PEI

Dundas Queen of the Furrows pageant cancelled

There will be no Queen of the Furrows in eastern P.E.I. this year, but organizers say they will redouble their efforts to restore the pageant next year.

'We're not going to let it go'

The cancellation was announced on the fair's Facebook page last week. (Dundas Plowing Match)

There will be no Queen of the Furrows in eastern P.E.I. this year, but organizers say they will redouble their efforts to restore the pageant next year.

The Queen of the Furrows has been part of the Dundas Plowing Match and Agricultural Fair since the late 1950s, but the organizers did not have any interested participants this year.

"It's tough. Those pageants are getting less and less all the time," said fair co-president Gordon Jackson.

"We're not going to let it go. We're going to go after it again next year and try and get some girls. Maybe start a little earlier."

Plowing match remains popular

The Queen of the Furrows had participants out plowing the fields and participating in one other skill competition, with the pageant decided on total points.

Jackson said the rest of the fair will go ahead, and he is expecting big crowds. Events include the plowing match, planting, and the harvesting of last year's field.

The Dundas Plowing Match brings home many previous residents of the area, he said, and tourists enjoy watching and learning about farming as well.

The fair started Friday, and runs through the weekend.

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With files from Angela Walker