OXFORD – Community involvement has been key to the construction of a new 4-H livestock barn and the revival of the 162nd Oxford County Fair, organizers said.

Monday night’s ribbon-cutting ceremony to celebrate the 60- by 220-foot 4-H livestock barn opening and the race track’s fifth birthday with its new track-side betting parlor, complete with monitors and lounge, kicked off the countdown to Wednesday’s opening of the Oxford County Fair.

The fair will offer four days of entertainment, rides, harness racing action, live bull riding, 4-H shows, truck pulls and more.

“The community has helped to build this magnificent youth livestock barn,” said a fair organizer Suzanne Grover of the companies throughout the area that donated electrical, concrete, fencing and other assistance.

Organizers say the fair’s roots date back about 160 years and it has run continuously during that time except for a brief suspension in the 1960s when the fair was moved from the present High School fields on the Norway/Paris town line to its site off Pottle Road in Oxford.

“If it weren’t for the community and the believing in reviving this fair, it wouldn’t have happened,” said Grover, who has put in time doing everything from shoveling manure to painting to make sure the livestock barn was ready for Wednesday’s opening.

The fair, which opens at 7 a.m. Sept. 12 and runs through Saturday night when the Jenny Paquette Band takes center stage to bring the fair to a close with a blend of country, rock, pop and blues music, is one of the longest running county fairs in the state.

Wednesday will celebrate Education Day beginning with a 4-H horse show and agricultural demonstrations and concluding with a mini-truck demolition derby, the world-class trampoline routine of the Sky Riders, and the Belairs.

On Thursday, Seniors Day will feature a free senior lunch, a seniors’ fry pan throw and other activities geared toward young and old alike.

Friday marks the popular Woodsman Day and feature a number of woodsman’s competitions and events.

Saturday has been named “Heroes Among Us Day” to honor the 25 winners of the Hidden Heroes contest that has been ongoing for several months.