The fair first took place in the year 1890 and consisted of some minor exhibits in Santa Ana and a horse race. From 1890 to 1894 the fair was run by the Orange County Community Fair Corporation, but was then taken over by the "Orange County Fair Association, Inc". Early fairs mainly consisted of horse races and livestock shows, but around 1900 new carnival-like attractions were added and the fair become a yearly occurrence. The fair was located in Santa Ana, except for a brief interval after World War I, when it was moved to Huntington Beach.