Tamworth Show

The Tamworth Pastoral and Agricultural Association began as the Liverpool Plains P.A. & H. Association in 1872, with Joshua Dowe as first president. The first show was held in February 1873 on land in Peel Street lent by Abraham Cohen. A highlight was A.A. Adams’ Durham bull “Comet,” walked 127 miles to and from the event. Over 112 years, the association used four showgrounds, purchasing its present site in 1910. Its name soon evolved to the current P. & A. Association. Tamworth was an early innovator, staging a gaslit night show in 1886. Although the town had electric street lighting by 1888, full electric night shows began in 1949. Known as the “Royal of the North,” the Tamworth Show drew a record 60,000 attendees by 1980.