About Us

The 97th Aksarben Stock Show will be held Sept 26-29, 2024, at Fonner Park, Grand Island, Nebraska. Today the Aksarben Stock Show is managed and produced by the Nebraska State Fair and is open to youth exhibitors and also features a national livestock judging contest.

The beef, sheep and goat shows are held at the Five Points Bank Arena in the Nebraska Farm Bureau Show Ring. The swine show is held in the Aurora Cooperative Pavilion. Youth from Arkansas, Colorado, Kansas, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Minnesota, Montana, Missouri, Nebraska, North Dakota, South Dakota, Wisconsin and Wyoming are eligible to show.

The show was established in 1928 by the Knights of Ak-Sar-Ben with a mission of "producing an annual youth livestock show celebrating the region’s agricultural heritage which educates and benefits families."

The Aksarben Stock Show moved to Grand Island, Nebraska in 2017 celebrating its 90th anniversary. It was previously located in Omaha, Nebraska under the Knights of Ak-Sar-Ben and Aksarben Foundation.

The Aksarben Stock Show’s vision is to:

Conduct a world-class youth livestock exposition.
Educate youth on production agriculture.
Raise funds for the Aksarben Grand Drive, awarded through scholarships and monetary awards.
Create a fun environment where families and youth compete and build life long friendships.

The AK-SAR-BEN Story by Arvid E. Nelson, Jr.

1 of 8

Late Twenties - Omaha was proud of the fact that it rated second in the world as a meat-packing center. The Livestock and Horse Show had been a dream of the Ak-Sar-Ben Governors for many years.

1927 - The financial success of the June race meet, the decision to hold a National Livestock Show and immediate construction of a new Coliseum signified continued progress of the AK-SAR-BEN Exposition Company, a non-profit organization.

1928 - Outstanding recognition was given the Ak-Sar-Ben Exposition Company when the federal government classified it as an educational institution because of its livestock and agricultural activities enabling it to become exempt from federal income tax.

1928 - October 12th the Ak-Sar-Ben Coliseum was opened to the public at the Ak-Sar-Ben Exposition Grounds.

1928 - November 3rd - 9th - first annual Ak-Sar-Ben Horse and Livestock Show. In place of the annual street parades and carnivals which entertained Ak-Sar-Ben visitors for more than 30 years, the Livestock Show was an innovation introduced with much pomp and ceremony.

1930s - Omaha World Herald article with photographs

1951 - 4-Hers parade their entries in the livestock show, which saw nearly 900 beef cattle on display. Photo from OWH archives

2017 - The Aksarben Stock Show moved from Omaha, Nebraska to Grand Island, NE and celebrated it's 90th anniversary.

About Us

The AK-SAR-BEN Story by Arvid E. Nelson, Jr.

Important Pages