Fairs Act 1871

The Fairs Act 1871 empowered the Secretary of State for the Home Department in the United Kingdom to, on petition, make orders for the abolition of fairs. Such provision was made at this time by Parliament because many fairs traditionally held in early Victorian England were, according to the preamble to the act, held to be

unnecessary,
the cause of grievous immorality, and
very injurious to the inhabitants of the towns in which such fairs are held

Fairs abolished under the act included Ickleton Fair in Cambridgeshire[1] and St Matthew's Fair in Bury St Edmunds, Suffolk.

References

Salzman, L.F., ed. (1948). "The Priory of Ickleton". A History of the County of Cambridge and the Isle of Ely: Volume 2. Victoria County History. pp. 223–226.CS1 maint: ref=harv (link)

Text of the Fairs Act 1871 as in force today (including any amendments) within the United Kingdom, from legislation.gov.uk.

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