Series .01 - United Farmers of Alberta Milo Local #173

Milo United Farmers of Alberta (UFA) Local #713 was organized in late December 1925 or early January 1926, with V.J. Bertrand and Jack Deitz elected officers. Previous UFA initiatives in the area had been conducted under the auspices of the Queenstown UFA local, which had been organized in 1910. These early activities included the successful petitioning for the re-location of a near-by ferry and for the extension of the railroad, as well as the construction of a Cooperative Hall north of the original Milo townsite, using volunteer labour.

In keeping with the overall philosophy of the UFA, the members of Milo Local #713 were committed to utilizing their combined strength, both politically and socially. They were concerned with everything from lease land and grazing rights to the state of the roads and of mail delivery, and helped arrange for the services of both a District Nurse and a doctor. They were part of the annual UFA picnics held at Lake McGregor, and joint meetings and social events were often planned with the Queenstown UFA local and with the Milo-Queenstown United Farm Women of Alberta. Money was raised at the picnics, as well as through activities like whist drives and raffles, and support was regularly provided to the Junior UFA local.

Meetings were held in the Co-operative Hall, the Union (United) Church basement or the Odd Fellows Hall, and sometimes the Co-Operative store, which opened in 1932.

After the adjournment of an apparently uneventful meeting in March 1935, the minute book resumes in April 1939. At that meeting, a motion was passed that “... the Milo UFA local be reorganized”, with meetings to be held the first Saturday of every month.

In 1949 the United Farmers of Alberta and the Alberta Farmers’ Union amalgamated, and the locals became Milo Farmers Union of Alberta Local #1226.