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The Alberta Linseed Oil Mills began operation in 1912, financed by John McNeely, President and General Manager, Harlan C.Yuill, Vice President, and William McNeely, Secretary-Treasurer. The central purpose of the mill was to produce raw and boiled linseed oil from flax, to be used in agricultural products such as livestock meal, and for use in paints and varishes. In 1918, the company was sold to Brandram-Henderson Limited of Montreal and the name changed to Alberta Linseed Oil Company Limited. In 1934, H.C. Yuill bought back the company and it remained a family business until closing. Throughout the years of operation the company ventured into production of hand soap, a household cleanser, safflower products, various edible oil products and asphalt and roofing tar and paint. The Company also diversified through sales and leasing of irrigation and water softening equipment. Subsidiary companies included Caltana Safflower Products Limited, Hy-Point Feeds, Canadian Safflower Products Limited, H & H Ranches and Lindsay of Medicine Hat. A fire which occurred in 1985, damaged Hy-Point Feeds and parts of the main building of Alberta Linseed Oil at their location on Allowance Avenue. The company was later relocated to the Brier Park industrial area, and operated under the Hy-Point Feeds Limited name until ca. 1990.

Nels Anderson, at age 16, and his older brother Andy, left Aarhus, Denmark to sail for New York in 1906. Their brothers, Mac and Einar, followed in 1911 and 1914. After 4 years of working on the railway and in logging camps, Nels and Andy came to Canada. Arriving by train in the spring of 1910 at Medicine Hat, the Anderson's took out a homestead 21 miles northeast of Alderson. The two brothers started farming with two horses and 4 oxen hitched to a gang plow. Brothers Mac and Einar joined them soon after. With one crop failure after another, the Anderson brothers eventually decided to sell out. Einar and Andy bought irrigated farms 10 miles southwest of Tilley; Mac moved to B.C. and Nels returned to the United States to work in logging camps, sawmills and blacksmith shops. In 1927, Nels came back to Tilley to help Einar with the farming. Three years later he started the International Implement Agency in an old shed, while Einar purchased and operated the General Store and Post Office in Tilley. On July 26, 1936, Nels married Leah McLean, a school teacher. They had six children: Ian, Peter, Donald, Leigh, Robin and Connie. Nels expanded his business to include a car dealership and after building two new garages, one in 1936, and another in 1950, he retired in 1960. His wife Leah, passed away suddenly in 1962. In 1964, Leigh married Margaret Patterson of Vancouver. They have 3 children and currently live in Ottawa where Leigh is an R.C.M.P. Sergeant. In 1965, Donald married Judy McGowan of Tilley. They have 2 children, and currently live in Coronation where Donald is supervisor of Bow River Pipelines. In 1971, Connie married Rick Swanson of Brooks, where Rick is a gas plant operator with Oakwood Petroleums. In 1972, Peter married Betty Mannerfeldt of Sylvan Lake. They live in Red Deer where Peter is Chief Surveyor for the city and Betty teaches in Sylvan Lake. In 1975, Robin married Pat Tinordi of Red Deer where they currently reside. Pat works in the Hospital's physiotherapy department and Robin has been employed as a truck driver. Robin also recently graduated from the R.C.M.P. and works at the Nordegg Correctional Institute. In 1977, Ian married Margaret Dragland of Forty Mile. They live in Medicine Hat with Margaret's 3 sons, Glen, Neil and Lyle. Ian is a mechanic with the Department of Highways. Since 1972, Nels has been living in his own home in Brooks. He keeps himself busy with woodmaking projects and his interest in politics.

Sir John Lister-Kaye was the visionary behind the 76 Ranch. In the fall of 1884, Lister-Kaye purchased almost seven thousand acres from the CPR and Dominion at Balgonie, east of Regina. Finding success with that region of land, Lister-Kaye turned his attention to the region west of Calgary. He purchased 10,000 acres of land there from the CPR and Dominion and began to establish ten farms. Seven of them were, at intervals, west of the Swift Current district extending almost to Calgary, one on the plains of Rush Lake, another south of Swift Current, and the third near a CPR experimental farm at Gull Lake. Lister-Kaye began promoting his group of farms as the Alberta and Assiniboia Land, Stock and Coal Company, but without convincing investors of the value and a bad drought, the scheme was almost abandoned. In 1888, however, along with D.J (Joe) Wylie, Lister-Kaye set out for England to convince his investors that his business was worthwhile. Success was had, and a new syndicate known as the Canadian Agricultural Coal and Colonization Company (CACC Co.) was created on January 26, 1888. This company bought out Lister-Kaye's Blagonie holdings and took over his purchase agreement with the CPR and Dominion once the land was inspected by the investors and given approval. By the end of 1888 the sale was finalized and Lister-Kaye had made a fortune, and also became manager of the CACC Co. for five years. The 76 Ranch brand orginally came from the Powder River Ranch Company, an English-owned organization based in London, when Lister-Kaye purchased about 5800 cattle for his ten station farms. Since the cattle already bore the brand "76" the CACC Co. decided to maintain it, and that is why today the whole enterprise in the North-West is known as the "76" Ranch. Lister-Kaye imported many high-quality breeds - mares, Merino Ewes, rams, bulls, Yorkshire Boars, and pigs - and distributed them all throughout his enterprise. Young Englishmen, and some women, were recruited and sent to the North-West to begin constructing the farm buildings and farm the land. To capitalize on the success of his farms, Lister-Kaye came up with an idea that linked his farms together. He opened up butcher shops and slaughterhouses in Dunmore and Medicine Hat and a large meat packing plant in Calgary in order to sell the company's own beef, mutton, and pork. The idea to sell cheese and butter, however, failed. After reckless mistakes and decisions, Lister-Kaye was replaced as manager of the CACC Co. and Harper P. Clinto took over. The company's troubles, however, did not end. In 1890, a prarie fire started by sparks from a CPR engine trapped 2200 CACC Co. sheep who were grazing near Gull Lake. Most of them were pregnant and over half of them were killed or badly burned. Coyotes also heavily prayed on lambs and sheep. A bad hail storm in 1890 also destroyed the crops in the Swift Current region. D.H Andrews took over as cattle manager of the "76" in 1890 and the livestock from Swift Current moved to Rush Lake, and those at Gull Lake moved to the Crane Lake ranch. Plagued by financial troubles, the CACC Co. sold all of its holdings and assests in the North-West to a new London-based company, the Canadian Land and Ranch Company Ltd. (CL & R Co.). A.F Eden was chairman of the Board of Directors and D.H Andrews was made general manager of the company. Selling off livestock became a priority to make money and several employees were dismissed. Weather and low prices for wool made making money a tough practice, even though the new company managed to make healthy profits through consolidations. The company was dealt a mortal blow during the winter of 1906 - 1907 when two-thirds of their cattle herd died on the open range, and was only able to continue on until 1909 because of stored profits. In 1909, the company gave up ranching entirely, and sold its remainging holdings to the firm of Gordon, Ironsides and Fares of Winnipeg.

A.P. Burns was a noted businessman, contractor, builder, and rancher in post-1900 Medicine Hat. He was born in Elinora, Ontario in 1877. He was president of the Gas City Planing Mill Ltd. And at one time was vice-president of the Medicine Hat News Ltd. when it was locally owned. He also served for two terms on City Council, was a past-president of the Chamber of Commerce, first president of the Western Reclamation Association, and chairman of the Chamber's irrigation committee. During the Second World War he was chairman of the Medicine Hat and District Committee for National War Finance. He had an interest in sports, serving as president of the old Monarch Hockey Club, and the Alberta Fish and Game Association. Arthur was married to Lila (nee?) and they couple had two children, Robert and Mrs. Bill Morrison. One of his business endeavors (which is the focus of this fonds) was as a principal in the Burnside Development Corporation (BDC) that was formed with several prominent early citizens including: H.L. Tweed, C.R. Mitchell (later provincial treasurer, and attorney general), Charles S. Pingle, and Dr. C.S. Smith. Each shareholder brought either capital or land from what is now the Burnside area into the corporation, for the purpose of developing the area into an urban subdivision. After the formation of BDC an agreement was struck with the firm of Perry Sewell and Perry in 1912 (PS&P) to market and sell the development. PS&P in turn became shareholders in a Calgary based joint stock company called Windsor Estates that was created for the purpose of selling the individual residential lots. Numerous lots were sold across the country, many apparently to real estate men and other speculators who were intending on profiting from the forecasted continued rapid economic expansion that was to occur in Medicine Hat and western Canada. Each of the deals between the parties were tied to the success of each other as unsecured loans and mortgages with small down payments were the principal method of payment employed by all. With the economic downturn in the fall of 1913 the plan started to unravel with lot sales decreasing and payments being defaulted upon. By 1915 PS&P were in default themselves and BDC was in turn forced to appeal to the City of Medicine Hat to reconsider the tax assessment for all of the lots. By 1918 with many lots being put up for judicial sale for failure to pay taxes the entire subdivision proposal was recognized as unsalvageable. Like many other failed land schemes in the province at that time, BDC applied to the Provincial Utility Commission to have the land de-accessioned from the city and turned back into rural lands. Throughout the 1920's and 1930's, BDC operated the area as a farm that was successful agriculturally but marginally viable financially as the debt load from the companies inception weighed heavily on its finances. However all debts were fully honoured by the time that A.P. Burns dissolved the company in 1941. The documents in this archive provide a first hand, in depth account of the intricacies of a land speculation scheme that were common prior to the period of the First World War. Acreage values went from the corporations original purchase price of $137/acre in 1911 to $1000/acre in 1912 when acquired by PS&P and doubling again (approximately) when individual 25 ft lots were selling for $220 in 1913. Arthur P. Burns passed away June 14, 1963 at the age of 86.

Alexander Reuber was born in 1915. He immigrated to Canada and settled in the Kipp, Alberta area. In 1943 he enlisted in the Canadian army and after his discharge in 1946 he settled in the Medicine Hat area. He was the owner and operator of Reuber Transport, which hauled grain and feed for the farmers for thirty years. In 1946 Alexander Reuber married Jessie Dean Stanton. Together they had 2 daughters, Dawn and Heather, and one son, James. Mrs. Reuber died in 1980. Alexander Reuber died May 9, 1990.

Alberta celebrated its 75th anniversary as a province in 1980. Many special events were held throughout Alberta. The materials donated contain details about and promotional materials for those events organized in the southern sector of the province.

William Ansley came west from Ontario in the 1890's to homestead at Rouleau, NWT. There, he also operated a lumber and hardware business with his first (?) son Harvey, who was born September 29, 1874, in Brooke Township, Ontario (30 miles west of London). William married/remarried Adaline (nee Hunter/Curry?), at Drinkwater, Saskatchewan. There were two other children (step children?), from another marriage; a son William J. Ansley and Charlotte (Mrs. George Temple). The Ansley family came to the Medicine Hat area about 1906. In about 1908, William Ansley purchased what was then known as the Crockford Mine, located west of Medicine Hat along the riverbanks of the South Saskatchewan River. It was soon thereafter renamed the Ansley Coal Mine operated by the Ansley Coal Company Limited. Coal was hauled by steam engine to the top of the hillside where it was then loaded into wagons pulled by horse teams. As many as 11 miners were employed at the mine during its busiest months (winter), and as much as 4 to 6 tons of coal were hauled daily. Some families may have resided on the nearby flats, as had been done during the previous ownership by the Crockford brothers. The site consisted of a weigh house, bunk house, cook house, dining room and an 800 ton capacity tipple. The mine tunnel reached a distance of 1500 to 2000 feet, with a coal seam 6 feet thick. The coal was a soft coal, and was therefore of cheaper market value. In 1910, coal from the mine sold for $2.75 per ton, in 1911, for $3.00 per ton, and in 1912, for $3.50 per ton. Eventually, the Ansley family sold out to J.B. Swan around 1918, at which time the mine was renamed the Swan Mine. Son Harvey Ansley was married to Annie May (nee Rose), on December 25, 1901, at Drinkwater, Saskatchewan. Annie was born February 14, 1882, in Warwick Township, Ontario, and was the daughter of David Rose and Letitia (nee Phillips). A daughter, Myrtle Rose Ansley, was born in Medicine Hat, March 5, 1908. Myrtle taught school in Medicine Hat, retiring in 1970 due to illness. In July 1980, she moved to New Westminster, British Columbia. Her father, Harvey Ansley, died May 1, 1930; her grandfather, William Ansley, died on March 18, 1918, at the age of 75 years.