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Montana Farmers Union records, 1912-1983

Overview of the Collection

Creator
Montana Farmers Union
Title
Montana Farmers Union records
Dates
1912-1983 (inclusive)
Quantity
14 linear feet of shelf space.
Collection Number
MC 110 (collection)
Summary
Records (1912-1983) of the Montana Farmers Union consist of state convention materials (1943-1974); reports (1965-1975) of county and local union meetings; financial records; subject files; records of associated cooperative enterprises; correspondence (1965-1968) of the Education Department; and scrapbooks.
Repository
Montana Historical Society, Library & Archives
Montana Historical Society Research Center Archives
225 North Roberts
PO Box 201201
Helena MT
59620-1201
Telephone: 4064442681
Fax: 4064445297
mhslibrary@mt.gov
Access Restrictions

Collection open for research.

Languages
English
Sponsor
Funding for encoding this finding aid was provided through a grant awarded by the National Endowment for the Humanities.
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Historical Note

The Farmers Educational and Cooperative Union, later to become the National Farmers Union, was founded in 1902, in Rains County, Texas, by Isaac Newton ("Newt") Gresham. It spread rapidly around the South during the next few years, but then started to decline. As it declined in the South, however, membership in the Upper Midwest and especially North Dakota began to increase.

The first Montana local was formed at Ronan in 1912, with a Polson local established shortly thereafter. Under the leadership of Ronan local president J.F. Olsen, the union expanded into other Montana counties, with locals established at Power, Dutton, and Limington in Teton County; at Lake Basin in Stillwater County; and at Lake View in Yellowstone County. The national Farmers Educational and Cooperative Union sent in Warren McCurtain, who organized over 100 new Montana locals during 1914-1916.

Prior to 1916, the Farmers Union in Montana was weakened by the lack of a state organization. The national charter required a combined local membership of 5,000 before a state could be chartered. Montana's farm population was too small, too widely scattered, and too unstable to qualify. In April 1916, therefore, national president Charles S. Barrett granted Montana a state charter under a special dispensation. The organization just barely survived the drought years of 1917-1919, then had a brief boom during the prosperity of 1920-1921, only to be hit by the great depression, which started in the mid-1920s for Montana farmers. However, spurred by the widespread unrest of farmers during the Depression, the Union grew rapidly throughout the late 1920s and the 1930s.

Dedicated to the interests of the family farm, the Farmers Union pursues a three-fold program of education, cooperation, and legislation. The Education Department sponsors a lending library, summer camps, workshops, and correspondence classes for farm families. Farm cooperatives, while not a formal part of the Farmers Union, have always been closely allied with the Union, often using the name "Farmers Union" as part of their title. The cooperative movement met the desperate need of the drought-and- depression-hit farmers to cut costs and to get better prices for their products. In addition to its educational and cooperative role, the Farmers Union maintains active political lobbies on both the federal and state levels to push for legislation benefiting family farms.

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Content Description

Records are divided into four subgroups: state union records, Education Department records, local union records, and national union records.

State Union Records include correspondence (1967 only); scattered financial records (1918-1970); minutes of the first state meeting (1916) and of the Board of Directors (1960-1963, 1966-1967); organizational records, including bylaws and articles of incorporation (1945), convention delegate lists, election results, etc. (1943-1974), lists of local unions, and returned charters; subject files on a variety of topics and allied organizations; miscellany; and clippings.

Education Department Records consist primarily of general correspondence (1966-1968) with local unions, prospective students at educational camps, and political figures. In addition there several department publications.

Local Union Records include minutes (1928-1958) and reports of meetings (1965-1975) for locals around the state. There are minutes for only a few of the locals. There are scrapbooks for the Chouteau County summer camp; and for Pondera County, compiled by Dorothy Floerchinger.

National Farmers Union Records consist primarily of minutes (1960-1963) of the National Farmers Union Life Insurance Company, the National Farmers Union Life Property and Casualty Company, the National Farmers Union Resources Corporation, and the National Farmers Union Service Corporation. In addition, there are convention materials for the 1939 national convention, and miscellaneous publications.

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Use of the Collection

Restrictions on Use

Researchers must use collection in accordance with the policies of the Montana Historical Society. The Society does not necessarily hold copyright to all materials in the collection. In some cases permission for use may require additional authorization from the copyright owners. For more information contact an archivist.

Preferred Citation

Item description and date. Collection Title. Collection Number. Box and Folder numbers. Montana Historical Society Research Center, Archives, Helena, Montana.

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Administrative Information

Arrangement

Arranged by subgroup and series. Some material housed in manuscript volumes. Some material housed in oversize folder in archives map case. See inventory below for more information.

Location of Collection

5:7-5

Preservation Note

Small amount of correspondence housed on microform. See inventory below for more information.

Acquisition Information

Acquisition information available upon request

Separated Materials

Films and photographs transferred to Photo Archives. Artifacts transferred to Museum. See inventory below for more information.

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Detailed Description of the Collection

Detailed Description of the Collection

The following section contains a detailed listing of the materials in the collection

Names and SubjectsReturn to Top

Subject Terms

  • Agriculture--Montana--Societies, etc.
  • Farmers--Montana--Societies, etc.
  • Labor unions--Montana

Corporate Names

  • Montana Farmers Union (creator)

Finding aid prepared by Ellie Arguimbau, 1979; revised 2002.
2005

CC Attribution
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.

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