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The Alberta Farmers' Association (AFA) was a farmer's association that was active in
Alberta Alberta ( ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada. It is part of Western Canada and is one of the three prairie provinces. Alberta is bordered by British Columbia to the west, Saskatchewan to the east, the Northwest Ter ...
, Canada from 1905 to 1909. It was formed from the Alberta branch of the
Territorial Grain Growers' Association The Territorial Grain Growers' Association (TGGA) was a farmer's association that was active in Western Canada at the start of the 20th century, in what was then the Northwest Territories and later became Saskatchewan and Alberta. It provided a voi ...
(TGGA) when Alberta became a province in 1905. It provided a voice for farmers in their struggle with grain dealers and the railways. In January 1909 it merged with the Canadian Society of Equity to form the
United Farmers of Alberta The United Farmers of Alberta (UFA) is an association of Alberta farmers that has served different roles in its 100-year history – as a lobby group, a successful political party, and as a farm-supply retail chain. As a political party, it forme ...
.


Background

The
Manitoba Grain Act The Manitoba Grain Act was an act passed by the Federal government of Canada in 1900 to protect the interests of grain farmers against abuses by the grain storage and trading companies and the railways. Although well-intentioned the act was flawed, ...
was passed in 1901, designed to prevent abuses by grain dealers and railways and ensure fair practices and prices in the booming
grain trade The grain trade refers to the local and international trade in cereals and other food grains such as wheat, barley, maize, and rice. Grain is an important trade item because it is easily stored and transported with limited spoilage, unlike other ...
in the prairie provinces of Canada. There was a bumper crop that year, and farmers found they could not get their produce to market because the
Canadian Pacific Railway The Canadian Pacific Railway (french: Chemin de fer Canadien Pacifique) , also known simply as CPR or Canadian Pacific and formerly as CP Rail (1968–1996), is a Canadian Class I railway incorporated in 1881. The railway is owned by Canadi ...
(CPR) and the grain companies were still failing to conform to the act. In response, farmers formed the Territorial Grain Growers' Association (TGGA) in January 1902. The TGGA had succeeded in getting the Manitoba Grain Act amended to eliminate the main abuses by 1903. With the passage of the amendments to the act it had achieved its primary objective, and lost some of its momentum.


History

In 1905 Alberta and Saskatchewan became provinces. The Alberta branch of the TGGA became the Alberta Farmers' Association (AFA) under the leadership of
Rice Sheppard Rice Sheppard (April 2, 1861 – August 26, 1947) was a politician and farmers' activist in Alberta, Canada. He served on Edmonton City Council for many years, ran for mayoral, provincial, and federal office, and was an executive member of the Un ...
(1861–1947) of the Strathcona area. Farmers who had moved to Alberta from the United States had formed an Alberta chapter of the
American Society of Equity The American Society of Equity or Farmers Equity was an American agricultural cooperative and political organization, founded in 1902, which aimed to organize farmers as a "Third Power" in the United States, able to compete with capital and org ...
, with locals in
Spruce Grove Spruce Grove is a city that is west of Edmonton, Alberta in Canada. The city is adjacent to the Town of Stony Plain and is surrounded by Parkland County. With a 2021 population of 37,645, Spruce Grove is the ninth-largest city in Alberta. T ...
, Namao,
Beaumont Beaumont may refer to: Places Canada * Beaumont, Alberta * Beaumont, Quebec England * Beaumont, Cumbria * Beaumont, Essex ** Beaumont Cut, a canal closed in the 1930s * Beaumont Street, Oxford France (communes) * Beaumont, Ardèche * ...
, Stony Plain and Poplar Lake. Around 1905 they changed the name of their organization to the Canadian Society of Equity (CSE). This was a period of rapid growth in Alberta. The population rose from 73,000 in 1901 to 374,000 in 1911. By then there were 60,559 farms. The new farmers were often in debt for equipment and supplies. Farming was risky, with low rainfall, a short growing period and uncertain prices. The government, itself short of money, could not always provide the assistance the new farmers expected in bad periods, so the AFA and CSE were seen as a source of strength and safety. Their main ideological difference was that the CSE wanted to maintain "equity", or economic equality, by its members refusing to sell below a certain price. The AFA did not accept this radical approach of co-operative action. The AFA was, however, comfortable with asking for government assistance in grain storage and marketing. James Speakman, who later became president of the United Farmers of Alberta, was president of the Innisfail branch of the AFA during the period when it was competing for members with the CSE. He was a strong supporter of union. In September 1908 the AFA and CSE formed a joint committee to draft a constitution for a combined organization. The last convention of the AFA and first convention of the UFA was held at Mechanic's Hall,
Edmonton Edmonton ( ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Alberta. Edmonton is situated on the North Saskatchewan River and is the centre of the Edmonton Metropolitan Region, which is surrounded by Alberta's central region. The city ancho ...
on January 13–15. AFA delegates ratified the merger on 14 January 1909, and the CSE joined them the next day. The two groups "extended the hand of good fellowship to all" and combined their operations. The new
United Farmers of Alberta The United Farmers of Alberta (UFA) is an association of Alberta farmers that has served different roles in its 100-year history – as a lobby group, a successful political party, and as a farm-supply retail chain. As a political party, it forme ...
was not aligned with any political party or politician. Its goal was to further the interests of producers of grain and livestock and to obtain profitable prices for all of the products of farm and orchard through cooperative effort. Before the merger the AFA's official organ was the ''Homestead'', and the CSE published ''The Great West''. Afterwards, at the urging of
Edward Alexander Partridge Edward Alexander Partridge (5 November 1861 – 3 August 1931) was a Canadian teacher, farmer, agrarian radical, businessman and author. He was born in Ontario but moved to Saskatchewan where he taught and then became a farmer. He was active in the ...
of Saskatchewan and
Thomas Crerar Thomas Alexander Crerar, (June 17, 1876 – April 11, 1975) was a western Canadian politician and a leader of the short-lived Progressive Party of Canada. He was born in Molesworth, Ontario, and moved to Manitoba at a young age. Early care ...
of Manitoba, these papers were absorbed by the '' Grain Growers' Guide'', which already served Saskatchewan and Manitoba.


References


Sources

* * * * * * * * * {{Authority control 1905 establishments in Alberta 1909 disestablishments in Canada Organizations based in Alberta Economy of Alberta Agricultural cooperatives in Canada Agricultural organizations based in Canada