Selkirk has a vast amount of places where people have been able to unwind, explore, and enjoy themselves over the years. Explore what Selkirk has to offer such as parks, historical homes, buildings, and the popular pool. Take a tour, stay for a while.
The Governor General and his family lived on an estate in Ireland called Clandeboye. When Lord and Lady Dufferin visited Selkirk in 1877, as Queen Victoria’s representative, it was a momentous event! Naming a street after the noble visitors’ home showed the loyalty of the townspeople. It also might have created an address that drew…
A few historical figures could be responsible for the naming of Eaton Avenue. Timothy Eaton, a successful businessman who founded the well-known Eaton’s department store brought his two nephews to Canada with the hope that they would help him run his stores. However, John James Eaton and Robert Y. Eaton were not interested in the…
The name of this avenue recognizes the family of D.W. McLean. The family farmhouse stood on the NW corner where Knox Church was built in 1904. Sometimes naming a street in honour of a landowner helped persuade him to sell when the town fathers wanted the land. “Church Street” One of the architectural treasures of…
Vaughan Avenue commemorates the long service and guidance to the community by two remarkable surveyors, father Amos Vaughan and son Lynds Smith Vaughan. Amos did the first surveys of the town and even labelled the streets on the first town plan. He and his son L.S. alternated as town surveyors and councilors for more than…
Britannia Avenue is a tribute to the connection that Selkirk residents felt toward the British monarchy. The avenue was likely named at the start of World War I when British patriotism was at its peak in the town. British jingoism was at its height between the Boer War and the beginning of WWI. Songs such…
Rosser Avenue recognizes former Confederate General, Thomas Lafayette Rosser. In 1881, as chief engineer of the CPR, he granted Selkirk’s fondest wish. For a price, he gave Selkirk a rail line, though such branches were against CPR policy. Many thousands of extra dollars changed hands before track was laid. Within a year, Rosser was fired…
Selkirk’s First Commercial Street The name Eveline was given to the muddy trail behind the busy waterfront in 1875. Eveline was most likely the wife of inn-keeper and entrepreneur, John Greig. Before the creation of Selkirk, the “inner trail”, as it had been known for 50 years, led along the riverbank to Lower Fort Garry.…
John Christian Schultz had come to prominence by leading the “Canadian faction” opposing the Legislative Assembly of Assiniboia Led by Louis Riel. He invested in Selkirk and came to own the land that became Clandeboye, Manitoba and Superior Avenues. He built the first Merchants Hotel in 1887. John Christian Shultz, Date Unknown, Archives of Manitoba, Mrs.…
The Birth of Selkirk Colcleugh Avenue is named for Selkirk’s first Mayor and founder, James Colcleugh. As a contractor on the telegraph line between Rat Portage and Manitoba, Colcleugh reached a spot tentatively called “Selkirk” which was to be “the crossing” of the Red River. The location was just a mark on a railway map…