Fonds RG3McS - A.E. McKenzie Company fonds

Title and statement of responsibility area

Title proper

A.E. McKenzie Company fonds

General material designation

Parallel title

Other title information

Title statements of responsibility

Title notes

Level of description

Fonds

Reference code

CA MCK RG3McS

Edition area

Edition statement

Edition statement of responsibility

Class of material specific details area

Statement of scale (cartographic)

Statement of projection (cartographic)

Statement of coordinates (cartographic)

Statement of scale (architectural)

Issuing jurisdiction and denomination (philatelic)

Dates of creation area

Date(s)

  • 1887-1996, predominant 1910-1974 (Creation)

Physical description area

Physical description

7.47 m textual records
ca. 500 photographs

Publisher's series area

Title proper of publisher's series

Parallel titles of publisher's series

Other title information of publisher's series

Statement of responsibility relating to publisher's series

Numbering within publisher's series

Note on publisher's series

Archival description area

Name of creator

(1896-1994)

Administrative history

Established in 1896 as the Brandon Seed House, the company became the largest of its kind in Western Canada. In 1906, it changed its name to A.E. McKenzie Seed Co. Ltd. after founder Albert Edward McKenzie realized Canada required a larger seed institute than he could manage on his own. The company incorporated under Manitoba's Joint Stock Companies Act and hired new personnel. Initially, it comprised three divisions: Brandon Seed House, Brandon Nurseries and Brandon Greenhouses, with each division registered under Dominion Patents. The company later divided into Retail Mail Order, Wholesale and Commission Packet Trade divisions as well as some export business. Located at 30 9th Street in Brandon, Manitoba, the head office and plant housed the company's entire facilities and staff except for the regional sales offices and warehouses. In 1908, the first branch was established at Calgary, and in the subsequent 16 years, additional branches sprung up in other Canadian cities. In 1930, the company created the Seed Marketing Co., which helped distressed farmers, prior to planting, obtain seeds through seed grain mortgages that they would pay off following harvest. The Seed Marketing Co. fell into default and ceased to exist in 1962. In 1944-1945, the McKenzie Foundation was created, turning over 90% of company shares to the Manitoba Government for the benefit of higher education, specifically Brandon College. Since 1975, the government has held all shares. A.E. McKenzie died on September 25, 1964 at the age of 94. A succession of presidents followed. Late in 1971, the company purchased Steele Briggs Seed Co.--its largest competitor in packaged seeds---and subsequently changed its name to A.E. McKenzie Co.-Steele Briggs Seeds. Other acquisitions included McFayden Seeds (1941), Canada Seed Company--which merged with Steele Briggs in the 1930s--Brett-Young Seeds (1971), and Pike & Co. (1982). In 1994, the provincial government sold A.E. McKenzie Seed Co. Ltd. to Regal Greetings and Gifts.

Name of creator

Biographical history

A.E. McKenzie was born in Wilcox Lake, Ontario in 1870 to F.B. and Maria (Carley)McKenzie. His family came to Manitoba in 1883. He was educated in Brandon, Manitoba and graduated from the Collegiate Institute at age 21. In 1902, McKenzie married Laura Bell. Together they had two daughters, Marjorie Bell and Kathleen. Throughout his life in Brandon, Mr. McKenzie was the principal figure in the A.E. McKenzie Seed Co. Ltd. Mr. McKenzie was very involved in the life of Brandon College. For many years he was a member of its Board of Directors. In 1931, McKenzie organized the Brandon Board of Trade to help save Brandon College when the Baptist Union of Western Canada threatened to withdraw its financial support of the College. When the Baptist Union did withdraw its support in 1937, Mr. Mckenzie's personal and financial interventions saved the College from failure.In 1941, Mr. McKenzie received an honorary L.L.D. from the University of Manitoba. Mr. McKenzie died at the age of 94 on September 25, 1964.

Custodial history

In December of 1994 the Province of Manitoba sold A.E. McKenzie Seed Co. Ltd. to Regal Greetings and Gifts. The records of McKenzie Seeds and its subsidiaries were retained in the McKenzie Plant on 9th Street until April of 1997 when the McKee Archives at Brandon University acquired them. Because the company was a crown corporation, the records of McKenzie Seeds belonged to the Province of Manitoba and might have been placed in the Provincial Archives. However, an arrangement between Gordon Dodds, the Provincial Archivist allowed for the records, with the exception of the minutes of the Board of Directors, which are held in the Provincial Archives, to be retained in Brandon at the S. J. McKee Archives. The records have been held there since that time. Until 1960 the minutes, by-laws of the Company and the letters patent of incorporation (April 7, 1906) were in the possession of the Company's lawyers, Johnson Garson Forrester Davidson & Steen.

Scope and content

The fonds consists of textual records, photographs and artifacts from A.E. McKenzie Seed Co. Ltd. The textual records include minutes, documents, financial records, administrative records, by-laws, legal records, catalogues, sales literature, seed packets, newspaper clippings, appraisals, publications, scrapbooks and miscellaneous sections. In addition, some of the records within the fonds relate to the operations of McKenzie subsidiaries -- Brett-Young Seeds, Steele-Briggs Seeds, Pike & Co. and McFayden Seeds -- and various properties owned by McKenzie Seeds. There are approximately 500 photographs that depict the operations and employees of McKenzie Seeds and the seed industry in general. The artifacts include blueprints, newspaper clippings, copper printing plates, seed bags and plaques. As well, an artificially created series of records dealing with Brandon College Inc., the McKenzie Foundation, the Brandon Allied Arts Council and the Brandon Board of Trade has been created within the fonds but identified as records outside the provenance of the McKenzie Seed Co. Of particular interest within the textual records are the transcripts of various features of the company's history as dictated, researched and remembered by its second President/General Manager, J. Lasby Lowes. The fonds also contains an almost complete catalogue collection with high production values. Outside of the seed industry, the records dealing with both Brandon College Inc. and the McKenzie Foundation are significant pieces of the history of Brandon College/University and the City of Brandon. Within the photograph collection, the pictures of the McKenzie Strike of 1944 are worth mentioning; aside from these photographs there is no record within the fonds that mentions the event. The photographs depicting the operations and workers of McKenzie Seeds, both in the plant and in the field are also noteworthy, as are the product production photos, as they provide a visual history of agriculture and the seed industry in Western Canada.

Notes area

Physical condition

Immediate source of acquisition

Arrangement

Original documents from various series were removed by J. Lasby Lowes in the course of his research. Documents remain in J. Lasby Lowes sub-series within the President/General Manager series.

Language of material

Script of material

Location of originals

Availability of other formats

Restrictions on access

Because the A.E. McKenzie Seed Co. Ltd. was a crown corporation, the records in the fonds are subject to the Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act (FIPPA).

Terms governing use, reproduction, and publication

Finding aids

Consult Archivist.

Online version of finding aid available at: http://www.brandonu.ca/library/archives/old%20Site/finding_aids.htm

Associated materials

Related material: Additional records related to the Brandon Council of Women are located in the Brandon Council of Women fonds in the S. J. McKee Archives. MG 1 (A.E. McKenzie fonds), sub-series I (Brandon College Inc.) of the A.E. McKenzie Seed Co. Ltd. Fonds contains photographs relating to the History of Brandon College Inc. booklet. RG 1 Brandon College fonds in the S. J. McKee Archives contain additional information on A.E. McKenzie, particularly his involvement with Brandon College. Additional information on the Brandon Allied Arts Council is located in the Brandon Art Club fonds 3-2001 in the S.J. McKee Archives. Additional information regarding the McKenzie Board of Directors is located in the George McDowell Collection (9-2002), Box 4, File 11.

Associated material: Additional records regarding A.E. McKenzie Seed Co. Ltd. are housed at the Provincial Archives of Manitoba.

Accruals

Language of material note

Material primarily in English, although some documents are in Gregg shorthand.

Alternative identifier(s)

Standard number area

Standard number

Access points

Place access points

Name access points

Genre access points

Control area

Description record identifier

Institution identifier

Rules or conventions

Status

Level of detail

Dates of creation, revision and deletion

Language of description

  • English

Script of description

Sources

Accession area