WASHINGTON - A dinosaur rib cage. A 7,000-pound sandcastle built with Jersey Shore sand. Two rocking chairs in an unstaffed booth plus several empty spaces.

This is the Great American State Fair.

The fair launched this week under Freedom 250, a group formed by President Donald Trump to oversee official administration events. Its launch created friction with America 250, the congressionally authorized body tasked with planning the nation's 250th anniversary. The National Mall event runs through July.

Early Friday brought modest crowds that moved quickly past security. The gateway opened onto a 110-foot Ferris wheel, the fair's sole ride, and a smaller arch like those the Republican president has featured at other gatherings.

Interviewed visitors viewed the fair as a solid concept, yet one that may have fallen short of its potential.

Standard fair attractions included goats, sheep and a calf whose mooing carried across the Mall, supplied by the Washington High School Future Farmers of America from Jefferson County, West Virginia. Soft baby chicks drew steady attention, while a cowboy show with bucking broncos was slated to honor the rise of the American cowboy.

Attendees shared excitement for states displaying their distinct identities, notable figures, industries, histories and geographic variety. They also sought a nonpartisan tribute to American togetherness.

“There’s nice people, nice events, nice family events,” said Sharyn Bovat, who lives in Florida but has stayed in the Washington area after a heart attack this year. “Half the country is divided with the other half. I wish they would create a USA 250 for all the people. I’m tired of the politics.”

She added that the arch lent a political tone. “It makes me think of Germany,” she said.

The booths, set inside structures echoing the neoclassical style of the nearby National Gallery of Art, offered slices of Americana.

Montana displayed a giant rib cage, an enlarged apatosaurus skeleton related to the brontosaurus.

Virginia traced the state's part in American history. The District of Columbia provided a large banner for signatures and a cherry-blossom tree. South Carolina featured a putting green.

Texas showed a space capsule, an Alamo facade and a Big Tex statue. Arizona's interactive display, letting visitors explore state terrain, drew the longest line.

New Jersey's booth featured an ornate sandcastle made from 7,000 pounds of Jersey Shore sand and built over four days by an artist.

Andy Walters and his wife, Kirsten, visited with their three children from Wapakoneta, Ohio, boyhood home of Apollo 11 astronaut Neil Armstrong. “I think it's nice. I wish all the states were participating,” Andy Walters said. “It's a little underwhelming but it's a great idea.”

Kirsten Walters hoped for similar events held more often and without political notes. “We’re excited to be here and participate,” she said.

Most states joined, treating the fair as a tourism chance, yet representation was incomplete.

Maine, Massachusetts and Pennsylvania declined to send delegations, citing costs, schedules or politicization worries.

Some booths, including Hawaii and Alaska, stood unstaffed. Hawaii's offered rocking chairs that tired visitors used.

Alonzo Lewis Jr. and Kelly Domizio, from Rome, New York, paused to rest.

“This was really pretty cool,” she said. “Been going to all the different states.”

Her husband saw it differently. “Was it necessary, I don't think so,” Lewis said. “It feels forced. There's so much separation.”

Domizio recalled the 1976 bicentennial. “There was a sense of pride” and unity, she said. “We are enjoying the day but it feels forced.”