ABOUT
Governance of the Manitoba Agricultural Museum Inc.
The Manitoba Agricultural Museum is a not-for-profit charitable organization incorporated in the Province of Manitoba since 1953. It is governed by a Board of twelve directors elected by its membership each year. The Board of Directors sets policies and provides oversight to ensure that the museum operations are contributing to support its mission, vision and priorities.
Vision
To enable the generations of today and tomorrow to walk in the footsteps of the people who shaped agriculture in Manitoba.
Mission
To immerse visitors in rural Manitoba’s past, providing context to the present and future of agriculture in Manitoba. To collect, preserve, interpret and demonstrate Manitoba’s agricultural heritage.
Angie Klym (President – president@mbagmuseum.ca) is a Treasury Specialist with the Royal Bank of Canada. Angie joined the board in 2017.
Greg McConnell From Birnie, MB Greg runs a cattle and grain farming operation with his wife Cheryl and son John. A strong community organizer, Greg is a councilor for the Rural Municipality of Glenella-Lansdowne and serves on the board of Beautiful Plains Credit Union where he has sat on the audit and human resources committees. Greg joined the board in 2017.
Diane Rourke (Treasurer – treasurer@mbagmuseum.ca) grew up on a grain and cattle farm in Starbuck. In 1980 she moved to Minto and started a grain farm with her family. She is a successful business owner of an agricultural research company, managing the business finances as the CFO. Diane volunteers with a number of organizations. She has been a MAM volunteer since 2011. Diane joined the board in 2018.
Brad Burnside joined the museum board in 2020.
Jonathan Whetter (Vice-President) joined the museum board in 2021.
Gordon Goldsborough (Secretary – secretary@mbagmuseum.ca) is the Head Researcher, Webmaster, and Past-President of the Manitoba Historical Society, and Production Coordinator of Prairie History magazine. He is a member of the Department of Biological Sciences at the University of Manitoba. Gordon joined the board in 2017.
Rosana Neufeld Rosana together with her family, have been active museum volunteers since 1982. She has volunteered in many areas over these years, but most volunteers recognize Rosana alongside our vintage parade announcer each afternoon assisting in parade commentating. She sits on the board of directors for the Strathclair Credit Union supporting the audit and nominating committees. She also volunteers with the Shoal Lake Lions Club and the annual Lions convention. She joined the board in 2018.
Gary Davis joined the museum board in 2021.
Bill Warren joined the museum board in 2023.
Tylor Martens joined the museum board in 2023.
Lise Mitchler
Operations Manager
Tricia Dyck
Collections & Programming Manager
Tom Lehockey
Yard Foreman
Dawn Scammell
Financial Administrator
Maureen Hawkins
MTRS Coordinator
The Fellows Association was formed on March 9, 1976 to honour those who have contributed in a distinctive and singular fashion to the development and progress of the Manitoba Agricultural Museum.
Fellows
- Bill McCreery (Treherne, MB)
- Jim Down (Portage la Prairie, MB)
- Ann Futros (Armstrong, BC)
- Dave Snydal (Brandon, MB)
- Audrey McCreery (Treherne, MB)
- Barbara Schellenberg (Austin, MB)
- Robert O. Beamish (Hamiota, MB)
- Alex Patterson (MacGregor, MB)
- Ron Bullock (Oak River, MB)
- Rollie Wilkins (Rumsey, AB)
The number of Fellows at one time shall not exceed fifteen, but does not necessarily need to reach this number.
Roll of Honour
- Benjamin Richardson (Bagot, MB)
- Stella Lake Richardson (Bagot, MB)
- John Russell Walker (Portage la Prairie, MB)
- Donald A. Campbell (Brandon, MB)
- Mirwin Addison Curtis (Brandon, MB)
- Kenneth Elvis Sumner (Winnipeg, MB)
- Gordon Alexander Cram (Darlingford, MB)
- David Nicol Hird (Lavenham, MB)
- Kenneth Malcolm Duncan (Austin, MB)
- Charles Edward Hotel (Austin, MB)
- Lloyd Austin Tennis (Carberry, MB)
- Mary Katheryn Tennis (Carberry, MB)
- John Percy Dodwell (Austin, MB)
- Abram Arthur Grobb (Treherne, MB)
- Charles Arthur Sear (Carberry, MB)
- Mary Eliza Swales (Westbourne, MB)
- John Muirhead (Carberry, MB)
- James Wesley Williamson (Alexander, MB)
- Thomas James Carrothers (Austin, MB)
- Albert Parker Bernie (Angusville, MB)
- Lewis Gordon Swales (Westbourne, MB)
- Thomas Roy Hamilton (Ochre River, MB)
- Lincoln Beamish (Hamiota, MB)
- Douglas Beamish (Hamiota, MB)
- Thomas William Lobb (Helston, MB)
- Cyril Randall (Austin, MB)
- Ira Williamson (Alexander, MB)
- Frances McLachlan (Beaver, MB)
- James Hay (Sidney, MB)
- Marion Bernie (Rossburn, MB)
- Olga Adams (Bagot, MB)
- Jack Adams (Bagot, MB)
- David McKeand (Douglas, MB)
- Charlie Hamilton (Ochre River, MB)
- James Swales (Westbourne, MB)
- Clarence Oliver Denser (Austin, MB)
- David John Black (Brandon, MB)
- George H. Hambley (Winnipeg, MB)
- John Steiss (Helston, MB)
- Walter Edwin Mayer (Helston, MB)
- J. Gordon M. Hay (Austin, MB)
- Mildred Irene Black (Brandon, MB)
- Douglas McIntyre (Arizona, MB)
- Joseph Tucker (Portage la Prairie, MB)
- Fred Simms (Elm Creek, MB)
- Donald Milne (Makinak, MB)
- Etta May Carrothers (Austin, MB)
- David Hogg (Minitonas, MB)
- Fred Harrison (Holland, MB)
- Donald Ephriam Carrothers (Austin, MB)
- Margaret Henderson (Winnipeg, MB)
- Clare Angers (Miami, MB)
- Kenneth Down (Holland, MB)
- Percy Henderson (Winnipeg, MB)
- Jack Collier (Winnipeg, MB)
- Ab Thompson (Holland, MB)
- Gerald W. Bilton (Hartney, MB)
- W. Frank Sims (MacGregor, MB)
- William Early (Austin, MB)
- Eileen Anne Early (Austin, MB)
- George Down (Holland, MB)
- Roy Compton (Darlingford, MB)
- Stella Catherine Lobb (Helston, MB)
- M. S. Joseph McMurachy (McConnell, MB)
- William Stanger (Portage la Prairie, MB)
- Vernon Orland McKelvy (MacGregor, MB)
- Howard Bond (Darlingford, MB)
- Edward Lear Grobb (Treherne, MB)
- Thelma Bessie Forbes (Rathwell, MB)
- Violet Wright (Austin, MB)
- Nick Kowalchuk (Austin, MB)
- Violet Doucette (Austin, MB)
- Karl Jedel (Austin, MB)
- Yvonne Down (Holland, MB)
- Peter Schellenberg (Castor, AB)
- Ella Kowalchuk (Austin, MB)
- Wally Loewen (Dufresne, MB)
- Clifford Carrothers (Winnipeg, MB)
- Terry Farley (Brandon, MB)
- Kevin Milne (Makinak, MB)
- Allan Alton (Manitou, MB)
- Jim Barclay (Winnipeg, MB)
- Abe Thiessen (Austin, MB)
- Margaret Cram (Pilot Mound, MB)
- Art Hardy (Belmont, MB)
- Gladys Barclay (Winnipeg, MB)
- Vera Hay (Austin, MB)
- Bob Anderson (MacGregor, MB)
- Ella Jedel (Austin, MB)
- Bill Williams (Manitou, MB)
- Elsie Sims (MacGregor, MB)
- Jim Kingdon (Minnedosa, MB)
- Jim Christison (Selkirk MB)
- Art DeVrieze (Austin, MB)
USE OF DRONES ON MUSEUM GROUNDS
Drones, also known as unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) or Remotely Piloted Aircraft (RPAs), can be used on the exterior grounds of the Manitoba Agricultural Museum ONLY with the express written permission of the Operations Manager (operationsmanager@mbagmuseum.ca) or President. The Museum reserves the right to alter flight patterns or stop any drones at any time.
The drone pilot must comply with all requirements of Transport Canada and is responsible for all public liability relating to its operation. Drones must be flown in a responsible manner that does not compromise the safety and privacy of museum staff, volunteers, and visitors.
Up to date rules and information can be found at www.Canada.ca/drone-safety
OUR HISTORY
The story of a museum focusing on Manitoba’s agricultural heritage started in the late 1940s when Don Carrothers of the Austin area became concerned about the amount of farm machinery from the pioneer era that was either being scrapped or sold out of the province.
Mr. Carrothers acquired a Case 22-65 steam engine, restored it to operating condition and paraded the engine on several occasions to gather community support for a museum which would collect agricultural implements from Manitoba’s pioneer era. He was successful and gathered a group of like-minded men who proceeded to form the Agricultural Memorial Museum of Manitoba in 1951. In 1952, the Museum hosted its first Threshermen’s Reunion, a display of operating pioneer equipment. The early years of the Museum were difficult ones, as money was short and the need for money to build the Museum was great. Volunteers were in plenty, however, and offered their skills and labor to the Museum. The Museum was greatly aided by the donation of land by Tom Carrothers, and this property forms the heart of the Museum today. The founders and the volunteers who followed them persevered, and gradually the Museum took shape, with the erection of display buildings, storage facilities and the other facilities needed to host visitors and house the collection.
In the 1960s, the Agricultural Memorial Museum of Manitoba evolved to become the Manitoba Agricultural Museum.
The museum continued growing and expanded to 320 acres
in order to provide required space for agricultural machinery demonstrations; carrying out the activities these pieces were built to do. These demonstrations included activities such as plowing, cutting and binding grain, and threshing. As well, the Museum added pioneer buildings to the collection, in order to provide a more complete picture of pioneer agriculture. Important, authentic buildings such as pioneer homes, a wooden grain elevator, an early railway station and others were acquired, moved to the Museum and set up in the Homesteader’s Village; complete with many of the items that would have been found in these buildings in the early days. Facilities such as a Grandstand was erected, washrooms and a modern campground were built for the convenience of the visitors to the Museum and Reunion.
The Museum continues to progress, as we move further into the 21th century.
Donations of artifacts continue to be accepted, however, the Museum is moving towards interpretation of the collection; we’re “telling the story”. The visitor base the Museum draws from has changed over the years, so requiring the Museum to change. The population of Manitoba is now largely urban, and has been for two generations or more. Educating the visitors we attract regarding the agricultural history of the province and the prairies, how the pieces of the collection changed the direction of agriculture, and how the agricultural history of Manitoba affects the province today, is now the goal of the Manitoba Agricultural Museum. The Museum is the sole agricultural museum in Canada that does operate a range of its antique equipment during the Threshermen’s Reunion; allowing antique equipment enthusiasts, visitors and volunteers with the opportunity to gain a valuable experience of pioneer farming and equipment.
