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54-704: The agrarian activist Edward Alexander Partridge felt that the press had given unfair treatment of the struggle in 1906–07 to get the Grain Growers' Grain Company (GGGC) off the ground, and helped organize a farmers' publication. The first issue of The Grain Growers' Guide appeared in June 1908, as the official organ of the Manitoba Grain Growers' Association (MGGA). It was edited by Partridge. It

108-416: A woman's page from its first year, which discussed suffrage, equal rights, dower law and homesteading. The woman's page later included a readers' forum, advice on managing a household, and opinions on marriage, motherhood, women's work and finances. Separately the paper covered activities in the women's departments of the Grain Growers' Associations. Later the guide started to publish a "household number" that

162-527: A "watchdog" to make sure that the exchange was treating grain growers fairly, and they sent Partridge to Winnipeg in January–February 1905 to observe the exchange. He was treated poorly and became convinced that the exchange was not interested in the farmers, who needed their own grain company. For his observations of the Grain Exchange he earned the nickname "That Man Partridge." Patridge spoke at

216-653: A co-operative commonwealth to be established in Western Canada. It includes a section called "Coalsamao" in which he describes this future utopian state from an insider's viewpoint. In 1925 Partridge's wife died from a heart attack. In 1926 Partridge moved to a room in a boarding house in Victoria, British Columbia to be near his youngest daughter. With no money apart from the small, monthly $ 75.00 UGG stipend, in poor health, and despairing of achieving further reforms, Partridge committed suicide on 3 August 1931. He

270-731: A director of the TGGA and later became vice-president. The delegates at the February meeting approved three recommendations proposed by Motherwell for changes to the Grain Act. These were: That section 42 of the Manitoba Grain Act be amended to empower the Warehouse Commissioner to compel all railway companies to erect every loading platform approved by the said Commissioner within thirty days after said approval

324-641: A farm. They had three daughters and two sons. Farmers formed the Territorial Grain Growers' Association (TGGA) in January 1902 to help them fight abuse by the grain dealers and railways. 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. Partridge began to push

378-529: A leg in an accident. Partridge felt that the press had given unfair treatment of the struggle to get the GGGC off the ground, and helped organize a farmers' publication. The Grain Growers' Guide first appeared in 1908, edited by Partridge. It was published by the Grain Growers' Grain Company through its subsidiary, Public Press Limited. The Guide represented the interests of the MGGA and its sister organizations

432-481: Is given and in defaul the Commissioner shall have power to impose penalties on such defaulting railway, and collect same through the courts, and that this amendment come into force on May 1, 1902. That railway companies be compelled to provide farmers with cars to be loaded direct from vehicles, at all stations, irrespective of there being an elevator, warehouse or loading platform at such station of not. That

486-896: The District of Assiniboia . They settled at the hamlet and railway station of Sintaluta , now in Saskatchewan but then in the North-West Territories. Unable to afford the equipment and supplies he needed to operate a farm, Partridge returned to teaching. He taught near Broadview, at Saltcoats and at Maple Green near Lemberg. He served in the Yorkton Militia from April to June 1885 during the North-West Rebellion . In 1886, he married Mary Elizabeth Stephens in Balcarres, Saskatchewan , and they began

540-573: The Grain Growers' Grain Company (GGGC) was founded as a cooperative company to handle marketing of the grain, under Partridge's leadership. The GGGC found itself engaged in a lengthy struggle with the existing grain companies over its seats on the Winnipeg Grain Exchange . It was expelled for paying patronage dividends to its member clients, then reinstated when the Manitoba Grain Growers' Association MGGA exerted pressure on

594-583: The Guide published the "Partridge Plan", in which he again proposed that grain elevators should be owned by the public, a position already accepted by the SGGA. The premiers of the three Prairie provinces all took an interest in the plan, although Alberta and Saskatchewan preferred cooperative ownership to public ownership. The plan covered a wide range of issues and was somewhat confused, but most SGGA members were enthusiastic about it. The plan covered grain handling,

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648-772: The Saskatchewan Grain Growers' Association (SGGA) and the United Farmers of Alberta (UFA). Partridge thought the guide should be a militant paper, but was not supported in this view. He resigned after the first issue. Partridge and Thomas Crerar of Manitoba attended the January 1909 convention where the Alberta Farmers' Association merged with the Canadian Society of Equity to form the United Farmers of Alberta. Before

702-587: The Territorial Grain Growers' Association (TGGA), founded in 1902, which addressed various problems with the Western Canada grain market . He founded the cooperative Grain Growers' Grain Company , the predecessor of the United Grain Growers , and the Grain Growers' Guide , a widely distributed weekly paper. His "Partridge Plan" was a broad and visionary proposal for addressing a wide range of farmers' issues, eliminating many abuses caused by

756-479: The "Siege of Ottawa". On 16 December 1910 from 850 to 1,000 delegates marched on the House of Commons. They were allowed to enter the house and present their briefs. In 1912 Partridge left the GGGC during a dispute about a speculative purchase that one of the executives had made. He felt that Thomas Alexander Crerar, the president of the GGGC, should be forced to leave. Partridge tried to launch another grain company, but

810-595: The Abernathy district arranged a follow-up to the Indian Head meeting. The farmers agree to form a Territorial Grain Growers' Association (TGGA), and nominated Motherwell as provisional president and John Millar as provisional secretary. A meeting was held on 6 January 1902 to draw up a constitution for the association. Motherwell and Matthew Snow of Wolseley began touring the region and encouraging farmers to form local TGGA associations. The first annual convention of

864-420: The Grain Act be amended making it the duty of the railway agent, when there is a shortage of cars, to apportion the available cars in the order in which they are applied for, and that in case such cars are misappropriated by applicants not entitled to them, the penalties of the act be enforced against such parties. The recommendations were debated in the House of Commons on 17 March 1902 and passed as amendments to

918-474: The Manitoba Grain Act with little modification on 19 May 1902. The act was also amended to require the CPR to cover the cost of land and sidings when anyone within forty miles of a siding applied to build a flat warehouse, and to build a loading platform when ten farmers formally applied for one. However, the act did not ensure enforcement, and during the bumper harvest of 1902 there was again a shortage of cars, and CPR

972-684: The Partidge's leadership. This was the start of a new struggle with the elevator companies. In 1905 Alberta and Saskatchewan became provinces. The Alberta branch of the TGGA became the Alberta Farmers' Association under the leadership of Rice Sheppard of the Strathcona area. In 1906 the TGGA renamed itself the Saskatchewan Grain Growers' Association (SGGA). In 1909 the Alberta Farmers' Association combined with

1026-711: The Partridge Plan thus addressed a wide range of farmer's concerns. In 1909 Partridge attended the annual meeting of the Dominion Grange, where the western grain grower's associations and the Farmers' Association of Ontario established the Canadian Council of Agriculture. He became interested in the idea of forming a major delegation of farmers to go to Ottawa and present their views to the government of Wilfrid Laurier , an event that became known as

1080-479: The SGGA convention in 1906, and attacked the grain handling system. He said that the elevator companies, millers and exporters rigged the grain prices so they were low during the fall harvest period, when farmers had to sell to obtain cash to pay their debts. They then made future contracts to the English buyers for delivery at far higher prices. Many of his audience were convinced by his argument. On 27 January 1906

1134-609: The Supreme Being, and reflects his profound belief in the Social Gospel . Partridge decried government-protected capitalists such as Gordon McGregor and Wallace Campbell who continued "to prey upon that part of the poor bedevilled Canadian public who can't escape to the United States". He was deeply influenced by John Ruskin 's social ideals, and by social Darwinism and Christian socialism . His book calls for

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1188-401: The TGGA members to demand tighter control of the grading system and inspection of elevators. He also proposed a cooperative grain trading company owned by the farmers, a newspaper to help communication and greater involvement by farmers in political issues. The Sintaluta Local was concerned about the operation of the Winnipeg Grain Exchange . They persuaded the federal government to appoint

1242-399: The TGGA was held on 1 February 1902, attended by delegates from 38 local groups. By this time the TGGA membership was 500. To ensure that it could speak for all farmers, the TGGA was careful to avoid association with any political party. The provisional officers were confirmed at the February meeting. Charles Avery Dunning (1885–1958), later to become Premier of Saskatchewan, was appointed

1296-611: The TGGA was succeeded by the Alberta Farmers' Association and the Saskatchewan Grain Growers' Association . At the start of the 20th century the North-West Elevator Association, closely associated with the Winnipeg Grain Exchange, controlled over two thirds of the grain elevators on the prairies. The elevator companies, working together, could force the farmers to accept low prices for their grain. When there were shortages of rail cars

1350-493: The Warehouse Commissioner. On 28 November the Commissioner looked into the case and started court proceedings. The defendant was found guilty given a fine of CDN$ 50 plus costs, or one month in jail. CPR appealed the decision but lost in the Supreme Court of the North-West Territories. Immediately after the decision farmers found that CPR was making cars much more readily available. An account written in 1918 said, At once

1404-406: The act the TGGA had achieved its primary objective, and lost some of its momentum. Edward Alexander Partridge of Sintaluta, began to push the TGGA members to demand tighter control of the grading system and inspection of elevators. The Sintaluta Local was concerned about the operation of the Winnipeg Grain Exchange . They persuaded the federal government to appoint a "watchdog" to make sure that

1458-498: The effective monopoly of the large grain handlers, and could be eliminated by the government taking over the local elevators. Partridge saw a conflict between the dual role of the elevator companies in storing and selling grain, which would be resolved if the elevators were strictly handling and storage facilities. He also addressed the problems of the smaller farmers by proposing to combine wagon lots of equal quality grain into car lots. The farmer would be given an advance of up to half

1512-410: The elevators and lack of railway cars. In November 1901 two farmers in the major grain shipping center of Indian Head , John Sibbold and John A. Millar, organized an "indignation meeting" that was attended by about fifty farmers. The group united in "opposition to the corporations which they stigmatized as their oppressors". In December 1901 William Richard Motherwell (1860–1943) and Peter Dayman of

1566-404: The exchange was treating grain growers fairly, and they sent Partridge to Winnipeg in January–February 1905 to observe the exchange. He was treated poorly and became convinced that the exchange was not interested in the farmers, who needed their own grain company. On 27 January 1906 the Grain Growers' Grain Company (GGGC) was founded as a cooperative company to handle marketing of the grain, under

1620-539: The family. His father's parents had emigrated from New York State in 1819 and settled to the northeast of Barrie , Ontario. Partridge's mother died while he was an infant, and he lived with his grandparents for a period while he attended public school. He completed secondary school in Barrie and obtained a teacher's certificate. He taught for a period, then in December 1883 moved west with his brother to attempt farming in

1674-447: The government of Rodmond Roblin . The president of the MGGA, D.W. McCuaig, sued three of the exchange's members for combining to obstruct trade. Partridge resigned as president of the GGGC at the 1907 convention, in part because the company's original cooperative structure had been modified to meet the requirements of the Grain Exchange, in part because he was not interested in running the company he had launched. In 1908 Partridge lost

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1728-408: The grain blockade, farm credit and market speculation. It identified and proposed remedies for practices by the elevator companies that included excessive dockage fees, light weights, refusing to bin special grain, replacing special binned grain with lower-quality grain and preventing farmers who had bought storage space in an elevator from dealing with non-company buyers. All these abuses derived from

1782-539: The grain dealers, but called for better regulation rather than government intervention. Partridge became the leader in a campaign to nationalize the elevators in the grain terminals. Early in 1908 Partridge convinced the SGGA to endorse the principle that inland grain elevators should be owned by the province and terminal elevators by the Dominion of Canada. The Manitoba association passed a resolution supporting this proposal at their convention. Soon after being launched,

1836-554: The guide from 1911 until 1928, and its successor The Country Guide until 1935. Partridge and Thomas Crerar of Manitoba attended the January 1909 convention where the Alberta Farmers' Association merged with the Canadian Society of Equity to form the United Farmers of Alberta (UFA). Before the merger the AFA's official organ was the Homestead , and the CSE published The Great West . At

1890-476: The guide was the largest farm publication on the prairies by circulation. The guide was issued as the Country Guide from volume 21, number 7 (2 April 1928) to volume 29, number 5 (May 1936). In 1936 the paper was merged with The Nor'west farmer to form The country guide and Nor-west farmer . The guide was tightly controlled by the parent company and the associations of grain growers, who ensured that it

1944-459: The home and children, but that they should be educated, have property rights and have a voice in political debates. 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

1998-485: The kernel rather than the milled value, and encouraged mixing at the terminal elevators. Partridge proposed to replace this by a market where buyers could make their offer based on visual inspection of the grain being sold, eliminating the need for grading and letting sellers and buyers interact directly. The end result would also be to eliminate speculation in grain futures, with exporters buying stored grain only as needed based on samples. The far-reaching reform proposals of

2052-477: The merger the AFA's official organ was the Homestead , and the CSE published The Great West . At his urging, these papers were absorbed by the Grain Growers' Guide . Partridge continued to push for reform of the terminal market. Under pressure, the government appointed the Millar Commission, led by SGGA secretary John Millar , to investigate the system. The commission uncovered evidence of abuse by

2106-485: The near-monopoly of grain elevator companies, and resulted in important reforms by the provincial governments. Patridge was named a National Historic Person in 2018. Edward Alexander Partridge was born on 5 November 1861 near Crown Hill, Springwater then in Canada West . He was the third son in a farming family. His parents were John Thomas Partridge and Martha Chappell. There were fourteen children altogether in

2160-420: The newspapers all over the country were full of it. Oracles of bar-room and barber-shop nodded their heads wisely; hadn't they said that even the CPR couldn't win against organized farmers, backed up by the law of the land? Away East the news was magnified till it became: "The farmers out West have licked the CPR in court and are threatening to tear up the tracks!" The Manitoba Grain Growers' Association (MGGA)

2214-576: The railways gave preferential treatment to the companies over the farmers. The 1908 "Partridge Plan" listed other "ill practices" that included "the taking of heavy dockage, the giving of light weight, misgrading the farmers' grain sold on the street or graded into store, failure to provide cleaning apparatus, changing the identity of the farmers' special binned grain, declining to allot space for special binning and refusing to ship grain to owner's order, even when storage charges are tended. The Manitoba Grain Act

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2268-595: The temperance movement, the cooperative movement and the Social Gospel . It became a supporter of the Progressive Party . As the Progressive movement waned in the 1920s the guide devoted less space to reform topics and focused on practical issues of rural life and entertainment for rural families. The founders and editors were in favour of women's suffrage, but accepted the traditional view of separate men's and women's spheres of activity. The guide included

2322-487: The total value, and a share of the price received when the car lot was sold. This anticipated the practice later adopted by the Wheat Pools and Wheat Board. Partridge also proposed that the government build increased storage facilities so that farmers were not forced to sell as soon as the harvest was over, but could wait until prices rose in the spring or summer. The grading system unduly emphasized color and weight of

2376-507: The urging of Partridge and Crerar these papers were absorbed by The Grain Growers' Guide . By 1909 the guide was the official organ of the (MGGA) and its sister associations, the Saskatchewan Grain Growers' Association (SGGA) and the UFA. In 1917 the GGGC merged with the Alberta Farmers' Co-operative Elevator Company , founded in 1913, to form the United Grain Growers (UGG), which provided grain marketing, handling and supply until 2001. By 1918

2430-748: Was 69 years old. Territorial Grain Growers%27 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 voice for farmers in their struggle with grain dealers and the railways, and was influential in obtaining favorable legislation. After Alberta and Saskatchewan became provinces

2484-481: Was a past president of the TGGA and had opposed the Partridge Plan. In the 1921 general election Partridge was almost nominated candidate for the Progressive Party in Qu'Appelle, Saskatchewan . The Canadian Wheat Board was dissolved in 1920. Partridge campaigned for it to be reestablished. He did not succeed, but his campaign led to the creation in 1926 of the Saskatchewan section of the United Farmers of Canada . Partridge

2538-414: Was clearly favoring the elevator companies in allocation of the available cars. Motherwell and Peter Dayman went to Winnipeg to complain to CPR, where they were told that the railway was having difficulty adapting to the rapid growth in wheat production. There was no visible improvement in the situation, and after a few months the TGGA presented a formal complaint against the CPR's Sintaluta agent before

2592-465: Was formed at a meeting on March 3–4, 1903 in Brandon, Manitoba . In 1903 two officers of the MGGA accompanied Motherwell and J.B. Gillespie of the TGGA to Ottawa where they met with representatives of the railways and grain companies to tighten up the wording of the Manitoba Grain Act. The new text was introduced as an amendment to the act which was passed that year. With the passage of the amendments to

2646-467: Was independent of political parties. The guide covered topics of interest to western Canada prairie farmers including politics, cooperative associations, animal husbandry and new agricultural techniques. The paper became an essential source of information about the outside world to prairie farmers. Readers were encouraged to give their views, and the letters page became an important part of the paper. The guide advocated reform of rural education and supported

2700-413: Was made honorary president of the organization. Partridge came to believe that cooperation between farmers was not enough to solve the problems of wasteful competition and the accumulation of private wealth. In 1925 he self-published a major book, A war on poverty: the one war that can end war , in which he violently attacked capitalism and supported the poor and underpaid. The book has many references to

2754-469: Was mainly devoted to domestic topics, but the parent newspaper continued to publish its woman's page. The women's page editors from 1908 to 1928 were Isobel Graham, Mary Ford, Francis Marion Beynon , Mary P. McCallum, and Amy J. Roe. Other well-known women wrote letters or gave commentaries, including Ella Cora Hind , Nellie McClung , and Irene Parlby . All the editors were social feminists who believed that women had accepted responsibility for caring for

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2808-538: Was not successful. On 14 June 1914 Partridge's daughter Mary drowned in a swimming accident. During World War I (1914–18) both of his sons enlisted, and later died. In 1916 the GGGC directors started to remit money to Partridge. In 1919 Partridge resumed public activity when he opposed the candidacy of William Richard Motherwell , who was running for the Liberals in a federal by-election in Assiniboia. Motherwell

2862-508: Was passed in 1901, designed to prevent these abuses and ensure fair practices and prices in the booming grain trade 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 (CPR) and the grain companies were still failing to conform to the act. Almost half the crop was lost due to spoilage due to lack of space in

2916-402: Was published by the Grain Growers' Grain Company through its subsidiary, Public Press Limited. Partridge thought the guide should be a militant paper, but did not have support for this view from the co-founders. He resigned after the first issue. Roderick McKenzie was editor until 1911. In 1909 the guide was made a weekly, and George Fisher Chipman was appointed associate editor. Chipman edited

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