Ohio inventors the star of 2023's butter cow display at State Fair

This year's butter cow display at the Ohio State Fair celebrates four legen-dairy inventors from around Ohio.

Six butter sculptures presented by the American Dairy Association Mideast feature the classic butter cow and its butter calf, plus four dairy doppelgangers of Ohio inventors next to their inventions.

Thomas Edison, born in Milan, is portrayed with the lightbulb and phonograph he invented in the 1870s. Josephine Cochrane, born in Ashtabula County, is depicted next to her hand-powered dishwasher.

Garrett Morgan, of Cleveland, stands next to the three-position traffic light and James Spangler operates the first vacuum, which he invented in Canton. Morgan and Spangler are not Ohio natives but moved from nearby states at a young age.

"Ohio has been home to many pioneers in science and technology over the last 200 years, and this year’s butter display celebrates that rich history of innovation," said Jenny Crabtree, spokesperson for the American Dairy Association Mideast.

Three of the sculptures feature light-up displays: Edison's lightbulb and phonograph and Garrett Morgan's traffic light. The sculptors also installed a clear door on Cochrane's dishwasher, a feature sculptures had never attempted before.

It took sculptors about 450 hours to craft the sculptures, 80% of which was spent inside the 46-degree cooler that keeps the butter art from melting.

Each of the butter sculptures is made on a steel or wood base onto which the sculptors layer the butter. But you can't butter your bread with these creations – the statues are made of expired butter that isn't safe to eat.

The butter cow tradition has been around in Ohio for over a century when a butter cow and calf were entered into a 1903 butter sculpting contest. They were so popular that the tradition was eventually given a permanent venue in the Dairy Products Building at the Ohio State Fair.

The butter sculptures are now the largest display at any fairground in the country and attract over 500,000 visitors every year.

The 2023 butter cow display can be viewed at the Diary Products Building at the Ohio State Fair from July 26 to August 6 at the Ohio Expo Center in Columbus.

This article originally appeared on Cincinnati Enquirer: State Fair's 2023 butter cow display illuminates local inventors