The idea of the Keystone Centre was first mentioned in 1958, at a meeting of the board of directors of the Manitoba Winter Fair. The Manitoba Winter Fair wanted a new facility because the old Wheat City Arena had a leaking roof and a deteriorating west wall. The old facility also had limited space and the Winter Fair felt it needed more space for expansion. The Provincial Exhibition of Manitoba also had problems with their facilities, such as old barns and poor display areas. The idea of the Keystone Centre was put on hold until 1969, when the boards of the Provincial Exhibition and the Manitoba Winter Fair joined together as the Provincial Exhibition Association of Manitoba and the Wheat City Arena was sold and demolished. The original estimate for the cost of the Keystone Centre facilities was $4.5 million and funding would be proportioned so that the federal and provincial governments would each put in one-third of the money, with the rest coming from local donations. The financial campaign for the Keystone Centre began in 1970, and construction began in November 1970. The grand opening of the Centre was in March 1973, and coincided with the Royal Manitoba Winter Fair of that year.
Custodial History
This fonds was accessioned by the McKee Archives in 1998. Prior custodial history is unknown.
Scope and Content
Fonds contains many folders full of correspondence, financial statements, meeting minutes and other documents relating to the development and construction of the Keystone Centre from 1970-1974, including those from the Keystone Executive Committee, as well as the Building Committee. Fonds also contains one folder that pertains to the Brandon Area Agricultural Development Survey from 1959. This folder contains the names and locations of all farmers in the Brandon area in 1959. The Brandon Area Agricultural Development Survey was created in 1959, in order to make farming in the Brandon area more profitable. The survey was aided by Doane Agricultural Service from St. Louis, Missouri, who had success creating agricultural development programs in the United States. Fonds also contains folders from the Provincial Exhibition with correspondence, pamphlets, estimates, and studies from the 1960's. There is also one folder belonging to the Manitoba Winter Fair, which contains correspondence and financial statements relating to the Wheat City Arena. Fonds also contains information pertaining to the proposals made in the 1960's, for the building of the Keystone Centre, as well as one folder about the Keystone campaign from 1970-73. There is also one folder about the opening of the Keystone Centre, which contains newspaper clippings and guest lists. Finally, the fonds contains information about a court case involving Albert Bobyk and Robert Stewart. Stewart was the project manager for the Building Committee and Bobyk worked on the Keystone Center. The fonds includes a report about the trial of the two men who were charged with fraud involving their work on the Keystone Centre.
These documents were created between 1910 and 1972 by the administration of the Provincial Exhibition of Manitoba.
Custodial History
See sous-fonds RG2SF1 for custodial history.
Scope and Content
This series includes various contracts and agreements between the Provincial Exhibition of Manitoba and companies hired for the fair. These companies include musicians, entertainment, stage hands, concessions and more. The series also includes inventories, by laws, the 1920 Act of Incorporation. Most of the documents are from 1957 to 1962.
Notes
Inventory of documents in the series is available in the printed finding aid.
Storage Location
RG 2 Provincial Exhibition of Manitoba Association fonds
RG2SF1 Provincial Exhibition of Manitoba
The minutes were created by the summer fair Board of Directors and the various committees and sub-committees associated with the Board.
There is ample evidence in the minutes of the Provincial Exhibition of Manitoba that the administrative structure was largely one by committee. By 1903, there were at least nine separate committees. These committees were Grounds and Buildings, Sports and Attractions, Public Comfort, Advertising and Printing, Privileges, Gates, Finance, Excursion and Transportation, and Prize List. Of these committees only Public Comfort, Privileges, and Excursion and Transportation were comparatively short-lived. These committees are not mentioned after 1903, 1920, and 1925, respectively. The remaining six committees all survive in various forms to this day.
In 1908 there is mention of a Speed committee, which dealt with the racetrack at the fairgrounds. This committee was in existence until the early 1970s, when racing, along with the condemned grandstand, was discontinued. By 1915 there is mention of a Reception committee that continues on until the mid-1970s.
In the 1920 minutes several committees are mentioned. The committees included Concessions, Grandstand, Accommodation, Police/Security, and Wild Birds and Animals. The Wild Birds and Animals is not mentioned in further minutes, but Grandstand and Accommodation are mentioned into the mid 1950s. Both the Concessions and Police/Security are mentioned until the late 1970s.
In 1925, there are several new committees mentioned. They include Heavy Horse, Light Horse, Beef Cattle, Dairy Cattle, Sheep, Swine, Farm Boy’s Camp, Poultry, Grains and Grasses, Horticulture, Dairy Competition, Machinery Row, Natural History, Fine Arts and School Exhibits, and Livestock Parade. The enormous expansion of committees is a reflection of the expansion of the exhibition. Almost all aspects of farming now had its own committee, and an effort to help young people continue in farming was made with the forming of camps for farm boys. All of these committees were long lived, although not necessarily with the original title. From approximately 1930 to 1940, all of the Cattle were lumped together, but by 1950 a Commercial Cattle committee was mentioned, and by 1974 there was also a Special Agriculture Display and Exotic Breeds. By 1979 there were Steer Show and Bull Sale committees. Around 1930, a Calf and Colt Competition committee was also added.
In 1930 there is mention of a Dining Room committee, but it is not mentioned again. In response to changing society, a Car Parking committee was created around 1935. This committee remained under various titles through to today. Another short-lived committee, Grandstand Gates, is mentioned from about 1935 to 1940. For some time there was also a Band Competition committee. It is mentioned from 1940 to 1945, and then not again until 1979.
In 1950 there was a Dogs committee, but no further mention is made of this committee. From 1955 to 1960 there was a separate Fire committee, until it was amalgamated with Police/Security. In 1955 two new committees are mentioned. These are the Trade Fair and Homecraft committees. While the Trade Fair is not mentioned after about 1960, the Homecraft committee seems to have been in existence until the mid 1970s.
A 4-H and Junior Activities committee was formed around 1960 to take the place of the Farm Boy’s Camp. This committee continued the exhibition’s attempts to keep young rural people interested in farming.
In the minutes for 1970, two more committees are mentioned. They are the Food and Beverage and the Bees and Honey committees. While one would suppose that the Food and Beverage Services committee was a new title for the Concessions committee, the Concessions committee is also mentioned. The Bees and Honey committee is mentioned until about 1974 in committee minutes.
By 1974 three more committees are mentioned in the minutes. They were the Baby Fair committee, which was a petting zoo, the Expansion, Project and Grants committee and the Midway committee. While the Midway and Baby Fair committees lasted until at least the late 1970s, the Expansion, Projects and Grants committee is not mentioned past the mid 1970s. Also mentioned in 1979 are the Pork Congress, Family Fair, Entertainment, and Exhibitor’s Lounge committees.
Custodial History
See sous-fonds RG2SF1 for custodial history.
Scope and Content
The records consist of minutes created by the Board of Directors, Shareholders, and various committees and subcommittees of the Provincial Exhibition. It should be noted that while the minutes are extensive, they are not organized according to committee. Rather, they are organized by the year in which they were created.
Notes
Inventory of documents in the series is available in the printed finding aid.
Storage Location
RG 2 Provincial Exhibition of Manitoba Association fonds
RG2SF1 Provincial Exhibition of Manitoba
The records are a product of the administrative staff of the Provincial Exhibition of Manitoba.
Custodial History
The records were housed with the PEM and the MEA until c1986 when they were transferred to the S.J. McKee Archives at Brandon University.
Scope and Content
The series contains letters regarding complimentary tickets in 1951 and 1955. As well, the series contains examples of tickets, badges, and ribbons used or worn by guests and exhibitors to the provincial exhibitions from 1955 to 1973. There is also a pin from the 1909 Inter-Provincial Fair.
Notes
Part of RG2SF1. Inventory of documents in the series is available in the printed finding aid.
Storage Location
RG 2 Provincial Exhibition of Manitoba Association fonds
RG2SF1 Provincial Exhibition of Manitoba
Many of these records were donated to the Board by exhibitors and participants in the fairs. Some are advertisements sent to the Provincial Exhibition Board by businesses such as Conklin Shows. Professional photographers, who were likely hired by the Board, generated others. As well, Brandon Sun photographers took a large number of the photos throughout the century. In the 1980s, the Sun photos were reprinted and then the reprints were added to the Exhibition’s collection. Privately owned photos were also reprinted and added. Publishing houses generated some photographs, probably as services to participants and organizers of the fairs. Finally, the Canadian and Manitoba governments created a few of the photos.
Custodial History
Exhibitors and participants in activities at the summer fair donated many of these records to the Provincial Exhibition Board. The Manitoba Provincial Archives in Winnipeg housed other records, of which the McKee Archives acquired copies. Most of the records were stored in the offices of the Provincial Exhibition Association of Manitoba until they were brought to the McKee Archives ca. 1986.
Scope and Content
Series consists primarily of black and white photographs pertaining to the Provincial Exhibition. Subjects of the records vary over the century, but overall subjects included are buildings and grounds, horses, livestock, exhibits, youth activities, entertainment, and dignitaries. Almost all of the materials are in excellent condition.
BUILDINGS AND GROUNDS
The graphics that depict the buildings and grounds of the summer fair are both ground and aerial photos. From the records generated between 1900 and 1930, there are pictures of the Crystal Palace, the Wheat City Arena, the Experimental Farm, the horse barns, the racetrack, and the grandstand. The pictures dating from the forties through the sixties are of the racetrack, the grandstand, the Provincial Display Building, the Trade Fair Building, and the Main Gate. The records from the 1970s and the 1980s feature the Keystone Centre, cattle buildings, and horse stables.
HORSES
Graphics from the 1890s through the 1980s feature various light and heavy horses, from single horses to eight-horse teams. Pictures dating from the first fifty years of the fair are of stallion and purebred shows. Also depicted are racing events such as chuck wagon, bike, and single rider races. Graphics of equestrian events like jumping and hackney classes date from World War II until the 1980s. Dating from the fifties to the seventies are photos of children's events like costume classes and pony competitions. Finally, pictures of barrel racing and horse pulling competitions date from the 1970s and 1980s.
LIVESTOCK
Livestock photos, which date throughout the twentieth century, are mostly of cattle and swine, but there are a few pictures of buffalo and sheep. Cattle photos depict purebreds such as Holstein, Jersey, Hereford, and Angus. Swine pictures are of Yorkshire sows and boars, as well as of market hogs.
POULTRY AND EGGS
Graphics depicting poultry and egg shows date between 1950 and 1985.
EXHIBITS
Photos of exhibits taken throughout the century feature home-craft displays such as clothes and quilts. Tack rooms, farm implement shows, and club displays, like those of the Brandon Lion's Club, are also consistent throughout the period. Other graphics of exhibits are particular to certain years: in the late 1940s through the 1950s auto shows are featured; and from the fifties to the eighties commercial exhibits are prominent.
YOUTH ACTIVITIES
Graphics of children and teens' activities form a large part of MG 1. From the 1920s and 1930s, there are pictures of boys and teens who attended the Farm Boys' Camp. Photos taken at the Agricultural and Homemaking School in the late 1940s and early 1950s depict male teens learning about mechanics, welding, and electricity. Photos of female teens at the camp depict weaving, sewing, and cooking classes. In the records dating from 1957 to the 1980s, photos feature both pig and calf scrambles. As well, some pictures are of male teens participating in seed, poultry, and judging courses. Photos of female teens during these years show them participating in such activities as clothes-making, 4-H Queen contests, and fashion shows.
ENTERTAINMENT
Entertainment pictures include graphics of the midway, the carnival and travelling acts, parades, and miscellaneous events. Pictures of the midway are both aerial and ground photos, and date from 1913 to the 1970s. Ferris wheels and carousels are the main rides featured until the 1960s, after which many motorized rides like the Wild Mouse and the Tidal Wave are prominent.
Carnival pictures throughout the century include shots of aisles along which several attractions are set up. Photos of clowns and other costumed people are numerous. Graphics of travelling acts depict parachutists (1920s), follies (1950s), exotic dancers (1950s), trained animals (1950s-1970s), singers and bands (1970s-1980s), and trapeze artists (1970s).
Parade photos date throughout the century, and feature pipers, horses pulling carriages, people riding horses, clowns, soldiers, floats, and members of various clubs.
Miscellaneous events graphics include pictures of horseshoe throwing competitions, square dancing shows (1950s), fiddling contests (1970s), smash-up derbies (1980s), and tractor pulls (1980s).
FIRST NATIONS PEOPLE
There are seven photos of First Nations people at the summer fair. In all but one of the pictures, they are in traditional costume. Depicted are pow-wows, parades, a female teen sewing a mukluk, and tee-pees. These records date from 1914 to 1969.
DIGNITARIES
Pictures of dignitaries are of members of the Provincial Exhibition committees and boards; federal, provincial, and municipal politicians who attended the summer fair; and various business, medical, and judicial representatives. Especially notable are the group photos of the Board of Directors for the years 1894, 1900, 1941, 1949, 1951, 1952, and 1968.
The graphic materials of RG2SF1 are useful for many purposes. For one, they offer a rich visual history of the fair. Agricultural historians will find poultry, horse, livestock, horticultural, and farm implement images informative. Such images describe how farming has changed through the last century. The records offer many clues into the cultural history of Brandon and surrounding area. The nature of the carnival, for instance, changes. At the turn of the century, attractions of various booths were not advertised overtly; one had to pay before they were given hints as to what they were going to view. By the Second World War, however, attractions’ exteriors were more garish. Because the carnival was more open in its advertisements, one can determine that the boundaries between the private and public shifted in the first forty years of the twentieth century.
The pictorial history of the exhibits at the fair reveals much about the city’s culture. The pictures from the post-World War II era, for example, are indicative of the period’s climate of consumerism: a commercial display building was built and commercial exhibits were added to the displays of the fair. Also signified in the postwar photos is the emphasis upon family values that pervaded the fifties; for instance displays of home-crafts became prominent in these years.
Social historians will find in these records a vibrant portrait of the social composition of twentieth-century Brandon. The community’s leaders, for example, are represented in the pictures of the Boards of Directors. From these photos, one can ascertain the social characteristics of Board members: white, male, and middle class. Parade photos are also indicative of social composition, as organizations from all classes of society participated in parades. Agricultural clubs, unions, women’s organizations, and church groups are just a few of the entries featured in the parade pictures.
Historians of gender will find that throughout the fairs’ years definitions of femininity changed. In the early fairs, women are shown in their booths at home shows, demonstrating their association with the private sphere. During the Second World War, some photos start to appear of women doing secretarial work. After World War II, however, gender norms constricted. Pictures of female teens taking classes at the Agricultural and Homemaking School depict them learning about how to run a well maintained home: they learn about sewing, cooking, and weaving. In the seventies, gender boundaries again shifted: for example, female teens began to participate in the previously male-only calf scramble events.
Finally, these records are useful for any historian of Brandon and area history. There are thousands of people from the region featured in these records. Different places and buildings in Brandon are also a prominent part of the collection. Together, the pictures of RG2SF1 offer a vivid history of both Brandon and the Provincial Exhibition.
Storage Location
RG 2 Provincial Exhibition of Manitoba Association fonds
RG2SF1 Provincial Exhibition of Manitoba
Related Material
Pictures of the Provincial Exhibition may also be found on the National Archives of Canada website. The Western Canadian Pictorial Index in Winnipeg, Manitoba, houses additional graphic records of the summer fair.
Arrangement
Item-level descriptions of the graphics of RG2SF1 through RG2SF4 are located on a
searchable database. This database is entitled “Brandon Photographs” and can be read using Microsoft Access. “Brandon Photographs” is located on a 3½ floppy disk entitled “Provincial Exhibition Association of Manitoba fonds Series 9” included in this finding aid. The description of each photograph on this database includes the following information: accession number, title, date, place, physical description, scope and content, notes, creator, and copyright. By searching the database, individual photographs can be located easily. See the printed finding aid for instructions on how to use the photograph database.
Graphics for RG2SF1 through RG2SF4 are located in boxes. Graphics larger than 24 x 35 cm are located in the image mapcase, which is located in the reading room. The graphics are filed chronologically by accession number. The arrangement is as follows:
Provincial Exhibition of Manitoba Association fonds; RG2SF1-RG2SF4, Series 9
Boxes 1 through 15, as follows:
Box 1 EX0001 to EX0125
Box 2 EX0157 to EX0263
Box 3 EX0265 to EX0399
Box 4 EX0400 to EX0499
Box 5 EX0500 to EX0599
Box 6 EX0600 to EX0699
Box 7 EX0700 to EX0799
Box 8 EX0800 to EX0899
Box 9 EX0900 to EX0921
Box 10 EX1000 to EX1099
Box 11 EX1100 to EX1199
Box 12 EX1200 to EX1299
Box 13 EX1300 to EX1399
Box 14 EX1400 to EX1499
Box 15 EX1549 to EX1859
The records were created by a member of the administrative staff of the Provincial Exhibition of Manitoba.
Custodial History
The scrapbooks were housed at the PEM and MEA until c1986 when they were transferred to the S.J. McKee Archives at Brandon University.
Scope and Content
The scrapbooks mainly contain newspaper clippings that deal with the Provincial Exhibitions of various years. Most pictures and articles that appeared in various newspapers during this time are included in the scrapbooks.
Notes
Part of RG2SF1. Inventory of the documents in the series is available in the printed finding aid.
Storage Location
RG 2 Provincial Exhibition of Manitoba Association fonds
RG2SF1 Provincial Exhibition of Manitoba
See Administrative History RG2SF1 Provincial Exhibition of Manitoba.
Custodial History
The scrapbooks were housed at the PEM and MEA until c1986 when they were transferred to the S.J. McKee Archives at Brandon University.
Scope and Content
The file consists of various records that in some way involve the Provincial Exhibition of Manitoba, but do not belong to a specific series. There are newspaper clippings, a cartoon, a file believed to have originated with the Schidlof family, and some letters.
Notes
Inventory of the documents in the series is available in the printed finding aid.
Storage Location
RG 2 Provincial Exhibition of Manitoba Association fonds
RG2SF1 Provincial Exhibition of Manitoba
See Administrative History for RG2SF1 Provincial Exhibition of Manitoba.
Custodial History
The records were housed with the MEA until c1986 when they were transferred to the S.J. McKee Archives at Brandon University.
Scope and Content
The series include various files from the Provincial Exhibition from 1980 and 1982. The contents include staff meetings, mailing lists, insurance, contracts, tenders, trophies and ribbons, animal events and shows, exhibits, results, etc.
Notes
Inventory of documents in the series is available in the printed finding aid.
Storage Location
RG 2 Provincial Exhibition of Manitoba Association fonds
RG2SF1 Provincial Exhibition of Manitoba
This series is a product of the Publicity committee of the Board of Directors. The collection has minutes from this committee from 1903, when it was known as the Advertising and Printing committee, until approximately 1979. The name change occurred in the 1920s.
Custodial History
The records were housed with the MEA until c1986 when they were transferred to the S.J. McKee Archives at Brandon University.
Scope and Content
The series contains copies of the news releases that went out to various forms of media before, during, and after the Provincial Exhibitions from 1984 to 1990.
Notes
Part of RG2SF1. Inventory of documents in the series is available in the printed finding aid.
Storage Location
RG 2 Provincial Exhibition of Manitoba Association fonds
RG2SF1 Provincial Exhibition of Manitoba
See Administrative History RG2SF1 Provincial Exhibition of Manitoba.
Custodial History
The records were housed with the PEM and the MEA until c1986 when they were transferred to the S.J. McKee Archives at Brandon University.
Scope and Content
This series contains records from the horse races from 1935 to 1949. These ledgers contain information regarding the horse, the horse’s owner, who entered the horse, who is riding or driving the horse, where the horse is from, the color, sex, gait and age of the horse, what race he is entered in, and what prize money is to be won. As well, the series contains the original results files from 1984 and 1985. These files include the results of several different events and competitions, and include information on the exhibitor and exhibit, as well as the prize money to be collected.
Notes
Inventory of documents in the series is available in the printed finding aid.
Storage Location
RG 2 Provincial Exhibition of Manitoba Association fonds
RG2SF1 Provincial Exhibition of Manitoba
The Prize Lists and Programs are products of the Prize List Committees and the Programs Committees respectively. The committees were attached to the Board of Directors. The history of the committees can be traced from 1903 to 1979 by using Appendix 1 in the printed finding aid.
Custodial History
See sous-fonds RG2SF1 for custodial history.
Scope and Content
The series consists of five boxes containing the prize lists and programs from the summer fairs. The prize lists and programs encompass virtually all events held at the summer fair. The programs include daily programs, as well as the programs for specific events and competitions. The competitors for each class are also listed. The prize lists include all classes and list the amount of prize money or the prize to be won in each class.
Notes
Inventory of documents in the series is available in the printed finding aid.
Storage Location
RG 2 Provincial Exhibition of Manitoba Association fonds
RG2SF1 Provincial Exhibition of Manitoba
The Southwest Branch of the Manitoba Genealogical Society was established in 1978. The Branch was formed following a meeting with members of the Manitoba Genealogical Association formed in 1977. The organization was created to assist individuals interested in doing genealogical research through the provision of genealogical data and archival resources. Since its creation the Southwest Branch has also issued a newletter and published a series of cenusus summaries based on the 1901 Canadian census.
Custodial History
These records were donated to the McKee archives in 1990 by J.D. Wall on behalf of the Southwest Branch of the Manitoba Genealogical Society.
Scope and Content
Fonds includes transcripts of the records transcribed from cemetery headstones located in cemeteries throughout southwestern Manitoba. Each transcript includes details about the cemetery records and all details including names, dates, and inscriptions from each headstone. The collection includes a "Cemetery Transcript List" detailing those cemeteries for which transcripts exist. Transcripts include those for the following cemeteries: Alexander, Birdtail Sioux Indian Reserve, Blenheim Church, Glencoe, Boissevain, Brandon, Brandon Hills Church Cemetery, Brookdale, Carberry District, Coultervale, Elgin, Elkhorn, Humesville, Lauder, Kerfoot (Gregg Cemetery), Icelandic Gravesite (Tilston), History of Kingsley Cemetery near Somerset, Madford Cemetery, Old Medora Cemetery, Melgund, Millford Cemetery, Noble Cemetery, Methven , Millord Cemetery, Roseville Anglican Church Cemetery, St. Savior's Anglican Church, St. George's Anglican Church, Rounthwaite, Souris (Glenwood Cemetery), Skalholt, Wellwood, Woodville (Lund, Kola, Bennett, Two Creeks), Patterson (near Nesbitt), Sparling (near Justice), Tilston (near Sinclair), Royal Canadian Air Force Memorial (20 miles north of Rivers).
The Odd Fellow Lodge in Minnedosa was created in 1884. Membership was open to white males over the age of 21, who were in good health and had good moral character. The organization was established as a mutual friendly association to provide social and financial support to its members. According to its Constitution, OddFellow members have five duties: to visit the sick, to relieve the distressed, to bury the dead, to educate the orphan, and to aid the widow. The organization existed until 1991.
Custodial History
This fonds was accessioned by the McKee Archives in 2000. Prior custodial history is unknown.
Scope and Content
Fonds consists of minutes from Minnedosa Odd Fellow meetings from 1884-1991. There is also one book kept by the Sick Committee from 1924-1949, in which the committee kept track of sickness and injuries among members and what each sick or injured man received in wages lost from the lodge. The fonds also includes a roll call book from 1884-1920. There is also a member and visitor register for the years 1972-1980, and an envelope of approximately 40 completed application forms from the 1940's and 1950's. Finally, the fonds includes a minute book of the Patriarch Militant IOOF of Brandon, Manitoba, which covers the years 1909 to 1922.
The Brandon Assisted Passages Association was created in 1911, for the purpose of providing loans to "english speaking artisans" [sic] who wished to immigrate to Canada and work in Brandon, MB. In 1913, the Association was renamed the Brandon Imperial Home Reunion Association. The Association continued to operate and provided passage assistance in the form of loans to many immigrants until loan defaults mounted during World War I. After 1917, no further loans were given.
Custodial History
This fonds was accessioned in 1997. Its custodial history prior to this is unknown, but it was at one time in the posession of a H.R. Hoffman, and well as Richardson & Bishop Ltd. in Brandon.
Scope and Content
Fonds consists of a minute book and a single page letter. The minute book is a record of every meeting of the B.A.P.A./B.I.H.R.A. and includes the names of the board members, the names of the applicants (in some cases their addresses), and the amounts loaned. In some instances, the fonds provides a documentary record of loan repayment.
The Brandon Art Club was founded in November 1907, and operated in an art studio on the top floor of the Brandon College Women's Residence. The club appears to have been the creation of Miss. H. Hancock, who became the Director of the Department of Art at Brandon College c. 1907. The club moved to larger facilities made available at the First Methodist Church; the organization remained there until sometime during the Great War when the club relocated to St. Paul's Presbyterian Church and then in 1921, to the Prince Edward Hotel. The club's first public art exhibitions were held at the Prince Edward Hotel. Art classes were held for the first time in 1928. In 1968, the Brandon Art Club merged with the Allied Arts Center, which had been formed in 1959. The Allied Arts Center was located at 1036 Louise Avenue. In April 1984, the Allied Arts Center was moved to new facilities at the Arts Center of Western Manitoba located at 638 Princess Avenue. In 1989, it was renamed the Art Gallery of Southwestern Manitoba, and began to function as a "professional, regional art gallery." The Art Gallery of Southwestern Manitoba relocated to 2-710 Rosser Ave. c. 2001.
Custodial History
These records were created at different times between 1907 and 1993, and remained in the possession of the administration of the above mentioned organizations until May 2001, when they where donated to the McKee Archives.
Scope and Content
Fonds contains administrative records, minutes, personal files, correspondence, newsletters, photographs, summaries of collections and exhibits, scrapbooks, programs, submitted papers, and other miscellaneous records. All are a record of the growth and evolution of the Art Club, its administration, and of the art community in Brandon.
The A.E. McKenzie Company fonds (RG 3 MG 1, 1.3) located in the McKee Archives contains some records, primarily correspondence and minutes, relating to the Brandon Allied Arts Council.
The OddFellows has a long international history as a mutual assistance society for men. OddFellow Lodges were open to white males over the age of 21, who were in good health and possessed good moral character. Upon joining an OddFellow's Lodge, a member received social and financial benefits. The Constitution of the Subordinate Lodges in Manitoba, 1899, notes that OddFellows Lodges were obliged to teach the importance of fraternity. Under the organization's constitution, lodge members assumed five obligations: to visit the sick, to relieve the distressed, to bury the dead, to educate the orphan, and to aid the widow. The Progress Lodge of the Basswood OddFellows was created in 1910; it continued as a group until early 1955, when it amalgamated with the Minnedosa OddFellows. The Progress Lodge of the Basswood OddFellows included men of many different occupations and social classes including, farmers, merchants, ministers, teachers, agents, carpenters, grain buyers, clerks, and laborers.
Custodial History
The records of the Basswood Oddfellows Lodge were in the possession of Donald McNabb, who for many years was an active member of the Minnedosa Oddfellows. He donated the records to the McKee Archives in June 2000.
Scope and Content
Fonds consists of five books. The first book is a membership list from 1910-1948. The list includes the members' names and occupations, the date that they joined the lodge, and their status within the hierarchy of the lodge. The other four books consist of minutes for the years 1910-16, 1916-25, 1935-44, and 1945-54.
Frank Robb was Assistant Secretary Treasurer for School District of Brandon No. 129 and Curator of the B.J. Hales Natural History Museum exhibition for Brandon's 75th Anniversary (1957). Robb left Brandon ca. 1969 and relocated to Minaki, Ontario.
Custodial History
Frank Robb sent the slides to Fred McGuiness ca. 1986. McGuiness gave them to Eileen McFadden at the McKee Archives in April 1986.
Scope and Content
Fonds consists of 155 slides taken by Frank Robb, an inventory for the slides prepared by Robb and a letter from Robb to Fred McGuiness regarding the slides and memories of Brandon ca. 1950s.
Martin Kavanagh was born in Wicklow, Ireland in 1895. He was educated in Wexford, Dublin and London. Following his arrival in Canada in 1923, Kavanagh was employed as the Principal of Treherene High School. In 1929, he joined the staff of Brandon Collegiate Institute. He taugh Latin and Geography at the Collegiate until 1963. In 1946, Kavanagh published The Assiniboine Basin: A Study of Discovery, Exploration and settlenment. In 1963, he published La verendrye - His Life and Times. Martin Kavanagh died in 1987.
Custodial History
Fonds remained in the possession of Kevin Kavanagh and James Wall following Martin Kavanagh's death. Wall donated his portion of the fonds to the McKee Archives in November 2004. Kevin Kavanagh donated his portion of the fonds in December 2004.
Scope and Content
Fonds contains an unpublished autobiography written by Martin Kavanagh and several draft narratives for a slide presenation based on Kavanagh's biography of La Verendrye. Fonds also contains one file of business correspondence c. 1971.
The Binscarth Women's Institute began in 1928, as a division of the Manitoba Women's Institute. It was organized for rural women to come together in a social setting. The members of the Institute participated in fund raising for community projects initiated by the Institute. The Institute also undertook to organize community events. The last meeting of the Binscarth Women's Institute took place in 1967. The organization was never formally dissolved.
Custodial History
This fonds was accessioned in 1997 by the McKee Archives. Prior custodial history is unknown.
Scope and Content
Fonds contains minutes, financial records, and other material created by the Binscarth Women's Institute from its creation in 1928, to its final gathering in 1967. Aside from minutes and financial records, the fonds contains records of the Canadian Centennial celebrations of 1967, planned by the Institute.
Related women's institute collections in the McKee Archives include:
Manitoba Women's Institute; Minnedosa Women's Institute; Cordova Women's Institute; Clanwilliam Women's Institute; Rathwell Women's Institute; Strathclair Women's Institute; Crocus Women's Institute; Southwest A Region - Manitoba Women's Institute; Douglas Women's Institute
