale at the nearby elementary school.
The Fair’s success depends on local organizations, such as the Sunset Mountain Fish and Game Club, which will provide the chicken barbecue. Tickets for the barbecue will be available for sale throughout the morning of the Fair.
Music will fill Canterbury Center for most of the day with performers and musicians including Mr. Aaron, Checkerberry Morris Dancers, Belmont High School Robotic Team, Lindsey Schust & The Ragged Mountain Band, and Suzuki Strings. The day’s schedule is on the website link and on distributed advertising pamphlets at local establishments.
The Canterbury Historical Society’s ongoing displays of local history along with a focus on “Summer People” (Canterbury’s history of summer boarders ) will be open throughout the day at the Elkins Memorial Building. The historic Houser Museum (one-room schoolhouse) adjacent to the town library will be open to visitors as well.
The deadline to pre-register for the Woodchuck races is noon on July 26. Registration can be done on the Canterbury fair website.
Parking will be available nearby for a suggested donation, with free shuttle service to the Fair. Canterbury Center will be closed to regular vehicular traffic from 8:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m.
Proceeds from the Fair benefit the Canterbury Fund, which aids local families in need, and the community service programs of the Canterbury United Community Church.
The Canterbury Fair as we know it today began in 1958 when the Canterbury Ladies Benevolent Society added a chicken barbecue to the “Canterbury Country Fair and Bazaar” it had been sponsoring for several years. Proceeds from the early fairs were used primarily to furnish a new community building which replaced one that had been destroyed by a fire, along with most of the town center, in 1943.
The Canterbury Fair, always the last Saturday in July, will wrap up with tolling of church bells at 4:00 PM.
For more information visit www.canterburyfair.com or email canterburyfair@gmail.com, with updates on Facebook and Instagram.