The activity level has been steadily increasing at the Washington Parish Fairgrounds.

On Monday night, Fair Honoree Mike Henley was honored with a banquet at Franklinton High School, hundreds of people attended the opening ceremonies and contests for the 96th annual Washington Parish Free Fair last night, and today thousands are expected for the first full day of the 2009 fair.

Weather forecasters say the cool, clear weather of the early week will warm up a bit as the fair unfolds, and a front is predicted to bring a 50 percent chance of rain Thursday. But the rain chance is only 20 percent today, and fair fans are praying the front stalls over Texas or dissipates altogether. Still, boots and rain slickers are at-the-ready. Many feel the fair is far too special to be ruined by a bit of precipitation.

Mike Henley, 2009 Washington Parish Fair Honoree, accepts a plaque of recognition from Evelyn Jones, Honoree Chair, during a banquet held in his honor at Franklinton High School Monday. Henley is the current Hospitality Chairman and a past president of the Washington Parish Fair Association. Advertisement

Today the fair parade, which rolls at 10 a.m., will ensure that everybody in Franklinton is well aware of what’s happening at the fairgrounds. Of course, nearly 100 years of tradition and lots of public and private displays, not to mention the preparatory participation of people throughout the parish, have already established mid-October as fair time in Washington Parish.

Now that time is here.

In this parish with one of the largest free fairs in the nation, which attracts visitors from far and wide, the community pretty much shuts down and hangs a sign in its collective window, “Gone to the Fair.”

Schools in both the Washington Parish and Bogalusa City systems will be closed Wednesday, Thursday and Friday.

The Washington Parish Library will close all day Wednesday and Saturday, and will close at noon Thursday and Friday.

Businesses and government offices will also take time off for the fair, so it’s best for anybody who intends to get some work done to call ahead and make sure the doors are open before they make a trip.

While the local working population might diminish throughout the rest of this week, the numbers of people in Franklinton will certainly swell as men, women and children gather amidst the color and joyous clamor, with the savory aromas of fair food mixing with the happy sounds of laughter, music and celebration in the tree-graced air at the Washington Parish Fairgrounds.