Meeting on Fair Green against the abolition of the fair

Meeting on Fair Green against the abolition of the fair

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Date Photo Taken 12th August 1906
Area Mitcham
Copyright 1 W.M. Edwards
Picture Reference Mit_​Events_​Fair_​6-3
Original Format Photo
Notes / History Gathering at a meeting on “Fair Green” to protest against the abolition of the Mitcham fair.

The fair dates from the Tudor period, and it is claimed that Elizabeth I issued a Royal charter authorising an annual fair, but there is no evidence of this. There have been many attempts to ban the fair, due to concerns over petty crime, and vandalism, and the most serious threat to the fair came in 1906 when trustees for the Mitcham Common Conservators petitioned the Home Secretary. The Showmen's Guild staged a protest meeting and the fair was granted a reprieve. The fair was relocated to Three King's Piece in 1924.

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