314 Eveline Street at Britannia The site of Veterans Memorial Gardens played an important role in the community long before the erection of the war memorial in 1927. This site was home to Manitoba’s first national fish hatchery, which was built in 1892 by the federal government. It was described in the department of fisheries’…
304 Eveline Street The site that is now home to Queens Park was vacant since the construction of the Selkirk Lift Bridge in 1935, and perhaps even longer as before the bridge, this junction was a busy ferry crossing. In May 1951, the local Independent Order of Odd Fellows (IOOF) lodge leased this land from…
History is made every minute, so it’s safe to say that capturing and documenting it is a never-ending task. Likewise, technology is changing every minute as well and what’s new is old before you can even finish your sentence. The City of Selkirk is marrying these two constantly evolving realities to launch a virtual version…
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…
Robinson Avenue is named for Captain William Robinson, a man of many talents who grew rich in shipping, timber and fishing. Robinson’s fleet of fishing boats and tugs, fishing and timber camps provided 1000 jobs to the people of the region every year. His enterprises provided timber and fish for processing in Selkirk’s first factories…
Queen Avenue honours Queen Victoria who ruled the Great Britain from 1837 to 1901. Victoria became queen of England when she was just 18 years old. By the time she died, 64 years later, she was Empress of India and ruler of the largest empire in the world. Her reign was the longest of any…
Morris Avenue is named for Manitoba’s second Lieutenant-Governor, Alexander Morris. Morris was given a street name on the earliest plan of the town. Why? Because Morris changed the development pattern of Selkirk … and all of Western Canada. He paved the way for hundreds of newcomers from Ontario to become wealthy in the west. However,…
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…
Manitoba was Canada’s fifth province and its first expansion into the west. Selkirk was one of the first new towns in this new province. With the prospects of becoming the transportation hub for western Canada, Selkirk was a town with unlimited potential. A street named “Manitoba” captured the feelings of enthusiasm and optimism about the…
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…