105-year-old Lamont Ag Society looking at the next 105 years

The Lamont and District Agriculture Society will celebrate 105 years of serving the Lamont area this year. They hold two major annual events, the 29-year-old Bullarama Supreme and the 35-year-old Summer Sizzler Rodeo which brought in over 4000 people last year, nearly doubling the attendance from previous years according to Ag society president Terry Eleniak.

While Eleniak said he is proud of the Ag society’s accomplishments and rich history, he worries there won’t be enough volunteers to maintain the society’s legacy once he and the other members are gone.

“The Ag Society is 105 years old and we want to make sure that we keep this legacy going,” said Eleniak. “If you pull us up on Facebook, or our website, you’ll see we have some very loyal people (but) we’re not going to be around forever.”

According to the Alberta Agriculture Societies website, there are 291 Ag societies in Alberta.

Eleniak said keeping communities sustainable is dependent on community involvement in organizations such as the Ag society.

“I keep on hearing time and time again, that (towns) don’t have anything for families. (People say) ‘We want to be involved in something and there’s nothing for us to be involved in’,” he said. “There is (something for you to be involved in). There’s the Ag Society.”

Eleniak explained that families do not need to have a background in farming to belong to the society, adding that new members will bring new ideas and events to the organization.

“Yes, agriculture is our bread and butter here in this community, but what about having a farmers’ market? What about a trade show?” he said.

“(While being confined over the pandemic), it also allowed people to get into crafts. People are doing 3D printing, making models and learning how to pickle and make jams. (There’s also) people that (have) taken up sewing and doing embroideries, quilting and fine art, and the list goes on and on.”

A newspaper article from the Edmonton Bulletin showcased the Lamont Agriculture Society’s successful first town fair on Aug. 20, 1918. It was celebrated as a ‘real live agricultural exhibition free of fakirs or side-line attractions’. Highlights of the show were the vegetable exhibit, dairy and poultry as well as a contest for the largest collection of gopher tails (first prize winner had 152 while the second prize winner only had 71).

Exhibits also consisted of grains and grasses where wheat measured 42 inches and barley nearly four feet, in addition to horse competitions, hand crafted furniture, and home-making skills. Those who helped to make the fair a success were applauded in the article for creating a foundation that demonstrated that ‘mixed farming and other activities of the ladies and children make life worth living’.

Meanwhile, Eleniak said the Ag Society has gone through many changes over the years including a big move in 2015 from the town of Lamont where they used to host their events from the Lamont Recreation Arena. The move brought them to a 44-acre parcel of land they re-named the Conrad Schinkinger Memorial Grounds located south of Lamont.

“The Ag Society moved out of town because we outgrew the facilities. We used to get 32-to-40-barrel racers coming through over a two-day event. The first year (at our new location) we had 138 and now we have over 200,” he said.

“That’s why we needed 44 acres because our grounds are packed.”

Eleniak said holding regular farmer’s markets would also mean residents can ‘shop local’ while supporting their community.

“It’s all about trying to keep the people within the community sustainable. There’s a lot of communities that (hold regular) farmers markets (where) people are bringing in their pickles, eggs, and government inspected beef. People in Alberta want to know where their food is coming from,” he said.

“This is obviously an opportunity. But where we have the hurdle is, we don’t have enough members. And we don’t have enough people wanting to step forward to take on some of those initiatives and take the bull by the horn. And we need that for the Ag society to be sustainable.”

Jana Semeniuk
Staff Reporter

This story and more were originally published in our 2023 Agriculture Section. Check it out here: