Summary information
| Repository: | South Peace Regional Archives |
| Title: | Ridge Valley Co-operative Association fonds |
| Reference code: | 0161 |
| Date: | 1938-1946 (date of creation) |
| Physical description: | 32 cm textual records
3 photographs |
| Dates of creation, revision and deletion: | Processed November 2004, possibly by Mary Nutting Added to new database December 2025 – TD |
Administrative history / Biographical sketch
The Ridge Valley Co-operative Association was formed on April 8, 1939 for the purpose of establishing a Cheese Factory in the Ridge Valley District of the Peace River Country. The organizers were mainly Mennonite farmers who had come to the area in the 1920s: P.I. Loewen, Gerry DeVeer, A. Bartel, Jasper Bronson, Abe T. Reimer, Aaron F. Reimer, Joe Taylor, and G. Thiessen. Shares were sold to settlers in the area at a value of $25.00 each, which could be paid for in cash or by work in lieu of cash. There were 45 initial subscribers. The business was administered by an executive board of five people elected by the shareholders.
A frame building was built on land donated by Joseph Taylor on the south edge of SW 14-71-26-W5, beside Deep Creek which was dammed to provide water for steam. There was also an air cooled cold storage room where the cheese was stored and aged. Operating money to start the venture was borrowed from the Linden Cheese Co-op in southern Alberta, and the factory opened in 1939.
Garnet Summers was the first cheese maker. Milk was purchased from local producers who depended on ice houses to cool the milk and keep it sweet, as there was no refrigeration. For many of these farmers, it was the only regular cash income they received. The cheddar cheese product was made daily and sold to individuals as well as being shipped to Swift’s in Edmonton and Horne & Pitfield in Grande Prairie.
By 1941, total annual production was 44,000 pounds of cheese. In 1942, the group considered incorporation. At the time there were 27 milk shippers and they were processing 2,300 to 2,500 pounds of milk per day. In 1945 there were 51 members in the association, but in 1948, the factory closed due to competition from the Northern Alberta Dairy Pool, who could offer a better price for raw milk.
Custodial history
The records were donated to the DeBolt & District Pioneer Museum by Florence Issac in 1998 and Adi and Betty Klassen in 2003, and deposited in Grande Prairie Regional Archives by the DeBolt & District Pioneer Museum in 2004.
Scope and content
The fonds consists of executive records, financial records, correspondence, labour records, photographs, and printed materials from associated organizations.
Notes
Title notes
- Source of title proper: Title of fonds based on contents.
Related material
Artifacts and photographs of the cheese factory are in the DeBolt and District Pioneer Museum.
Access points
- Textual record (documentary form)
- Graphic material – photograph (documentary form)
- Agriculture (subject)
- Business (subject)
- Organizations (subject)
Table of contents
0161.01, Executive Records, 1938-1945
0161.02, Financial Records, 1939-1945
0161.03, Correspondence, 1939-1946
0161.04, Labour Records, 1941-1945
0161.05, Associated Organizations, 1938-1945
0161.06, Photographs, [ca. 1940]
Series descriptions
| Series 0161.01: Executive Records
Date: 1938-1945 (date of creation) Scope and content: The series consists of a letter of relinquishment from Joseph Taylor regarding the land for the cheese factory, a description of the operation along with a 1941 financial statement, a few minutes from an undated year, employee contracts, insurance policies, tax notices and receipts, receipts for purchase of shares, share statements and transfers, and operational reports submitted to various levels of government. Physical description: 2 cm textual records Access points: • Textual record (documentary form) Physical condition: Minute book is in freezer storage due to mold contamination. Copies of minutes are in the vault. Publication status: Published |
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| Series 0161.02: Financial Records
Date: 1939-1945 (date of creation) Scope and content: The series consists of financial statements from 1941-1944, financial ledgers, records of cheese sales and milk purchased, accounts receivable, and general expenses. Physical description: 14 cm textual records Access points: • Textual record (documentary form) Physical condition: Two financial account books are in freezer storage due to mold contamination. Copies of accounts are in the vault. Publication status: Published |
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| Series 0161.03: Correspondence
Date: 1939-1946 (date of creation) Scope and content: The series consists of correspondence between the Ridge Valley Co-op and the Government of Alberta as well as their sister co-op in Linden. Subjects include the hiring of a cheese maker, incorporation of the business, and Dairy Commissioner directives. Physical description: 3 cm textual records Access points: • Textual record (documentary form) Publication status: Published |
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| Series 0161.04: Labour Records
Date: 1941-1945 (date of creation) Scope and content: The series consists of tenders and bills for cutting and supplying firewood for the factory, unemployment insurance records, letter from the Alberta Dairymen’s Association and Ministry of Trade and Industry regarding wages and hours of work regulations, a letter from the Minister of Labour in Ottawa regarding the employment of veterans, a bulletin from the Alberta Federation of Agriculture regarding Harvest Labour, and copies of the 1943 Unemployment Insurance Act and the 1943 Workman’s Compensation Act along with forms, payment receipts, and correspondence. Physical description: 1 cm textual records Access points: • Textual record (documentary form) Publication status: Published |
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| Series 0161.05: Associated Organizations
Date: 1938-1945 (date of creation) Scope and content: The series consists of printed material originating from The Canada Gazette (an order in council concerning premiums on cheese production), Alberta Department of Agriculture, Calgary Exhibition & Stampede, The Wartime Prices and Trade Board, Department of Extension, University of Alberta, Alberta Federation of Agriculture (minutes of first annual meeting), Consumer Cooperative Association, and the Accounting Bureau of the Cooperative League. Physical description: 2 cm textual records Access points: • Textual record (documentary form) Publication status: Published |
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| Series 0161.06: Photographs
Date: [ca. 1940] (date of creation) Scope and content: The series consists of photographs of the cheese factory and cheesemaker Garnet Summers. Physical description: 3 photographs Access points: • Graphic material – photograph (documentary form) Conditions governing use: These photographs were donated as copies are not suitable for reproduction. Publication status: Published |
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| File / item list | |||
| Reference code | Title | Dates | Physical description |
| 0161.06.01 | Item – Delivering Milk | ca. 1940 | 1 photograph : b&w ; 4 x 6 in. |
| Scope and content:
Copy of a photograph showing a horse-drawn wagon delivering cans of milk to the Ridge Valley Co-op to be made into cheese. |
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| 0161.06.02 | Item – Ridge Valley Co-op | ca. 1940 | 1 photograph : b&w ; 4 x 6 in. |
| Scope and content:
Copy of a photograph showing the Ridge Valley Co-op building where cheese was made. |
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| 0161.06.03 | Item – Garnet Summers | ca. 1940 | 1 photograph : b&w ; 4 x 6 in. |
| Scope and content:
Copy of a photograph showing Garnet Summers, cheese maker at the Ridge Valley Co-op cheese factory. |
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