History
An annual three day fair was allowed by Charter, in Findon, as long ago as 1261. By 1650 this had become a one day sale on Holy Thursday.
The Sheep Fair proper was started by George Holford on Nepcote Green sometime before 1785. A lamb sale was held on 12th July followed by The Great Fair, always held on 14th September. Previously the sheep had been sold by private deals and the first auction sales started in 1896.
From 1925 sheep were driven in large flocks over the downs to Steyning train station for delivery but this stopped when the Steyning line was closed in the 1960's. Gradually lorries took over and sheep are no longer delivered on foot in the traditional way.
In 1940 the fair was moved by order of the War Office. It was transported by the traction engines of the Harris Fun-Fair to West Grinstead. The Harris family are still running the fair today.
There have been many changes since the fair's return to Findon, after the war. In the 1950's the date was altered to the second Saturday in September and in 1971 the July lamb sale was discontinued. Auctioneers changed to Hanleys of Heathfield and then to Lambert & Foster from Kent. Chestnut hurdles, which had replaced oak, were themselves replaced by more hygienic metal ones.
Most dramatically the breed of sheep, which used to be almost all Southdown's, were over time replaced with other breeds until in recent times very few Southdown sheep are sold and the most popular rams are Suffolk's. Visit www.findonvillage.com for more information on the village.
The Sheep Fair today.
We would like to offer you a warm welcome to the next Findon Sheep Fair & Village Festival taking place between 10th - 11th September 2010.
Sadly the traditional Sheep Auction will not take place in the foreseeable future. It seems that auctioneers find it less and less financially viable in a climate of government regulation and changed marketing practices. In addition the numbers of sheep auctioned at the fair have reduced over the years from more than 15,000 to 3,000. The auctioneers regret the loss of this, more than 200 year's old, tradition. This regret is echoed by Findon Parish Council and the organising committee.
Following our success in 2009 with the re-introduction of sheep showing and judging we shall be expanding this further to reflect it's popularity amongst the exhibitors and public alike. Up to 25 farms have agreed to bring sheep for 40 pens and there is a lot of interest by many farmers to establish more involvement in showing sheep at Findon. Please come and support the farming community. We plan to bring you an ever improving Sheep Fair & Village Festival. Please visit the entertainment page for more information.
