Community co-operative fruitful

 

http://tinyurl.com/eppob

 

By Deborah Chapman

CURATOR, SALMON ARM MUSEUM

 

Aug 02 2006

 

Elemental ending: Freeze and fire ended exchange.

 

On Saturday, Aug. 25, 1956, an alarm sounded that the entire community of Salmon Arm heard. With the exception of the concrete block wall that separated the feed store, the Salmon Arm Farmers' Exchange retail co-operative was razed by fire. It was the end to the community-run organization.

 

How did the co-operative movement get started in Salmon Arm? In 1898 farmers got together to buy bulk stumping powder through the Kamloops Farmers' Institute. Who could have known that the co-operative idea was to take hold and change decades of farming business and retail practices in Salmon Arm?

 

In 1906, Salmon Arm farmers turned to a co-operative in Revelstoke to ship produce to world markets. The arrangement proved unsatisfactory. Produce spoiled during shipping and, naturally, payments were withheld. Farmers failed to turn a profit.

 

In 1907, local farmers organized and incorporated the Salmon Arm Farmers' Exchange Limited. J.D. Mcguire chaired the first meeting. The purposes were specific: to pack, ship and sell fruit from farm gates to retailers in North America and Europe. A packing house was needed. The first exchange building was constructed west of the current Askew's store for $800. Members were optimistic.

 

The exchange was not successful right away. The first year it lost money. Poor management, lack of standards and quality, a shortage of packers and a limited facility were the reasons cited.

 

When G.G. Barber, farmer and country storekeeper from Sintaluta, Sask., saw an advertisement for a manager in the Salmon Arm Observer, local history changed its course. Barber standardized the shipments and quality of fruit, and eventually the growers got a return. In 1909, Barber's position became full time, the directors realizing they needed to hang on to this valuable employee. Barber expanded the operation to include flour, feed, building supplies and hardware. In 1913, an apple packing school was established. Apples won awards and the exchange prospered.

 

Expanding into local sales of flour and feed was good for business. Using the co-operative model, the exchange imported the two staples for the benefit of the community. Bulk buying and reduced shipping costs meant slashed sales prices.

 

But there were problems adding retail sales to the exchange's wholesale shipping operation. Understandably, local merchants saw the farmers' exchange as unfair competition. They circulated a petition and presented it to the exchange's landlord, the Canadian Pacific Railway. Retail activities violated the lease agreement. On Aug. 4, 1913, the CPR posted a notice of eviction to the farmers' exchange building. The lease was terminated with 30 days notice.

 

G.G. Barber proposed a solution. He recommended separating the retail and wholesale functions, with a separate legal structure and premises.

 

The exchange moved its retail stock temporarily to Finn Hall. A subscription list was started to form a new co-operative. Under the Joint Stock Companies Act, Salmon Arm residents made an application to form a trading company. Steps were taken to purchase the R.K. Scales store on Front Street directly across the street from the exchange.

 

The first meeting of shareholders took place Feb. 23, 1914. The Salmon Arm Farmers' Exchange retained 60 per cent of the stock and effectively dominated the policy of the new company. S-A-F-E Limited opened under the direction of exchange manager G.G. Barber.

 

By 1916, the business had grown so much that additions were made to the original building. There were three departments: dry goods, groceries and hardware. Business boomed. The building was enlarged a second and third time in 1921 and 1936 respectively.

 

The two co-operatives are still considered a success story. Fruit farmers continued to prosper until the "deep freeze" of 1949/1950 when unusual winter conditions, a vicious cold snap accompanied by warm, sunny days, destroyed many trees and history changed course. Community orchards didn't recover and the reduced quantities of fruit were shipped through the packing house in Vernon. The wholesale operation, the Salmon Arm Farmers' Exchange, eventually closed its doors.

 

The fire that destroyed the retail operation, S-A-F-E Ltd., dealt another blow to the local co-operative movement. Although the membership decided to rebuild, it took a year to reopen the store and, by then, the community had changed its buying habits.

 

It took two separate disasters - the freeze and the fire - to dismantle a 100-year-old co-operative tradition.

 

This uniquely Salmon Arm story is detailed in a new exhibit sponsored by the Salmon Arm Savings and Credit Union at Haney Heritage Village. Hours of operation are Wednesday through Sunday, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. The village is located on Highway 97B, next to the K.O.A. campground.


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