| | LEVEL OF DESCRIPTION: | Fonds | | No.: | PR0362 | | TITLE: | Angus Ridge Mutual Telephone Company fonds | | CREATOR: | Angus Ridge Mutual Telephone Company | | DATE RANGE: | 1923-1972 | | EXTENT: | 0.30 m of textual records | | ADMINISTRATIVE | | HISTORY/BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCH: | By an order defining a rural telephone area, as provided for by the Rural Mutual Telephone Companies (RMTC) act of 1935, James Davidson Baker, then Deputy Minister of Telephones for the Province of Alberta, ordered those portions of Township 45, Range 23, West of the 4th Meridian (45-23-W4) and Township 45, Range 24, West of the 4th Meridian (45-24-W4) to be defined as a Rural Telephone Area under the RMTC Act of 1935 and assigned that designated area to the Angus Ridge Rural Mutual Telephone Company (MTC) Wetaskiwin, Alberta on February 19, 1937. All subscribers were expected to become shareholders in the Company. All rental and service costs were to be paid up front, in advance by each member. The official business year ended on December 31. The Company routinely held its annual meeting in January at which time the shareholders nominated and elected, by a show of hands or by proxy vote, an Auditor and a Board of Directors, all of whom were expected to hold office for one year. The Board, in turn, elected a President, Vice President, Secretary-Treasurer and three Directors. The President had the authority to call a special meeting at any time. Meetings consisted of reading and adopting the minutes of previous meetings, communications, unfinished business, and new business accounts. Telephone rates for the year were set at either the annual or special meeting. Repairs to lines were to be carried out by day labour, contract or donation and approved at the discretion of the Directors. All incoming complaints were expected to be in writing, directed to the attention of the Secretary, and brought before the Board. By-laws were drafted by the Board and passed by the subscribers at the meetings and could be changed or amended by a two-third majority of the shareholders present at any annual meeting. By-laws were passed, from the outset of the Company’s coming into being, limiting calls to five minutes in length except for long-distance conversations over Government toll lines. Further by-laws stated that long-distance messages took priority over local calls and that no abusive, profane or obscene language was permitted to pass over the lines. Offenders were fined and denied telephone access until all outstanding fines were paid. According to the by-laws established by the Board, no one was permitted to take down a receiver for the purpose of listening to a message passing over the line. The Angus Ridge M.T.C. folded in 1972. The Alberta Government was expected to assume responsibility for the phone lines thereafter, installing underground wires and new receiving sets. SCOPE AND CONTENT:Fonds consists of maps, bound ledger and record books, various textual records, published literature, brochures, legal and blank share certificates, newsletters, bulletins, and advertisements SOURCE OF TITLE: Title based on contents of fondsDATE NOTE:Although it appears as though the Angus Ridge M.T.C. was not officially established until 1937, members gathered for their first meeting, informally, on November 19, 1934. SOURCE OF ACQUISITION:Mr. J.J. Malmas, lifelong acting Secretary-Treasurer for the Angus Ridge Mutual Telephone Company, Box 1805, Wetaskiwin, AB., deposited the records of the Angus Ridge M.T.C. on November 30, 1972. Mr. J.J. Malmas donated the records to the Provincial Archives of Alberta as a gift on November 10, 1972. The issue of donation to the Provincial Museum and Archives was discussed during the final annual meeting of the Company on September 8, 1972.ARRANGEMENTNOTE:The arrangement and item-level inventory list was originally prepared by Frances Swyripa on May 11, 1973. The Angus Ridge M.T.C. records were re-housed according to the inventory list and earlier arrangement of those records. Original order of those records has been maintained since that point. ACCESS CONDITIONS: NoneUSE CONDITIONS: Permission for use required. Subject to the Copyright Act | | SCOPE AND CONTENT: | Fonds consists of maps, bound ledger and record books, various textual records, published literature, brochures, legal and blank share certificates, newsletters, bulletins, and advertisements | | DATE NOTE: | Although it appears as though the Angus Ridge M.T.C. was not officially established until 1937, members gathered for their first meeting, informally, on November 19, 1934. | | ARRANGEMENT NOTE: | The arrangement and item-level inventory list was originally prepared by Frances Swyripa on May 11, 1973. The Angus Ridge M.T.C. records were re-housed according to the inventory list and earlier arrangement of those records. Original order of those records has been maintained since that point. | | RELATED RECORDS: | Records of various other telephone companies are also located at the Provincial Archives of Alberta. | | GENERAL NOTE: | The region serviced by the mutual telephone company is represented according to the Alberta Township Survey (ATS) system. | | RELATED FILES: | Display FileList |
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