This photo from the Lambton Publicity Association showcases a display of Lambton County Bee-keeping at the CNE in 1916.
The Annual Report of the Bee-Keepers’ Association of the Province of Ontario for 1912 credits early organizational roots to Alvinston.
The report suggests that Alvinston set the course for organizing local beekeepers over two meetings, with the first held on the July 31, 1886. Officers appointed at the initial gathering included “Messrs. Adam Clark, Chairman; J.R. Kitchin, Secretary; and James Newell, Treasurer.” The Alvinston Bee-keepers’ Association set forth their intent on holding a convention at the village on the 1st of September in that year. Invitations were sent to Lambton and Middlesex bee-keepers.
In due course, the first meeting of the Lambton association was held in the Council Chambers in the village of Alvinston on that date. R. Auld, of Warwick Village was appointed President, Dr. Harvey of Wyoming as Vice-President, J.R. Kitchin of Alvinston as Secretary, and James Newell of Alvinston as Treasurer. The report notes that it was at this time the association was officially extended from Alvinston to the county at large.
Of note, “the Lambton Bee-keeper’s Association] was in existence in 1891, where the records break down, but it [had] disappeared in 1897, where the record is taken up again.”
Jumping ahead to 1915, the Annual Bee-Keepers Report speaks of “putting up a honey exhibit” with much discussion of how best to showcase and display the buzz-worthy product.
It is here where we pick up the story of Lambton Bee-keepers as an organizational body, including the input of R.C. (Ralph) Fretz – Apiarist, of Forest and Sarnia:
“We have in Lambton County this year organized an association that has its value in the local fruit, vegetable and honey associations in the county, and we have had co-operative exhibits. They put up prizes for non-competitive exhibits, and these prizes amounted up to hundreds of dollars, and the individual or an association could show, and the object of the exhibits were to be commercial exhibits, not to carry out the idea of being artistic so much as to put in a commercial exhibit, to have a large quantity to attract buyers, and I believe if this could be carried out at our larger exhibitions, it might do a lot of good, it might help us a great deal in our selling plans. I just offer these suggestions as they occur to me...”
This photograph captures Fretz’ sentiment with Lambton’s apiculture prowess proudly showcased at the CNE in Toronto in the following year of 1916.
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