Cold weather kept hundreds away from the State Fair grounds yesterday, the opening day of the 45th annual exhibition of the Maine State Agricultural Society. Overcoats and gloves were not out of place and in fact were worn by many patrons.

Along the busy midway at the State Fair there are many features controlled by so-called fakirs and amusement proprietors. It is around these entertainments that excitement is often created by some marvelous stunt or some unexpected happening. The first day’s happenings along the row were unusually interesting including as they did the interment of a man by a Hindu hypnotist, and the attempted escape of Azar, the wild man.

50 Years Ago, 1956

More than 30,000 persons thronged the midway, exhibits and grandstand yesterday afternoon and evening as the Maine State Fair opened for its 101st season.

“This is the best Labor Day attendance we have had in six years,” said John J. Bourisk, president and treasurer.

The fair had more than 15,000 paid admissions in the morning and afternoon and Bourisk estimated the evening crowd was even larger. He credited the enlarged facilities, bigger midway and perfect weather with bringing out the largest crowd in recent years.

25 Years Ago, 1981

Twin City homeowners can work now to prevent their trees from being defoliated by gypsy moth caterpillars next year.

In 1980, gypsy moths ate their way through more than 11,000 acres of trees in the Lewiston-Auburn area. September is the time of year egg masses laid by adult gypsy moths can be detected and either removed or destroyed, according to George Labonte of the Maine Forest Service.

Labonte said homeowners can coat the egg masses with creosote to destroy them. “The sooner they start creosoting, the better of they will be,” he said. New eggs can be differentiated from older, winter-killed egg patches, Labonte said, by their darker brown color.