Decline
In the late eighteenth century, the popularity of the fair began to decline, partly due to the arrival of canals and improved roads leading to the decline in the importance of rivers as a means of navigation. The fair only lasted a fortnight, and the amount of income it generated for the city had fallen. By the nineteenth century, the fair served more as a means of entertainment than being of economic importance, now only a few days in length. As the Victorian town grew, the common became surrounded by poor housing, and the rich visitors became disinclined to visit a potentially dangerous area. The Midsummer Fair, on the other hand, was in a more convenient central location and the Stourbridge Fair fell out of favour.
Stourbridge Fair continued until it was held for the final time in 1933. On this occasion the fair was opened by the Mayor of Cambridge, Florence Keynes (mother of John Maynard Keynes), "in the presence of a couple of women with babies in their arms and an ice-cream barrow."
Read more about this topic: Stourbridge Fair
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