Title and statement of responsibility area
Title proper
General material designation
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Title statements of responsibility
Title notes
Level of description
Reference code
Edition area
Edition statement
Edition statement of responsibility
Class of material specific details area
Statement of scale (cartographic)
Statement of projection (cartographic)
Statement of coordinates (cartographic)
Statement of scale (architectural)
Issuing jurisdiction and denomination (philatelic)
Dates of creation area
Date(s)
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ca 1910-2004 (Creation)
Physical description area
Physical description
ca. 23 metres of textual records and other material
Publisher's series area
Title proper of publisher's series
Parallel titles of publisher's series
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Statement of responsibility relating to publisher's series
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Archival description area
Name of creator
Administrative history
The United Farmers' Co-operative Ltd., a company designed to buy supplies and sell produce for Ontario farmers, was established in 1914 alongside the United Farmers of Ontario (UFO), a farmers’ educational, social, and political organization which came to power in Ontario in 1919 under Ernest Drury (1878-1968). In 1936, the UFO, the United Farmers’ Co-operative Ltd., and various growers and other agricultural organizations formed the Ontario Chamber of Agriculture which, in 1940, became the Ontario Federation of Agriculture (OFA), a non-partisan lobbying and marketing organization for farmers.
In 1948 the United Farmers' Co-operative became the United Co-operatives of Ontario (UCO) and became one of the largest farmer-owned co-operatives in Canada and included feed mills, dry fertilizer storage facilities, distribution centres, and a petroleum supply company. In 1950, the UCO, together with the Ontario Credit Union League and Ontario Federation of Agriculture, became principal shareholders of Co-operators Insurance Association (CIA), which later became the Co-operators Life Insurance Association (The Co-operators Group Limited today).
In 1995, the UCO was purchased by GROWMARK Inc. of Bloomington, Illinois.
Name of creator
Biographical history
Leonard Harman (1910-1993) was a leading figure in the co-operative movement in Ontario. Born in York County, Ontario, Harman became involved with the United Farmers of Ontario (UFO) after graduating high school, acting as their Educational Secretary and editor of the Rural Co-operator. He also became involved with the United Farmers’ Co-operative. In the 1940s, Harman was instrumental in the formation of the United Co-operatives of Ontario (UCO), acting as General Manager from 1960 to 1971. Harman was passionate about rural education, working closely with Ontario Folk Schools, Pickering College, the Association for Adult Education, the Canadian Institute of Public Affairs, and the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations. He also helped to develop the Farm Radio Forum program. He was inducted into the Ontario Agricultural Hall of Fame in 1993.
Custodial history
Donated by the United Co-operatives of Ontario and Leonard Harman in October 1991
Scope and content
The United Co-operatives of Ontario collection contains minute books, correspondence, publications, reports, speeches, research notes, administrative files, by-laws, clippings, promotional material, financial records, scrapbooks, and photographs related to the United Co-operatives of Ontario. Book and reports from the UCO library are also included. Much of the material in this collection, which documents the heritage of early Ontario farm movements, was gathered and organized by Leonard Harman (1910-1993), a leading figure in the United Farmers of Ontario and the United Co-operatives of Ontario.