Josh Turner Had Largest Crowd, Willie Nelson Made the Most $$

</element><element id="paragraph-1" type="body"><![CDATA[In the front office they broke down the 2011 Du Quoin State Fair (89th) into the "first fair" opening weekend and the "second fair" Labor Day weekend with softer days and nights in between.

Josh Turner sold the most tickets under the grandstand opening weekend and Willie Nelson (Friday night) made the most money for this year's fair. Huge crowds were on the grounds for the Saturday night opening and the Labor Day crowd approached that as Southern Illinois wanted a last taste of the fair before Miller Shows began packing up at 9 p.m. Monday night. Financially, the 2010 fair was one of the best on record and fair manager John Rednour, Jr. said this year's fair could approach that although all the numbers won't be in until early October.

Labor Day weekend was marked by the opening of the Southern Illinois Marketplace at the Expo Hall and an ARCA appearance by Tony Stewart.