Gulyás Katalin et al. (szerk.): Tisicum - A Jász-Nagykun-Szolnok Megyei Múzeumok Évkönyve 23. (Szolnok, 2014)
Történettudomány - Hegedűs Krisztián: Méhészélet Kunszentmártonban. Az okszerű méhészet pionírjaitól a szervezett egyesületekig
TISICUM XXIII. - TÖRTÉNETTUDOMÁNY Krisztián Hegedűs Beekeeping in Kunszentmárton From the sporadic pioneers of beekeeping to organised associations The different associations, clubs and circles of friends, the important institutions of the bourgeois development started to appear from the 1860’s in Kunszentmárton, but they did not become multitudinous until the turn of the century. The first world war marked a sharp turning point in the history of associations; the vast majority of the Kunszentmárton associations and clubs that came to life in the Dualism ceased to exist or were transformed in the first half of the 1920’s. The first beekeeping society was established at that age, which promoted the up-to-date methods and technology of beekeeping and represented the local beekeepers’ interests. We have no data of organised club life from earlier periods. However, there were a few noteworthy local individuals who did a lot to spread modern beekeeping technology and procedures. In the field of beekeeping, there has been certain continuity from the 1920’s till today, since over the 20th century its clubs were able to survive- apart from two short periods of interruption -in different organisations but in an official framework. The frameworks of the associations served different purposes in different periods. In the three different periods described in the paper, one can follow the changes of the functions of the association. The paper presents these changes of function, the most important characteristics of association life and offers an insight to the history of beekeeping in Kunszentmárton. What motivated a beekeeper to join an association 100 years ago, what are the reasons today? Does the above-mentioned continuity show up in the survival of the traditions of the association? If yes, where can it be seen, and who are the ones to carry them and pass them down? 232
