5 Things You Didn’t Know About the Minnesota State Fair

This year's Minnesota State Fair kicks off next Thursday and runs through Labor Day. So just how well do you know your facts about the Great Minnesota Get-Together?

For instance, did you know that this year's Fair will be the 159th version? That's right, according to the State Fair website, the very first Minnesota State Fair took place WAAY back in 1859 (the year after Minnesota became a state!) and has been running every year since then.

One of our Fair must-haves (at least for my wife) is a Pronto Pup. So, if you had to guess, just how many miles of foot-long hot dogs are eaten every year at the Fair? I guessed 10 miles but I was a little off-- the Fair site says a whopping 35 miles of hot dogs are consumed every year. (To put that into perspective, that amount stretch almost half the way between the Fairgrounds and Rochester.)

So what's the oldest amusement at the Fair? I guessed the Ferris wheel, but again, I was wrong. Ye Old Mill is actually the oldest amusement at the Fair, having made its debut back in 1915!

When I'm at the Fair, I love grabbing some of Martha's Cookies and then heading to the All You Can Drink Milk booth. Do you know how much milk to they go through in an average year? I had no idea, but it turns out they churn through about 26,000 gallons of milk each year. Which is more than it takes to fill your average swimming pool!

And finally, do you know who broke the all-time record for the most tickets sold to a single Grandstand show at the Fair? I guessed Garth Brooks, who played the Fair back in 1991 and 1992, but again, I was wrong. It was actually... Christina Aguilera, who played the Fair 18 years ago, back in 2000.