Kyle Parks & Recreation
by KERRY URBANOWICZ
With registration now open for booth vendors, barbecue cookers, 5-K runners, poker players, bass fishermen, parade participants and sponsors, I thought I should explain the event.
Communities all over celebrate their history and anniversary of formation with special events. Some call these events “Founders Day” or “Festivals.” Kyle has been calling ours the “Kyle Fair” for over 100 years.
The town of Kyle was platted and the first lots were auctioned off on Friday, October 15, 1880. We assume that the person that bought that first lot was happy and felt like dancing. Every year since, Kyle acknowledged the first lot sold with a fair the third weekend of October.
City Square Park was platted in 1880 as well. From the very beginning, the park was a gathering place for citizens, merchants and music-makers. Although records of the very first organized event are not available, records and even some photos of downtown Kyle show large crowds on the park dating back to the early 1900s.
Before WWII, records indicate that the Kyle Fair showcased plays, musicians, carnivals, merchant vendors and even a parade. Parades have been a part of the Kyle Fair since horse and buggy days. The wagons and buggies were decorated with flags and went through downtown by the park.
Kyle even had its own band, the Kyle City Band, which was composed of men and boys of the community. They would play at the Kyle Fair and performed in the old city hall and local schools.
Vendors have been a part of the Kyle Fair from the very beginning. Kyle was a resting point for merchants, or “drummers” as they were called, from all over the state. During the fall, on their way to the Texas State Fair, the train carrying merchants from areas south would stop in Kyle. They would get off the train, walk to the square and set up their wares. The crowds at the Kyle Fair would flock to see the new products being offered from all over.
Today, as in the beginning, the Kyle Fair is held the third weekend of October. There is a parade, musicians play and vendors sell items from all over. There are still carnivals, cook-offs and crowds celebrating the founding of this great community – Kyle.
