The sixth annual Noventis Credit Union Evening of History, a City of Selkirk initiative, and fundraiser for the Selkirk Heritage Endowment Fund (SHEF), will be held this year on May 11 at Memorial Hall. “The event is growing and we’re in a time of respecting our distances, so it was fitting to hold this year’s…
This peculiar chair found tucked away in the City of Selkirk council chambers has been an oddity for passersby to gawk at for many years. Staff and council have no idea how long it’s been sitting there and had little context behind its significance. Accompanying the chair has a note that reads “Horn Chair –…
Ruth Hooker was born Ruth Caroline Moody and was the youngest of four. The Moody home — the big, square, yellow house on North Main Street —was bought by her family in 1900 and it was there that she was born on June 19th of the same year. Mrs. Purvis told her many times that…
In September of 1906, Selkirk ratepayers voted in favour of allowing its municipal government to borrow up to $150,000 to install a waterworks and sewer system for the town. The waterworks would distribute a pressurized, filtered water supply to a network of businesses, homes, and fire hydrants. Prior to this, residents relied on their own…
Selkirk’s first indoor arena was established in 1907. John W. Jones purchased the outdoor rink used by the Selkirk Skating Club on Fox Avenue near Main Street. Over it, he constructed what one account describes as a “concave-shaped, tin-covered monster” and christened it ‘Alexandra’, after his daughter. The Alexandra Rink, Date Unknown – Selkirk Enterprise…
In February 1946, a group of people (representing more than two dozen community organizations) came together under the chairmanship of Louis G. Howard to form the Selkirk and District Memorial Committee. Their objective was to decide on a suitable memorial to the servicemen and women of the region who died in the Boer War, First…
Rothstein Theatres Ltd. entered the Selkirk market in 1938 when it took over the Central Theatre on Eveline Street. Nathan Rothstein was well known in theatre circles. In the 1920s, he owned the Arlington Theatre in Winnipeg and a handful of theatres in rural Manitoba. In 1926, he led an investment group that built several…
The Rotary Club of Selkirk has been a driving force in the community since it received its charter in 1937. Its best-known contribution is the Selkirk Park Pool (Rotary Lake) in Selkirk Park. When the club did a door-to-door canvas to raise funds for Memorial Hall in 1946, they also asked residents about other amenities…
209 Eaton Avenue Lisgar Lodge #2 of the Masons was formed in Selkirk in February 1870 and chartered in July 1871. Meetings were held in various places in the area until this building was built in 1920. The building is brick on a wood frame. Renovated in 2019, the exterior features decorative brick belts and corbelling…
Pin bowling has a long history in the City of Selkirk. The earliest mention found in Selkirk’s online newspaper archives is from 1913; an ad stating that a bowling alley and billiards hall was opened in the Lisgar House hotel by Messrs. Terry and Comber. In October 1929, ads appeared for a new ten-pin bowling…