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rgalston Apr 4, 2007 2:47 AM

Historical Winnipeg discussion
 
This is a thread to discuss Winnipeg's history, which has seemed to seep into discussion on other threads a number of times recently. Western Canada's oldest city, and one with an exciting history, I thought it deserved a thread of its own.

So, if you're excited about the Corydon streetcar line, think the Paris Building is going to give Portage Avenue a real boost, or excited that the Casa Loma will give Winnipeg another apartment building that exceeds three storeys, post here!

---

At http://www.mhs.mb.ca/data/census/1911/winnipeg/ there is a list of hotels in Winnipeg in 1911, which by my count, is a remarkable 84 hotels across the greater Winnipeg area. Today 14 of them are still in operation, though some have different names, and one with a new building. They are:
1) Mariaggi
McDermott [McDermot] corner Albert and Arthur

2) Northern
826-828 Main

3) Occidental
631 Main

4) Ontario
860 Main
(Now the Yale)

5) Richelieu
114 Higgins
(Now the King's, but would be more appropriately titled the Queen's)

6) Riverview
322 Nairn (Elmwood)

7) Stock Exchange
910 Logan
(Now in modern, motel-style building)

8) Sutherland
785 Main corner Sutherland

9) Vendome
308 Fort

10) Wellington
287 Garry
(Now the Garrick)

11) West
786 Main
(Now the "New" West)

12) Winnipeg
214-216 Main

13) Wolseley
186-188 Higgins
(Now named the Mount Royal. "Wolseley Hotel" is still inscribed in stone below the cornice)

14) Woodbine
466 Main

Absent from this list, though I'm certain they were in operation in that year, the Bell, the Windsor and the McLaren.

Greco Roman Apr 4, 2007 2:48 AM

Corydon streetcar line??????????????????

1ajs Apr 4, 2007 3:20 AM

84 hotels wow... wonder how many of them were dives back then lol

anyhow

metro meats one of the few local corners stores with a butcher shop in it including a smoke house at the corner of euclid and grove
http://img124.imageshack.us/img124/1688/metro1al0.jpg

now thats somthing thats missing from the burbs corner stores.......

and then theres ross house witch was the first post ofice in western canada
http://www.pointdouglas.com/plugins/...images/717.jpg



as for the hotels mentioned i got pics of them now... i gota sort threw 2000 pictures betweem my webserver and what i got on image shack :S


stublmed across this pic of barber house
http://www.westlandconstructionltd.c...eneral0180.jpg

The Barber House
Client
City of Winnipeg

Project Type
Historical

Challenge
Construct a new foundation, move the structure, replace the oak logs and stabilize the structure. The roof was repaired using cedar shingles and moccasins were discovered in each rafter space.

Results
Another excellent opportunity to meet and work with the people of Point Douglas


and this one of ross house
http://www.westlandconstructionltd.c...eneral0170.jpg

The Ross House
Client
City of Winnipeg

Project Type
Historical

Challenge
Construct a new foundation, relocate the 1st Winnipeg Post Office, replace oak logs and restore the interior. The original Red River frame construction tools & methods were used to produce perfect duplicates of the log components, square nails and horse hair binder.

Results
An incredible experience for all concerned.

gee nutyclubs sign looks better today
http://www.manitobaphotos.com/1950/079.jpg

http://www.manitobaphotos.com/1950/039.jpg

Only The Lonely.. Apr 4, 2007 5:27 AM

I always wondered what this hotel would be like if it still stood today.

Would it have become a dodgy welfare den like the McLaren, Empire, and Leland, or would it be a premier place to stay like the Hotel Ft.Garry.

http://bbhilda.topcities.com/MbHotel1890s.jpg

Quote:

Originally Posted by http://bbhilda.topcities.com/WinnipegThen_Now3.html
The Manitoba Hotel, built by the Northern Pacific Railway in the early 1890s on the southeast corner of Main and Water, was considered the finest hostelry between Montreal and Vancouver. With the hotel's spacious rotunda, excellent dining room, elaborate ballroom and well stocked wine cellar, it was the centre of Winnipeg social life. The rotunda, 150 x 40 ft and 25 ft high, was extremely handsome, wainscotted in oak, with glittering electric and gaslit chandeliers, rich carpets and handsome furniture.

http://bbhilda.topcities.com/Manitob...99_343x265.jpg

Only The Lonely.. Apr 4, 2007 5:29 AM

They sure knew how to build cities back then..

http://bbhilda.topcities.com/Clement...ngusTaylor.jpg

LilZebra Apr 4, 2007 6:06 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Albertaboy (Post 2741435)
Corydon streetcar line??????????????????

Yes, till about 1948. It ran from downtown to Cambridge St.

Winnipeg Tribune - September 1948 - Streetcar Track on Corydon To Go

WECo. 332 North Main streetcar

Greco Roman Apr 4, 2007 10:16 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by jimj_wpg (Post 2741972)

Oh, I thought they were thinking of putting one back on Corydon. Never mind. :cool:

Andy6 Apr 4, 2007 4:50 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by rgalston (Post 2741427)
Absent from this list, though I'm certain they were in operation in that year, the Bell, the Windsor and the McLaren.

The St. Regis opened in 1911, as well.

LilZebra Apr 4, 2007 6:26 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Albertaboy (Post 2742139)
Oh, I thought they were thinking of putting one back on Corydon. Never mind. :cool:

Maybe one day on Corydon and/or on Grant.

rgalston Apr 4, 2007 7:16 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Only The Lonely.. (Post 2741888)

The first two floors of one of these buildings still stands, and is where McDonald Shoes was, and where the Glass Onion is now (facing the back). And which one was the Clement's Block? A Randy R. Rostecki had these remarks to make about it in in 1972
Quote:

Constructed in 1884, the present-day Clements Block stands on the site of Winnipeg's first court house. Originally, the upper floors of the 1873 structure were devoted to a hall of justice and the sheriff's office. The cellar served as a detention center, complete with cells for the inmates. When the Police Court was finished in 1882, the structure was sold to Henry Brown and Dan Rodgers. One portion became the Royal Theatre, and, presumably, the cellar became the rooms of the Hub Hotel! This situation continued until the old building was razed for the construction of the Clements Block in 1884.

Some expense was saved by the builders of the Clements Block, for they merely retained and built over the foundations of the courthouse. The walls, which are two feet thick, still exist below the concrete surface of Main Street. One cell, now devoid of its hardware, awaits any further inmates. Other cells have probably been destroyed because a large furnace was installed in the basement. Dorothy Garbutt described the old cellar in an August, 1967 [7] newspaper article, but she failed to discover several other interesting facts concerning that dark hole. I discovered a tunnel mouth behind the huge, disused furnace. It had been walled in many years ago. On the other side of this wall, under what was formerly the Empire Photo Salon is another cell. This section is smaller than its counterpart in the north portion of the basement. Here, the old-style pyramid footings on the foundation are exposed to the eye of the observer. A half block south of the Clements Block is Birt Saddlery, which has its own dungeons. Perhaps this too was an early jail.

The Clements Block was once one of the finer and more unusual office buildings in Winnipeg. But the actions of time and owners have taken their toll. The Clements Block was a dollar a night lodging house until its closure by the Health Department a few weeks ago. The Clements Block is in poor condition, and the closure will probably mean the demolition of this building. But if it is razed, then the historic cellar will disappear. The City of Winnipeg does not know of the cellar's existence, or, if it does know, it could not care less. The civic centennial is coming up late next year, and the plans which have so far emerged from the centennial committee are the usual sham and hypocrisy involved with commercializing our past. The true elements of our history lie not in the beer garden or the "Fort Apache" complex which are planned for 1974. But it is these two items which will be given preference over the real history which lies, forgotten in the cellar of a decaying office building.
Found here: http://www.mhs.mb.ca/docs/transactio...uildings.shtml

rgalston Apr 4, 2007 7:22 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Only The Lonely.. (Post 2741877)
I always wondered what this hotel would be like if it still stood today.

Would it have become a dodgy welfare den like the McLaren, Empire, and Leland, or would it be a premier place to stay like the Hotel Ft.Garry.

http://bbhilda.topcities.com/MbHotel1890s.jpg

That would have certainly been the city's tallest in its time. If it did not burn down in 1899, I suspect that, given its size and close proximity to Portage and Main, that it would not have survived the Juba years.

1ajs Apr 4, 2007 8:42 PM

heres a crude cad drawing i just did of the sadldery building basement

http://www.pointdouglas.com/plugins/...images/810.jpg

dennis Apr 4, 2007 10:35 PM

http://www.manitobaphotos.com/1950/079.jpg
other than the water - and quality, that picture could have just been taken today

Andy6 Apr 5, 2007 2:07 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by rgalston (Post 2741427)
Absent from this list, though I'm certain they were in operation in that year, the Bell, the Windsor and the McLaren.

Is the Nicolett Inn the same as the Couture Hotel, I wonder?

Andy6 Jun 23, 2007 11:26 PM

I labelled one of my historic photos of Winnipeg today. The yellow-labelled buildings are still there and the blue-labelled ones not. I hadn't been able to date this photo before but on looking closely I could see that the Wheat Board building is under construction (and nearly finished) on Main Street. Also the Grain Exchange has finally taken its complete form, with the upper four floors on the south side lighter coloured than the older floors below (you can still see a tiny difference in the colour today, I believe). Those facts suggest that this was taken in mid-1928.

http://farm2.static.flickr.com/1152/...3c6a6e44_b.jpg

If you want to scroll around at a much larger, though less distinct, size, click here.

Andy6 Jun 24, 2007 1:24 AM

...nudge...

rgalston Jun 24, 2007 1:27 AM

All the Hydro buildings in the world aren't going to make Portage Avenue look as urban as it did in 1928.

Andy6 Jun 24, 2007 1:49 AM

I'm wondering if the tower structure at the bottom left might be a radio mast on the Free Press building belonging to the original CKY (I think it was) that was later radio station CKRC. Just a theory.

rgalston Jun 24, 2007 1:56 AM

The Norlyn Building on Hargrave you have listed as still standing, though I've never seen it. It's where Wagon Wheel Lunch is today, but that building is modern, and less than five storeys. Was the Norlyn Building partly demolished and re-clad?

Andy6 Jun 24, 2007 2:16 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by rgalston (Post 2915249)
The Norlyn Building on Hargrave you have listed as still standing, though I've never seen it. It's where Wagon Wheel Lunch is today, but that building is modern, and less than five storeys. Was the Norlyn Building partly demolished and re-clad?

It was mostly ruined in the Time Building fire. I believe that what's now there is part of the original. It was a close call whether to go blue or yellow on that one.


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