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LEVEL OF DESCRIPTION: Fonds
No.: PR3755
TITLE: Postans Family fonds
CREATOR: Postans Family
DATE RANGE: 1882-2015
EXTENT: 0.82 m textual records and other material.
Also includes 901 photographs, 59 negatives, 6 maps, 1 audiocassette [1 Hr.: 30 Mins.].
ADMINISTRATIVE
HISTORY/BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCH:

Alexander Miller Postans was born July 17, 1875 in Ancastor, Ontario to Thomas Postans and Ellen Sibbald Postans (neé Miller). He married Agnes Elizabeth Gurnett on August 27, 1900 in Ancastor, Ontario and he made the trip to Alberta in 1908 before they started homesteading in 1909 just north of Heath, Alberta. Together they had four children: Stanley, Marion, Nellie, and Richard. Alexander was an early active member of the United Farmers of Alberta (UFA).

Agnes Elizabeth Gurnett was born August 15, 1878 in Ancastor, Ontario to Richard Gurnett and Ellen Gurnett (neé Silverthorn). Agnes had been a co-worker with Nellie McClung in gaining women the vote in the 1920s and was a promotor of women’s rights and human rights. She was an early member of the United Farm Women of Alberta (UFWA), an auxiliary to the UFA. She was a director for the UFA/UFWA for Battle River Constituency in 1919, 1922, 1924, 1925, 1927, 1932, and 1934. Agnes came second to Irene Parlby in an election for Provincial Director. She passed away September 25, 1936 in Wainwright, Alberta.

Stanley Gurnett Postans was born January 29, 1920 and attended Sligo School #2311, north-east of Wainwright. He took some mechanical training and worked as a mechanic for his brother-in-law’s garage in Lougheed until war broke out in 1939. Stan enlisted in the Royal Canadian Air Force (RCAF) and was sent to Valcartier for basic training. He was part of the R121 Royal Canadian Air Force, 6440 servicing Aschelon, and 143 Wing, Second Tactile Airforce. During his service, he was part of the Canadian troops that freed Belgium and Holland from German occupation forces, and that liberated the Bergen-Belsen concentration camp. He also served in France and other parts of Germany.

After the war in 1945, Stan returned to the family farm where, under the Veterans Land Act, he was able to purchase the neighboring farm in 1946. On August 29, 1952, Stan married Alvina Hansen whom he had first met as a pen pal in the Free Press’ “Homeloving Hearts” section. They had two sons, Robert and Arne, as well as four daughters, Diane, Beverly, Irene, and Sharon. He also had a foster son named Jim Stevenson.

Stan was involved in trying to better the livelihood of the Canadian farmer and was involved in many organizations, including the UFA, and was the school trustee for Edgerton School. Upon retirement, he and Alvina moved to Wainwright where he took an active role in the Legion and served as Service Officer for many years. He and Alvina also shared an interest in gardening during their retirement. Stanley Gurnett Postans passed away on April 22, 2000 at 80 years of age.

CUSTODIAL HISTORY:Records were donated by the family in 2015 and 2016.
SCOPE AND CONTENT:

Fonds contains material on the UFA, UFWA, and RCAF and includes correspondence, diaries, souvenirs, newspaper clippings, notebooks, meeting minutes, reports, conventions, studies, programs, a speech, a recipe book, service records, ledgers, cards, comics and propaganda, a ration book, newsletters, handbooks, personal recollections, membership cards, German, Dutch, and Canadian currency, address books, postcards, and homestead entry papers.

Photographs and negatives are of UFA and UFWA members, convention attendees, airplanes, war, servicemen, travel, and friends. The audio tape is an interview Stanley Postans did with the Wainwright Star Chronicle and maps are of electoral districts and one municipal map for Wainwright.

Records will be arranged into the following three series, according to their creator: Alexander Postans series, Agnes Postans series, and Stan Postans series. Some family records haven’t been arranged into one of the series.

LANGUAGE NOTE: The material is in English with some records in German.
ASSOCIATED MATERIAL: Also see the United Farmers of Alberta fonds (PR0363) and the United Farm Women of Alberta sous-fonds (PR0363.0014).
RELATED RECORDS: Also see artifacts of the Postans Family which were donated to the Royal Alberta Museum in 2016.
RELATED SERIES: PR3755.0001 (Alexander Postans series)
PR3755.0002 (Agnes Postans series)
PR3755.0003 (Stan Postans series)
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