The twentieth century brought diversified businesses and industries, including dairies, roller mills, coal mining, and fur ranches. The Fairview State Bank was organized in 1914, reflecting the optimism of the local economy. Yet, as Fairview approaches the threshold of the twenty-first century, agriculture and livestock raising remain the dominant ways of making a living. Unlike other parts of the county where cattle and turkey raising are the leading cash producers, sheep continue to outpace all other economies in Fairview, accounting for 46 percent of the farm and ranch operations in northeast Sanpete County.

Like most of the other towns in Sanpete County, Fairview has a rich architectural legacy. The many remaining historic structures not only inform us of the varied types of materials, crafts, and styles employed by Fairview's forebears, they also remind us of many kinds of activities that gave the town its past and present nature. The two 1920s-30s masonry LDS meetinghouses, replacing simpler, earlier edifices, speak of the continuing Mormon presence, while the two-story rock school (now a museum) and brick town hall suggest something of the town's bygone stature. The Fairview Roller Mills, one of the most picturesque industrial buildings in the county, is a monument to the agrarian foundation of Fairview's existence. Impressive business buildings remain clustered along Main Street, while houses and outbuildings of every type, style, and material dot the blocks to the east and west. Long gone are the log meetinghouse, stone fort, tall rows of poplars, and the Sanpete infirmary (or "Poor House"), but many other remnants of the rural landscape remain which identify key elements of Fairview's history and present character.

Allen Roberts