Samuel James McKee was born near Wellesley, Ontario on July 17, 1849. By 1872, he had graduated from Toronto University. That same year he accepted a position at the Canadian Literary Institute in Woodstock, Ontario. Although he accepted this post with reservation, McKee soon found himself converted to the Baptist faith and was a true believer. In 1881, his doctor advised him to move West because of his poor health. He and his wife Laura moved to Rapid City, Manitoba and established a farm there. His brother-in-law, Rev. Davis was busy establishing the Rapid City Academy during this time, and when Davis had the chance to move to Moose Jaw, he prevailed upon McKee to take over the Academy. Under McKee's guidance the Academy flourished. By 1890, he decided that he could reach more people if he relocated the school Brandon, Manitoba, which was located on the C.P.R. line. The S.J. McKee Academy did quite well in Brandon, although it had trouble finding a permanent home. By 1899, the school was located in the Stewart Block on Ninth Street and Rosser Avenue. McKee's wife taught music, and there were always potential ministry students in his classes.
In 1899, the Baptists finally decided that they wanted a College in Manitoba that would help preapre students for potential ministry service. It was decided to locate the school in Brandon, as McKee, a staunch Baptist, already had a flourishing Academy there. The Baptists and McKee amalgamated and Brandon College was created. When the school opened in October 1899, McKee was on the Board of Directors as well as teaching Classics, Mental Science and French. He also acted as the unofficial Vice-principal of the school. McKee taught several different subjects during the next few years, and in 1910 accepted the newly created post of Registrar. He retained this position for the next decade. As well, McKee acted as the Bursar in 1911-1913, 1914-1915, and 1919-1920. He retired in 1920 and moved to Vancouver. McKee was given the title Professor Emeritus in Philosophy. He was made an honorary member of the Board of Directors in 1925.
McKee and his wife had five daughters and three sons. Three daughters that died soon after the move from Rapid City due to a typhoid epidemic. His son, George Eugene, graduated from Brandon College in 1902. A son, John Harris McKee, became the Bursar of Brandon College in 1915 after obtaining his B.A. in 1914. Another son, William Carey McKee, graduated from Brandon College in 1914, and received his M.A. in 1915. He was studying Law in Calgary when he enlisted with the Army. Carey McKee was killed in action on August 26, 1918. A fourth son, Robert Allan also attended Brandon College. He enlisted when Carey did, but he was declared medically unfit for service in Winnipeg in 1917. He eventually returned to Brandon, but was sick for a very long time. He died on Febrary 13, 1919, from a growth on his brain that had weakened him greatly. McKee's daughter Mildred also attended Brandon College. After her husband was killed in action in November of 1918, she returned home to her parents. Eventually she obtained a degree in Household Science. There is another daughter mentioned, Lydia. McKee also states in a tax return form that he has a permanently epileptic child in a home. It is not known if this child was Lydia or not. S.J. McKee died in September 1937 at the age of 88.
Custodial History
To commemorate the move of the McKee Acadamy to Brandon, Manitoba in 1890, Brandon University renamed the Brandon University Archives the S.J. McKee Archives in the fall of 1990. At that time, the McKee family was represented by S.J. McKee's grandson William, who donated the S.J. McKee papers to the Archives. Up until 1990, the records had been in his custody, having passed from S.J. at the time of his death to William's father.
Scope and Content
S.J. McKee's files are very unique. He has records detailing many aspects from Rapid City Academy and the desire for educating the West. He has a lengthy document entitled "The Beginning of our Educational Work in the West" in his records. It details the creation of Prairie College, its demise, and the building of the Rapid City Academy. There is a lot of correspondence, not just to and from S.J. McKee, but to and from his children as well. There are Land Titles papers, Mortgages, Last Will and Testaments, and various other legal documents dealing with the McKee family. There is a ninety page paper that his son, Carey, wrote in 1915 entitled "Immigrants and Their Assimilation." There are several files dealing with Carey McKee, and also with the death of Midred's husband, Robert Alexander Cunningham. The Minute Book of the Brandon College Literary Society from 1903-1905 is located in the McKee files. McKee also kept various newsclippings and certain issues of "The Western Baptist," "The Northwest Baptist" and "The Sunday School Times." As well, there are some used account and receipt books.
His records are extremely interesting in that McKee was really one of the founding fathers of Brandon College. The documentation that still exists with regard to Rapid City Academy is quite astounding, down to the legal agreement he and G.B. Davis made with Duncan L. McLaren regarding using some of his land to build the school on. His recollections on the beginnings of education in the west are clear and concise. As well, the sense of family and devotion to God are evident in almost all of the letters between family members.
James Lasby Lowes was born in Brandon on March 12, 1903, and passed away at Brandon General Hospital on August 9, 1986, after a lengthy illness. His wife Jean, his son Lasby Jr., daughter-in-law Carole, and grandsons Kirk and Rick survived him. Lowes also had one sister, Kathleen Conder, of Gross Pointe Mich.
Lowes was a dedicated employee of A. E. McKenzie Seed Co. Ltd. for 47 years, beginning February 13, 1924. Throughout his career with the Company, Lowes worked in various departments: he served as manager of the wholesale department, assistant manager in charge of Field Seed purchases, manager of sales for both domestic and export trade, and Field Seed division manager. In 1964, following A. E. McKenzie's death, Lowes became the President and General Manager of A. E. McKenzie Seed Co. Ltd.
Although he retired as President and General Manager in 1968, at the request of the Company, Mr. Lowes became Saskatchewan Sales Supervisor. In 1972, he accepted a new role in Public Relations. Here his primary task was to write a corporate history of A. E. McKenzie Seed Co. Ltd. and its subsidiary companies.
Lasby Lowes attended Brandon College and was drafted by the Detroit Red Wings. He chose to make his career as a seedsman rather than a hockey player. He served on the Board of Brandon College/University, Brandon General Hospital, the Brandon Chamber of Commerce. Mr. Lowes was a member of the Kinsman Club of Brandon and an elder in First Church United for many years. He enjoyed gardening. When he was not on the road traveling for the Company, visiting the many distributors of McKenzie seeds in Manitoba and Saskatchewan, he spent a great deal of time at the family cottage at Clear Lake.
Custodial History
In the course of preparing notes for a history of the McKenzie Seed Co., Mr. Lowes extracted documentary records from the Company files. Records taken from the Company files by Mr. Lowes remain in the historical accounts he created.
See fonds level description of custodial history of A. E. McKenzie Seed Co. Ltd.
Scope and Content
This sub-series contains documents, primarily correspondence dealing with Lowes' years as President/General Manager. The correspondence involves Premier Duff Roblin, the Company lawyer, Wm. Johnson, the Bank of Montreal, and Charles Sharpe & Co. Ltd. Further correspondence relates to trademarks, the sale of the Company, the hiring of Ted Chiswell as Comptroller of McKenzie Seeds, and the change of the Company's name to McKenzie Seeds Ltd.
Subsequent to his retirement from the President/General Manager's office, Lowes undertook the task of writing a history of the McKenzie Co. His Historical Topics cover a wide-range of subjects including the history of the Company, Canadian agriculture and the seed industry, the life and times of A. E. McKenzie, and notes on various employees of McKenzie Seeds and McFayden Seeds. The Topics also include information related to various properties and acquisitions of the Company. There is also information pertaining to the McKenzie catalogues.
The original order in which these records were acquired has not been disturbed. However, the original order appears to be quite haphazard.
To facilitate access for researchers, a summary of the arrangement of Lasby Lowes' Historical Topics and related records has been created.
The sub-series is divided into three sub sub series, including: (1) Correspondence; (2) Historical Topics; and (3) Miscellaneous.
Notes
Lasby Lowes:
President/General Manager: c. 1960-1968, 11.5 cm
Historical Topics: 1900-1983; 44.7 cm
For the most part both the handwritten and typed version of each Historical Topic can be found within sub sub series McS 2 2.2.
Finding Aid
A file level inventory of McS 2 2.2 (Historical Topics) is available.
Storage Location
RG 3 A.E. McKenzie Company fonds
McS 2 Office of the President/General Manager
Related Material
Additional records related to the Brandon Council of Women are located in the Brandon Council of Women Fonds (34-1998) in the S. J. McKee Archives.
Bertha Cunningham is a Western Manitoban artist who has studied at the Banff School of Fine Arts several summers and has painted in Winnipeg for periods under the guidance of members of the School of Fine Art. She paints mainly landscapes. (1969 inventory)
Crazing of varnish all over image, deeper alligator cracking in top middle causing distortions of paint surface (area 6 X 19 cm TL). Some paint abrasion along the frame on L side. Painting needs cleaning from dust. Frame has some minor cracks; as well
C. J. Barnes was born in Brandon, Manitoba in February 1884. His parents were native Nova Scotians who arrived in Brandon in the early 1880s. In 1884, the family settled on a homestead near the present town of Lauder. This homestead was sold in 1899, and the family moved to farm in the district of Medora. C. J. Barnes took over the operation of this farm in the early 1900s. He farmed until 1924. Barnes was educated in schools in the Truro School District and the village of Lauder. He was active in the original Territorial Grain Growers' Association.
Custodial History
This fonds was accessioned by the McKee archives in 1997. Prior custodial history is unknown.
Scope and Content
Fonds contains a pamphlet written and published by C.J. Barnes titled Seventy Years in Southwestern Manitoba. The pamphlet contains an account of life in rural southwestern Manitoba from the 1880s through to the 1940s. The pamphlet is based on a variety of sources including diaries written by Mr. Barnes' father. Fonds also includes some hand-drawn maps not included in the published version of the pamphlet, as well as four letters c.1962, between C.J. Barnes and Rev. Robert Harvey in his capacity as a columnist for the Brandon Sun.
Item is a mini-chapbook entitled "Portrait" by Michael Dennis. It is series 4, number 3 in the Dollarpoems series. The series was published by DOLLARPOEMS with the aid of a grant from The Manitoba Arts Council.
Inscription: William Davies, Industrialist. b.1831 in England, d. 1921 in Toronto. Generous benefactor of Brandon College.
Dimensions
70 X 54 cm
Size Overall
114 X 98 cm
Medium
oil
Condition
Scratch on surface in area c.. 5cm from BL corner. Minor scratches on R side of image. Frame has cracks in many areas, as well as a loss of plaster in lower R area, c.. 3.5cm. Mild loss of paint on the right inside frame arm, next to the painting sur
Primary Support
canvas
Secondary Support
no backing support for canvas; frame - wood and plaster with gild
