The Patrons of Industry in Manitoba was an extension of a farmers' organization operating in Ontario (see Patrons of Industry) and the United States in the 1880s and 1890s. The Patrons lobbied extensively and became politically active, running provincial and federal candidates. The Manitoba Patrons, as a fraternal organization, was initially focused on coordinating an agrarian cooperative movement on the Prairies. The Patrons ran seven candidates in the provincial election of 1896, and two of them were elected: Watson Crosby in Dennis and William Sirett in Beautiful Plains.