Jack Stothard was born on February 16, 1932 in Brandon, MB. He attended public schools in the city (Central School, Park School, and Earl Oxford) and graduated from Brandon Collegiate Institute (BCI). Stothard married Velma Pollock in 1957 and together they had two daughters: Debra and Kimberly. Stothard was employed in the plumbing and heating business until 1960, when he joined Manitoba Hydro. In the course of his employment with Manitoba Hydro, he became Station Superintendent of the Brandon Generating Station. Stothard retired in 1995. Stothard was a member of the Canadian Numismatic Association, the Canadian Association of Token Collectors and the Toronto Postcard Club. Jack Stothard died on November 3, 2021 in Brandon, MB.
Custodial History
Accession 1-2003 was in the possession of Stothard until donated to the McKee Archives in 2003. Accession 12-2006 was acquired by Lawrence Stuckey at some point after the photograph was taken. Stuckey later sold a copy of the photograph. This copy was later acquired by Jack Stothard in the course of his collecting of Brandon postcards. Stothard donated the image to the McKee Archives in 2004. Accession 8-2007 was prepared by Jack Stothard in the course of 2007. He provided a copy to the Archives upon its completion. Accession 8-2008 was in the possession of Fred McGuinness until he gave jit to Jack Stothard in February 2008. Stothard donated the records to the McKee Archives on February 12, 2008. Accession 18-2008 was donated to the McKee Archives by Stothard on August 18, 2008. Accession 11-2009 was donated to the McKee Archives by Stothard on February 20, 2009. Accession 4-2012 was donated to the McKee Archives by Stothard on August 24, 2011. Accession 4-2013 was donated to the McKee Archives by Stothard in March 2013. Accession 8-2016 was donated to the McKee Archives by Stothard on January 21, 2015.
Scope and Content
Accession 1-2003 contains brief research reports prepared by Stothard on various topics concerning historical Brandon. These include: a listing of hotels, inns and motels that have operated in Brandon since the 1880s; reports dealing with the Café Aagard, Central United Church, the 1913 Dominion Exhibition, Brandon, the Empire Hotel, Brandon’s Central Steam Heating System, the Post Office and the Clement Block. It also contains one booklet: Facts About Brandon: An Industrial Survey of the City of Brandon. Winnipeg: Department of Industry and Commerce [n.d.]
Accession 12-2006 consists of one photograph of the Great Northern Engine 208, built by Rogers Locomotive Company 1887. Cylinders 18 x 24, Drivers 63". G.N. line Church's Ferry, N.D. to Brandon, Manitoba. Opened 1906, Closed 1936.
Accession 8-2007 consists of a brief typed report entitled "The Day the Lights Went Out in Brandon - Strike of 1919" by Jack Stothard. Document provides an account of the sources and delivery of hydro electric power to Brandon beginning in the early 1900s and the brief power outage at the beginning of the Brandon General Strike May 25, 1919.
Accession 8-2008 consists of "The Brandon Sun Challenge Cup" ledger, which contains two b/w photographs, newspaper clippings and information on the history and first race (1908) of the cup; 3 additional b/w photographs of different races; and the Brandon Old Timers Association record book (c. 1900).
Accession 18-2008 consists of a copy of Stothard's Brandon Postcards index. The index is divided into various sub-headings and consists of colored reproductions of postcards in Stothard's collection. The index contains pages that were discarded by Stothard as he updated his inventory, therefore the index is only up to date as of August 18, 2008.
Accession 11-2009 consists of a typed research report entitled "Brandon Police Department Stations and Locations" by Jack Stothard. The report outlines the location of the Brandon Police Department from 1882 - 2008, and also includes a section on "What the Future Holds."
Accession 4-2012 consists of pages for Stothard's Brandon Postcards index (18-2008) and a photocopy of a Brandon Municipal Railway ticket.
Accession 4-2013 consits of eight binders of handwritten notes/facts about Brandon compiled by Jack Stothard. The notes are a collection of names, places, things, events and items related mostly to the first 100 years of Brandon (1882-1982), although the notes continue into the 2000's. Some notes centre on the late 1930's to early 1950's during the period of Stothard's youth. The information in the binders was taken from a variety of publications, while some notes are Stothard's own comments. A list of sources, as well as a cross reference index for all eight binders, can be found in Book No. 1.
The accession includes: Book No. 1 - Notes of Brandon (A to B); Book No. 2 - Notes of Brandon (C to F); Book No. 3 - Notes of Brandon (G to O); Book No. 4 - Notes of Brandon (P to Z); Book No. 5 - Notes of Brandon: Churches, Hostpitals, Hotels; Book No. 6 - Notes of Brandon: Police Department, Fire Department; Book No. 7 - Notes of Brandon: Brandon City Council, City of Brandon etc.; Book No. 8 - Notes of Brandon: Brandon College/University, Brandon Schools, ACC, Brandon School Board. Accession also includes pages from Stothard's Brandon Postcards index (18-2008).
Accession 6-2016 consists of local history books, pamphlets, bakery tokens, local magazines, one binder containing handwritten notes/facts about Brandon compiled from the Brandon Sun's "Looking Back" column, and an accordian file box containing newspaper clippings about Brandon.
The accession includes the following local history books: Betty Watson's "One Day in Brandon Manitoba 9/9/99" (Brandon, Manitoba: Bart Art Books, 1999); P.N. Breton's "Popular Illustrated Guide to Canadian Coins, Medals, &. &.," (Winnipeg: Canadian Numismatic Publishing Institute, 1963 [reprint]); "Facts About Brandon: An Industrial Survey of the City of Brandon," (Province of Manitoba: Department of Industry and Commerce, [1946]); The Polish Gymnastic Association Sokol's "75th Anniversary: From the Past to the Future!" ([Brandon, Manitoba: Polish Gymnastic Association Sokol, 1988]); and Brandon Kinsmen Club's "'Together...Once Again': A History of the Kinsmen Club of Brandon, Manitoba, 1925-1975 (Brandon, Manitoba: The Historical Committee of the Kinsmen Club of Brandon, 1975).
Pamplets and magazines include: Brandon Generating Station (1957) and (1969), The Brandon Quota Club presents...A Century in Revue (1982), Canadian Rail No. 168/July-August 1965 [featuring Brandon Municipal Railway], Prairie City Issue No. 3/1994, and Prairion May/June 1997.
The binder is titled Book No. 9 - "Year by year: miscellaneous items from 1969 to 2000"; an asterik (*) indicates notes have been made on each subject or item in the other Books. Each section is housed in
The files in the accordian file box have been rehoused and include the following topics: banks, Brandon 125 beer, Behlen Industries, breweries, Brandon Shoppers' Mall, calendars, Canadian Motors Ltd., Canexus/Nexen, Canada Games - Summer and Winter, Canadian Tire, CKX Radio & TV/CKLQ, Corral Centre, flour mills, hospitals, Keystone, Maple Leaf, Fred McGuinness, miscellaneous, A.E. McKenzie, people, railways, Simplot, Westman Recycling (new facility), weather-storms-floods, and extra copies of postcards.
Notes
Description by Christy Henry. Accession 4-2013: Book No. 1 contains a photocopied photograph of Aagaard's Cafe, photographs of the Dominion Bank and Barney's Drive Inn and a photo reproduction of the Bass Building. Book No. 2 contains a photograph of the Provincial Goal. Book No. 3 contains photographs of T. Eaton Company (4 construction photos) and a photo reproduction of tents on the Exhibition grounds (c. 1940). Book No. 4 contains photoraphs of the Oak Theatre and Western Motors. There are also photopied photographs of The Fun Shop.
Greenway was located seven miles east of Baldur in southwestern Manitoba. The hamlet started out as a branch point in a railway spur and took its name from Thomas Greenway, one of the early premiers of Manitoba. The Greenway Fair was held annually in Greenway until 1973, when it was moved to Baldur where better facilities were available.
Custodial History
The records were donated to the Archives by Glen Olmstead prior to 1997 (approximately 1990). The fonds was originally in the possession of Doris Stone.
Scope and Content
Fonds consists of newsclippings, a membership to the Greenway Agricultural Society, a paper napkin from the 60th Anniversary (1914-1974) of the Greenway United Church, "The History of Greenway 1889-1975", the program for the Manitoba Centennial Service 1970 held at Glenora Anglican Church, Greenway Agricultural Society prize lists from 1923, 1945-1951, 1953-1954, 1957-1990, two publications on the standards for judging foods, clothing and handicrafts at fairs and exhibitions and a copy of the program for the Greenway cairn dedication.
The Brandon Hills Busy Bees was formed in 1916 by eighteen women. The aim of the group was to assist with the war effort during World War One. At the end of the war it was decided to carry on the club and do community and welfare work. The Busy Bees met twice a month and, during World War Two, one meeting a month was devoted to Red Cross work.
In 1969, the younger members of the Brandon Hills Busy Bees decided to form their own organization called the Brandon Hills Community Fireflies.
The remaining members of the Busy Bees continued in their work until they disbanded as a society on September 14, 1988. At their last meeting it was decided to donate their records to the McKee Archives (minutes September 14, 1988).
Custodial History
In the minutes for the September 14, 1988 meeting of the Brandon Hills Busy Bees, Mrs. Mollie Baker made a motion to donate the record books of the organization to the Archive at Brandon University, and for Mrs. Nell Baker and Mrs. Lillian Coate to take them there. The motion was seconced by Mrs. Jean Kreller. Prior to their donation to the McKee Archives in 1988 the records were in the possession of members of the Brandon Hills Busy Bees.
Scope and Content
Fonds consists of minute books with membership lists, accounts, newsclippings, correspondence, and reports, recipies (Treasurer's BK 1917-1919), treasurer's books, donation records, 2 photographs (1916 and ca. 1970s), a history of the Busy Bees 1916-1976 and calendars for the Womens' Auxiliary to the Grain Growers (Oakville, MB) for 1916-1918.
The mintue book for 1976-1981 also contains the minute book of The Red Cross Emergency Unit, Brandon Hills for December 1943-1947.
Notes
Description by Christy Henry.
Storage Location
2006 accessions
Storage Range
2006 accessions
Related Material
Albert Angus Murray McPherson collection (21-2006)
Fonds consists of minutes, the pages of the charter dinner guest book, "Go for the Gold" membership marathon instructions and poster, and a scrapbook containing photographs, momentos and a history (summary) of the Priarie Horizons Toastmistress Club 1976-1982.
Notes
Name tags and pins culled. Description by Christy Henry.
Fonds consists of correspondence, newsclippings, reminiscences, historical information about Grand Valley, name and address lists for students and teachers, invitations to Grand Valley School District reunions (1935 and 1968), the program for the dedication ceremonies and reunion picnic (1968), and the guest book for the 1968 reunion and cairn dedication. The latter includes 3 photographs.
This record group was artifically created in January 2007 by Tom Mitchell and Christy Henry of the McKee Archives.
Scope and Content
The record group consists of various fonds and collections concerned with the political, cultural, social, and educational life of western Manitoba. See the Subject Access field for a list of titles.
32.5 cm of textual records
21 photographs, various sizes
Material Details
Includes 5 audiocassettes, 1 scrapbook, 2 maps, 2 theatre programs, ca. 40 postcards, ca. 25 brochures and programs, ca. 20 posters
Physical Condition
Very good
History / Biographical
Stephen Adolph Magnacca was born in Winnipeg, Manitoba, on 12 October 1902. He joined the Winnipeg Highland Cadets at the age of twelve. In 1940 he was posted to Brandon, Manitoba, where he opened the A4 Training Camp. After the Second World War, Magnacca was transferred to the militia from active service and became a hospital manager with the Department of Veteran Affairs. He resigned in 1947.
Although he left the service, Magnacca remained interested in military matters. For the next three decades, he attended functions at CFB Rivers and CFB Shilo. He also collected clippings about the activities of the Canadian militia. As well, Magnacca was interested in civic affairs. In 1961 he was elected mayor of Brandon, a position he held until 1969. Many of his mayoral projects were connected with the military, including an attempt to build a new road to CFB Shilo, an effort to prevent the closure of CFB Rivers, and the coordination of a Freedom of the City Ceremony. In 1967, Magnacca was made honorary colonel of the 26th Field Regiment of the Royal Canadian Artillery.
A construction boom in the city marked Magnacca’s term as mayor. Throughout the sixties, Magnacca was instrumental in the building of the Keystone Centre, the Western Manitoba Centennial Auditorium, a new city hall, and the residential subdivisions of Riverheights and Kirkcaldy Heights. Magnacca’s business interests aided the development of these subdivisions—during this time he was president of Magnacca Real Estate and general manager of the Magnacca Housing Project.
Besides being a colonel, a mayor, and a president of a real estate company, Magnacca held numerous other titles. These included at different times president of the Brandon Lions Club, president of the Royal Canadian Legion Brandon Branch No. 3, treasurer of the Brandon Progressive Conservative Association, and director of the Canadian National Institute for the Blind in Brandon. In recognition of these efforts, Magnacca was named a member of the Order of Canada in 1973.In the middle of the seventies, Magnacca was active in historical pursuits. He became president of the Assiniboine Historical Society and helped to establish the Brandon Daly House Museum. To prevent Brandon’s Prince Edward Hotel from being demolished, he formed a protest group called “Save the Eddy.” In his spare time, he wrote unpublished accounts of local political figures and collected various artifacts.
A member of St. Matthew’s Cathedral, religion was important to Magnacca. Also important to him were hard work, efficiency, and hierarchy. He was a British loyalist and was devoted to public service and political life. As mayor, he prized industrial and urban development. Much of his public life was dedicated to furthering awareness of governmental and industrial activities.
Magnacca’s wife, Grace, played an integral role in her husband’s career, attending numerous networking and volunteer functions, and often organizing his activities. They had two children, Patricia (Coleman) and Allan. On 4 August 1980, at the age of seventy-seven, Stephen Adolph Magnacca passed away due to heart failure.
Custodial History
Little is known of the custodial history of the fonds. On 1 May 1995 Magnacca’s Thomas Mayne Daly collection and Magnacca’s Manitoba Historical Society papers were deposited in the Archives.
Scope and Content
The fonds consists of minutes of meetings; correspondence with politicians and military officials; newspaper clippings of military affairs; documents about governmental and military celebrations; notes on Louis Riel; a manuscript about Thomas Mayne Daly and other local politicians; papers of the Daly House museum; issues of nineteenth-century Brandon newspapers, and various historical artifacts.
The fonds is valuable for researchers interested in Brandon city council history 1882-1969, regional military history 1955-1975, and general Manitoba history 1882-1981. For social historians, this fonds is important because it demonstrates which actions and which beliefs gave Magnacca access to his many esteemed positions. Historians of gender will discover that Magnacca had a specific definition of masculinity that permeated all his activities in the public realm.
The fonds is divided into four series, including: (1) mayoral papers; (2) historical interests; (3) military interests; and (4) photographs.
Notes
Description by Tom Mitchell. Biographical sketch: Information in the biographical sketch comes from the fonds itself, as well as from two articles of the Brandon Sun: “Steve Magnacca warmly recalled,” Tuesday, 5 August 1980, p. 1; and “Brandon loses one of its finest,” 5 August 1980, p. 3. Biographical information about Stephen Adolph Magnacca is located in the Biography Files of the McKee Archives.
Associated material: Brandon Sun: “Man for the Sixties,” 30 December 1969; “History Comes Alive,” 15 June 1978; “Tenure Appointment,” 18 October 1978; “Steve Magnacca warmly recalled,” Tuesday, 5 August 1980, p. 1; “Brandon loses one of its finest,” 5 August 1980, p. 3; and “Magnacca,” 9 August 1980, p. 16, located on microfiilm in the John E. Robbins Library at Brandon University.
Conservation
Original processing of records and preparation of finding aid by Donica Belisle (22 July 1999)
Finding Aid
Patricia Coleman, daughter of Stephen Adolph Magnacca, provided the funding for the creation of this finding aid.
Storage Location
1998 accessions
Related Material
Twenty-four file drawers at the Brandon Daly House Museum contain records donated by Magnacca that deal with local political, military, and economic history.
See fonds-level description of the Stephen Adolph Magnacca fonds.
Custodial History
See fonds-level description of the Stephen Adolph Magnacca fonds.
Scope and Content
Series consists of inaugural speeches, quarterly reports, documents about the closure of CFB Rivers, documents about Magnacca's proposal to build a new road to CFB Shilo, and documents about military and governmental celebrations in Brandon during the 1960s.
Storage Location
Stephen Adolph Magnacca fonds - Box 1
Storage Range
Stephen Adolph Magnacca fonds - Box 1
Arrangement
Box 1
1.1 Clipping: “City Getting Black Eye in Rural Areas?” [1963]
1.2 Notes from the mayor’s office 1964-5
1.3 Mayoral speeches 1964-5
1.4 Documents re: closure of CFB Rivers 1966-9
1.5 Papers of the Special Committee of the Future of CFB Rivers 1966-1968
1.6 Minutes of meetings re: clusure of CFB Rivers 1966
1.7 Clippings re: closure of CFB Rivers 1966-75
1.8 Correspondence re: closure of CFB Rivers 1963-9
1.9 Mayor’s office notes re: CFB Rivers [1966]
1.10 Documents re: proposal to build road to CFB Shilo 1962-9
1.11 Correspondence re: aircraft displays 1969
1.12 Documents re: Freedom of the City Ceremony 1967
1.13 Documents re: Squadron 408 1962
See fonds-level description for Stephen Adolph Magnacca fonds.
Custodial History
See fonds-level description for Stephen Adolph Magnacca fonds.
Scope and Content
Series consists of antiquarian objects, such as postcards and theatre programs; an anonymous manuscript entitled "There's Something About British Israel;" clippings about Louis Riel; documents about Thomas Mayne Daly, notably Magnacca's manuscript entitled "Our First Mayor;" and documents of the Daly House Museum.
Storage Location
Stephen Adolph Magnacca fonds - Box 2
Storage Range
Stephen Adolph Magnacca fonds - Box 2
Arrangement
Box 2
2.1 2 Brandon Mail newspapers 1884
2.2 Postcards and invitations 1888-1911
2.3 Theatre programs from London, England 1896
2.4 1 Citizen’s Examiner newspaper 1926
2.5 Clippings re: Coronation Day 1937
2.6 Clippings re: Louis Riel 1967-72
2.7 Scrapbook about Manitoba history [197-]
2.8 Biographical information about T. Mayne Daly 1962-79
2.9 Biographical information about T. Mayne Daly [1978]
2.10 Biographical information about T. Mayne Daly 1978
2.11 Manuscript: “Our First Mayor,” by S. A. Magnacca 1978
2.12 “Our First Mayor” and a pamphlet about Daly 1979
2.13 “Our First Mayor” and a clipping re: H. Mayne Daly 1978
2.14 Correspondence re: publishing of “Our First Mayor” 1978
2.15 Documents of the Daly House Museum 1977-9
2.16 Documents of the Daly House Museum 1978-81
2.17 Correspondence of Grace Magnacca and the Daly House Museum 1981
2.18 Documents of the Manitoba Historical Society 1978-9
2.19 Manuscript: “Something About British Israel,” anonymous [191-]
2.20 Documents re: St. Matthew’s Cathedral 1952-63
See fonds-level description of the Stephen Adolph Magnacca fonds.
Custodial History
See fonds-level description of the Stephen Adolph Magnacca fonds.
Scope and Content
Series consists of clippings about military activities, especially those of soldiers; audiocassettes of speeches and radio broadcasts; documents about celebrations at Shilo; and newsletters of the Brandon Flying Club.
Storage Location
Stephen Adolph Magnacca fonds - Box 2
Storage Range
Stephen Adolph Magnacca fonds - Box 2
Arrangement
Box 2
3.1 Audiocassettes of British broadcasts and local mayoral speeches [196-]
3.2 Photocopies of The Quill [1916 and 1919] and a speech to university students about the military [196-]
3.3 Clippings re: S. A. Magnacca and soldiers 1961-75
3.4 Clippings re: military activities 1935-75
3.5 Clippings re: military activities 1956-75
3.6 Documents re: governmental celebrations 1964-9
3.7 Programs of military functions 1967-78
3.8 Brandon Flying Club newsletters 1974
3.9 Posters and documents of Shilo celebrations 1967-752.1
See fonds-level description Stephen Adolph Magnacca fonds.
Custodial History
See fonds-level description Stephen Adolph Magnacca fonds.
Scope and Content
Series consists of 21 photos. Included are pictures of Stephen Adolph Magnacca as mayor (1961-1969), Freedom of the City photos (1967), and a print of Thomas Mayne Daly (ca. 1880s).
31 cm textual records;
1 b&w photograph - approx. 50 x 20cm (torn in half);
1 ribbon from the International Pool Conference of 1928
History / Biographical
Leslie Victor Robson was born in Deleau, Manitoba in 1893. Following graduation from the Manitoba Agricultural College in 1915, he began a career in farming near Deleau, Manitoba. Robson married Edna Chapman in 1917. He was active in farm organizations, the co-operative movement and the Cooperative Commonwealth Federation. Robson focused his farming activities on raising purebread polled herefords. His stock was exhibited across Canada and the United States and sold in Great Britain, Japan and Czechoslovakia. In 1977, he was made a member of the Canadian Hereford Honour Roll. Leslie Victor Robson died in 1977.
Custodial History
This fonds was donated to the McKee Archives in 1995 by Clarke M. Robson of Deleau, Manitoba.
Scope and Content
This fonds contains booklets and issues of newspapers from the Canadian prairie provinces concerning the CCF, the Independant Labor Party, the UFM, the Canadian farming co-op movement, Manitoba Pool Elevators, and the early NDP. Also included are publications of the CCF including "The Commonwealth," the Canadian Department of Agriculture, the League for Social Reconstruction, the NDP, the UFM, and Manitoba Pool Elevators. The single photograph is a group picture of mostly men taken at the International Wheat Conference of 1926 in St. Paul, Minnesota. It includes Colin H. Burnell, Fawcett W. Ransom, and Dick Mahoney.
The Cinema Club of Brandon was formally created in May 1954, and operated for two and one-half years before dissolving due to lack of interest. The club was formed for the purpose of providing private screenings, on a non-profit basis, of films that normally would not have been exhibited in commercial theatres in Brandon. Films had to be assessed by the club membership as outstanding in quality. During its existence, the club sponsored the screening of two to three movies every second Sunday.
Custodial History
This fonds was accessioned by the McKee archives in 1997. Prior custodial history is unknown.
Scope and Content
Fonds includes a minute book that contains a record of each meeting held by the Brandon Cinema Club and a list of the elected executives. It also includes a file of newspaper clippings from the Brandon Sun about the Cinema Club.
Gabriel Richard Rowe was born in Coleman, P.E.I. in 1897. In 1918, he enlisted in the Canadian Army. After the Great War, he moved to Viscount, Saskatchewan were he was principal of a high school. In 1924, Rowe moved to Brandon where he served as principal for various schools until his retirement in 1964. G.R. Rowe attended the University of Manitoba graduating with a Bachelor of Arts in 1935, a Bachelor of Education 1952, and a Master of Education degree in 1957. Rowe also studied at the University of Minnesota, Harvard, and the University of British Columbia. Rowe served as President of the Manitoba Teachers' Scoiety from 1948 to 1949. He served as a member of the International School Master Association, the Brandon's Citizens' Committee of the Arts, and the Brandon General Hospital Board. He died in Brandon on January 6th, 1968.
Custodial History
This fonds was accessioned in 1997 by the McKee Archives. Prior custodial history is unknown.
Scope and Content
Fonds includes photographs, certificates and diplomas, career resumes, testimonials, draft obituaries, and correspondence, relating to G.R. Rowe's professional teaching career, and in small part to his personal life.
The Women's Institute was founded in 1897 in Stoney Creek, Ontario, by Adelaide Hoodless. By 1913, institutes had been established in every Canadian province. In 1919, provincial representatives met in Winnipeg to form the Federated Women's Institute of Canada. The Women's Institute was designed to promote quality of life in rural Canada and to foster the advancement of rural women. The first Women's Institute in Manitoba was organized in 1910, in Morris, Manitoba. The Crocus Women's Institute was created in the fall of 1946. The charter for the group was issued on November 25, 1946. One of the first projects of the group included sending food parcels to Britain until war rationing was discontinued. The main focus of the Institute was the local school: the Institute sponsored essay contests and provided furniture for the school. The Institute also sponsored a garden club and held a garden show for many years. Finally, the group had an annual Christmas Cheer project. The Crocus WI disbanded in 1984.
Custodial History
This fonds was accessioned in 2002 by the McKee Archives. Prior custodial history is unknown.
Scope and Content
Fonds contains member lists in the form of roll calls from 1946-1984. There are also Women's Institute Programs from the years 1946-1984. Fonds also includes the organization's minutes, financial records and annual reports from 1946-84, a scrapbook for the years 1946-1984, and the Certificate of Organization for the Crocus Women's Institute, dated September 5, 1950.
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
William Wallace was born in Scotland around 1859. In 1881, when William was twenty-two, he emigrated to Canada with his father and brother. Once here they settled near what is today Forrest, Manitoba. The following spring they moved to the northwest margin of settlement in Manitoba, homesteading in the Shellmouth area. Wallace remained a resident of the region for the rest of his life. William Wallace was active in community affairs. He was appointed to the post of Secretary-Treasurer of the Shellmouth Municipality in 1887, and he held the position until 1904. In 1909, Wallace was injured in a railway accident, and he had to give up farming. He moved to Shellmouth and took up the position of postmaster, which he held for twenty-seven years. He died in 1945, and is buried at Shellmouth cemetery, Manitoba.
Custodial History
The letters contained in the fonds remained in the possession of Margaret Wallace, who was the original recipient of the correspondence. She emigrated to Canada in 1904. At some point the letters passed to William Wallace who kept them in his possession in Shellmouth. In 1941, William contacted Professor E. J. Westcott of Brandon College regarding the fonds. He offered it to the College for safekeeping. Westcott accepted the letters. Westcott passed the letters on to various officers and staff at Brandon College and then Brandon University. Since 1982, the collection has resided in the S. J. McKee Archives at Brandon University.
Scope and Content
Fonds consists of hundreds of letters that William Wallace and his brother, Andrew, wrote to their sister, Maggie, from 1881 until 1904. The first letter, dated 22 March 1881, was written by both William and Andrew aboard the S.S. Prussia as they sailed to North America from Scotland. The last letter was written on 4 January 1904 by William. It was written to inform Maggie and her husband that William had reserved a homestead in their name. This letter marks the end of the fonds. Later that spring Maggie and John emigrated to Canada to be with her family.
William was keenly interested in everything going on around him; his letters and Andrew's reveal what life was like for inexperienced settlers on the Canadian agricultural frontier in the last years of the ninteenth century. Fonds touches on a variety of social, political and economic themes.
Notes
CAIN No. 202641. A partial accession of the Wallace collection was completed in 1992 by Eileen McFadden.
The Roseland Church was built in 1883 as a Presbyterian church, funded in large part by the Roseland Ladies Aid Society. In 1912, thirteen years before formal union between these two denominations took place, the Roseland Presbyterian Church was united with a local Methodist congregation. The Roseland Church was closed for a few years following the Second World War. However, the Church was revived and it continued to function until 1969, when it was officially closed. Subsequently, the building was sold and moved, and a cairn was placed where the church had been located.
Custodial History
This fonds was accessioned by the McKee Archives in 1997. Prior custodial history is unknown.
Scope and Content
Fonds contains a minute book for the Roseland Church from 1882-1969, a summary of the organization and development of the Roseland Church, clippings dealing with the history of the community of Roseland, and a summary history of the Roseland Curling Rink.
The United Farmers of Manitoba was founded in 1920. It was an inclusive farmers' organization established to replace the Manitoba Grain Growers' Association. The UFM supported farmer candidates in the 1920 provincial election. In 1922, it helped elect the UFM government of John Bracken (1922-42). The UFM also participated in federal politics, supporting twelve successful candidates in the 1921 federal election. The UFM was financed by its members. Its membership varied from 15,700 in 1923, to 3700 in 1931. In 1939, the UFM became the Manitoba Federation of Agriculture.
Custodial History
This fonds was accessioned by the McKee Archives in 1997. Prior custodial history is unknown.
Scope and Content
Fonds includes documents relating to the membership, both male and female, of the Wingham branch of the United Farmers of Manitoba and the United Farm Women of Manitoba. Documents dealing with the position of the branch on prohibition c. 1922, discussion within the branch of the "wheat pool" movement, annual reports for the organization, newsletters, correspondence on matters political and agrarian, and records relating to the activities of the branch as a cooperative buying agency are also included. Fonds also contains minutes of the provincial convention of the UFM and correspondence from the central office of the UFM.
The Canadian Federation of University Women was founded in 1919 under the leadership of Margaret McWilliams of Winnipeg to promote the interests of women with higher education at local, national and international levels. It is a voluntary, non-profit, self-funded organization with a membership of over 10,000 university-educated women and 122 local clubs. The CFUW promotes high standards of public education; encourages advanced study and research by women university graduates; encourages active participation in public affairs by qualified women; works to safeguard and improve human rights and the economic, legal and professional status of women in Canada; and participates in the work of the International Federation of University Women. The Brandon University chapter of the Canadian Federation of University Women was established in 1948. It continues to be active.
Custodial History
This fonds was accessioned by the McKee Archives in 1997. Prior custodial history is unknown.
Scope and Content
Fonds contains correspondence with other branches of the CFUW, minutes and programs from meetings and seminars held throughout Canada, as well as administrative records and minutes of the Brandon branch. Most administrative records concern the problems of maintaining membership levels and recruiting younger members. Fonds also contains various issues of the "Chronicle," a CFUW publication. Fonds also includes CFUW Brandon minutes, miscellaneous projects, annual reports and member lists, as well as a number of documents relating to the provincial, national and international activities of the CFUW.
Berbank Women's Aid was founded in 1919. It was, in large part, the Berbank Red Cross under a new name. The principal project of the original Berbank Ladies Aid was the construction of the Berbank Church, which was accomplished in 1919. In 1962, the organization was renamed the Berbank United Church Women. With the closing of the Berbank church in 1966, the Berbank United Church Women were dissolved.
Custodial History
This fonds was accessioned by the McKee Archives in 1997. Prior custodial history is unknown.
Scope and Content
This fonds consists of various minute books of the Berbank Ladies Aid, and its successor organization, dating from 1919 to 1965.
