The Northeast Kansas Card Show sets up at the Douglas County 4-H Fairgrounds in Lawrence on Sunday, August 30, 2026, and it is the region's most reliable Sunday option. Where most Kansas City metro shows crowd onto Saturdays, this series deliberately takes the back half of the weekend — which means dealers who worked a Saturday show elsewhere roll in with fresh, unsold inventory and a strong incentive to move it before the drive home.
The fairgrounds exhibition building gives the show room to spread out. Sports cards dominate: MLB from vintage Topps through current Bowman Chrome prospects, NFL with heavy Chiefs representation, NBA, NHL, and a solid college section built around Kansas Jayhawks and Kansas State memorabilia that you simply will not find in this density anywhere else. Graded slabs are well represented, and several dealers focus on raw star cards priced for collectors rather than investors. Expect a smaller but real trading card game presence — Pokemon singles and sealed, some Magic: The Gathering, Yu-Gi-Oh! and Lorcana — plus tables carrying comics, unopened wax, pennants and signed photographs.
Doors open at 10:00 a.m. and the show runs until 5:00 p.m. on Sunday, August 30. It is a single-day event, so plan your visit accordingly. The first hour after opening and the stretch between noon and two o'clock are the busiest; the final ninety minutes are the quietest and the best time to make an offer on something you have been circling.
Admission pricing has not been published by the operator for this date, and comparable shows in the series have run free or with a low single-digit door fee. Children with an adult are admitted free. No advance tickets are sold — pay at the door if a fee applies. Confirm before you travel.
The Douglas County 4-H Fairgrounds sits at the north edge of Lawrence with a large gravel and paved lot and free parking directly outside the building. The venue is flat, single-level and stroller-friendly, and there is typically a concession window inside. Downtown Lawrence and Massachusetts Street, with its restaurants and coffee shops, are about ten minutes away.
This show is well suited to families and casual collectors — the fairgrounds setting is relaxed, prices skew reasonable, and nobody is going to rush you. It also works for regional dealers, who use it as a restocking stop, and for anyone hunting Jayhawks or Kansas high school and college memorabilia.
A few practical tips: bring cash in small bills, because fairground shows lean traditional on payment. Bring a want list and a magnifying loupe for vintage centering and corner checks. Walk the whole floor once, note prices, and then negotiate on your second pass. Ask dealers what they brought that is not on the table — a surprising amount of the good material stays in the case or the car until someone asks.
Listings, confirmed dates for the September and October editions, and organizer contact details are posted on cardshows.io. Local collector groups on Facebook also share table maps and day-of photos from this room.
