The first meeting of the North Thompson Fall Fair Association was called by Ernie Schmidt, member of the Chamber of Commerce, at the Chinook Cove Hall early in the spring of 1950. Mr Josh Grey Agriculture Representative assisted. Seven or eight men and three ladies attended that very first gathering. When there seemed to be enough interest to try to have an agricultural fair in the fall then someone suggested that notes be kept of the meeting and the next meeting called drew a large turn out. There were numerous trips to Kamloops to the District Reps office over a very pot-holed highway to draw up the bylaws and the constitution. Ernie Schmidt, Geordie Salle, Len Johnson, Harry Leavik, Bill Stewart, Clayton Gardiner and others did a lot of the foot work. The Old Native Sons grounds and hall were sold to this new organization later for $1.00, and enthusiasm from Heffley Creek, the Squam Bay area through the North Thompson Valley to Darfield and Little Fort really grew fast for many of these farmers and crafts folks who had exhibited for many years already in the Pacific National Exhibition and Kamloops fairs (The Kamloops Fair folded during the war). 4-H was also a big factor in the promotion of this idea because the leaders wanted an outlet for their achievements. Queens for the fair were chosen by numerous methods before “the pageant” as we know it today. The Native Sons Hall burned during the winter of 1956-57 and 4-H achievements only were held in 1957. The next year a new hall was built to the plan of an agricultural building that was constructed for the crafts and veg exhibits. Ten years later it was moved in three sections to it’s new home on the present East Barriere Lake Road site, when Fadear Creek Mill exchanged properties because of needing the old site for the expansion for logs. Water was an impossibility at the old site, many holes were dug and other possibilities proved nil so the move to Barriere was good because of the closeness to water. Mr. Bob Corrigan’s class at the Barriere High School undertook to sketch the plan for the layout of the grounds. This was very much appreciated and closely followed, although many additions have been added in the 18 years since the move, as well as a lot on the Dunn Lake Road was purchased and cleared for parking, and part was leased to the Curling Rink which in turn houses all the crafts, farm and garden, baking, canning, photography exhibits of the Fall Fair. Ball games were the entertainment for the earlier fairs. Generally they were the finals for the season for all of the North Thompson ball clubs. Then gymkhanas and other horse events became popular. After moving to the Barriere area the rodeo and pony chariot races became even more popular when the rodeo facilities, built by the Barriere High School Rodeo Club and the race track was completed. The terrific success rate of the NTFF has not been due to the many beautiful Labour Day weekends with very few cloudy rainy ones, or taking in a lot of money in three days as most of it had to be paid out in the next three weeks, but to the dedicated volunteers, hundreds of them over these 39 going into 40 years. These people, old ones and young ones and in between have worked have worked not only the three or four days of the Fair, but many days of every month of the year volunteering their time, expenses of travel, gas and telephone, etc. Their rewards have been many with perhaps the greatest being that of seeing the little ones showing their first lamb or small calf, or exhibiting their pick of the hen or rooster from mom’s poultry house, to come up through the years to become 4-H leaders, committee chairpersons o executive or good citizens of the community.