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| | LEVEL OF DESCRIPTION: | Sous-fonds | | No.: | PR3396.001SF | | TITLE: | Medicine Valley Estonian Society sous-fonds | | CREATOR: | Medicine Valley Estonian Society | | DATE RANGE: | 1825-2011 | | EXTENT: | 1.32 m of textual records and other material
Includes 188 photographs, 4 negatives, 3 audio cassettes, 1 audio compact disc, 4 DVDs, and 1 videocassette | | ADMINISTRATIVE | | HISTORY/BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCH: | The Medicine Valley Estonian Society (MVES), Medicine Oru Eesti Selts, was formed in 1910 in the Medicine Valley area of Alberta, which at the time was populated by an estimated 50 Estonian pioneers around such communities as Eckville, Stettler and Sylvan Lake. The MVES amalgamated with other community organizations, including the local Estonian band and choir originally founded in 1906, and established a lending library for adults and children in 1911. Other communal enterprises were integrated into the MVES including a branch of the Co-operative Association (1912), the Gilby (Kalmu) Cemetery Board (1914), and the Eckville Telephone Association (organized in 1917.) Estonians living in the Medicine Valley area also contributed land, building materials, and labour to construct a one-room schoolhouse for grades 1-8, known as the Estonian School, which opened on June 24, 1906. A second classroom was added in 1922.
The Estonian Hall was built in 1918 and served both as the home of the MVES and the centre of the Estonian community, numbering approximately 200 at this time. A library of 500 books was added to the hall and the Society sponsored fold dances and theatre groups. Meetings of the MVES included discussions of farmers’ cooperatives, education, politics, religion, and literature. The Ladies’ club of the MVES also hosted events including box socials and fundraisers. In 1926, Estonian Independence Day was celebrated for the first time in Canada at the Estonian Hall.
The MVES was officially incorporated under the Societies Act of 1933. The Society ceased many of its activities during the Second World War, but there was an increase in membership after the war due to an influx of refugees from Estonia during the Post War era. Later urbanization led to a decrease in membership and the MVES ceased all activities in 1984.
When the Alberta Estonian Heritage Society (AEHS) was established in 2005, it was comprised of members of the Edmonton Estonian Society, the Calgary Estonian Society, and members from the area of the former Medicine Valley Estonian Society.
| | CUSTODIAL HISTORY: | Dave Kiil, member of the Alberta Estonian Heritage Society and former president of the Edmonton Estonian Society, deposited the records comprising PR2010.0503, PR2010.0590, PR2012.0563 and PR2012.0688 at the Provincial Archives of Alberta.
The records comprising PR2010.0078 were transferred from Library and Archives Canada.
| | SCOPE AND CONTENT: | The Medicine Valley Estonian Society sous-fonds forms part of the Alberta Estonian Heritage Society fonds along with the Edmonton Estonian Society sous-fonds and the Calgary Estonian Society sous fonds.
The Medicine Valley Estonian Society sous-fonds consists of society records including membership lists, photographs of members and events organized by the society, minutes, correspondence, financial records, maps, songbooks, and local history and other books.
The fonds also consists of personal documents of Estonian-Albertan pioneers including photographs, bibles, journals, correspondence, newspaper clippings, scrapbooks, audio recordings, and legal documents.
| | GENERAL NOTE: | Information for the administrative history/biographical sketch was sourced from conversations with the donor and from the website “Alberta’s Estonian Heritage:” http://www.aehs.ca/ accessed July 8, 2010. | | RELATED FONDS: | PR3396 (Alberta Estonian Heritage Society)
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