The article this week is the prize list for the 5th annual Grande Prairie Agricultural Fair in 1914. I have selected the “Roots and Vegetables” category, but the entire prize list is in the papers. One of my thoughts when reading the list was how did they arrange to have radishes, fresh peas and beans, broccoli and cucumbers in October! The variety of vegetables listed was also a surprise to me, and a couple I had to look up to even know what they were (Mangold is a type of chard, Salsify is a root plant of the dandelion family, also called Oyster plant).
Sept. 8, 1914
The prize money seemed quite generous – $3.00 for first prize would have paid for a years subscription to the semi-weekly newspaper with $1.00 leftover. At that time prices paid for farm produce were $.40 a pound for butter in trade or $.35 cash and eggs were $.50 trade, $.40 each. I also noted that in the “Domestic Manufacture” category, once it got to “Ladies Work” the prize money dropped to $1.00 for first prize, $.50 for second and no third prize.
‘Ladies Work’
1913
Sept. 15, 1914
The news articles were found on the website Our Future Our Past.
The fair photograph and the front page of the Grande Prairie Fair booklet are from collections held at the South Peace Regional Archives.