Saint Boniface, Winnipeg

Last updated

St. Boniface
Saint-Boniface
Suburb
Provencher Blvd, St. Boniface, Winnipeg (505057) (24743076552).jpg
219 Blvd Provencher "City Hall" "Hotel de Ville" building in St Boniface, Winnipeg.jpg
St. Boniface University and Cathedral, Cathedrale Ave, Winnipeg - panoramio.jpg
ST. BONIFACE CATHEDRAL 05.jpg
Country Canada
Province Manitoba
City Winnipeg
Established1818
Town1883
City1908
Named for Saint Boniface
Area
  Suburb24.455 km2 (9.442 sq mi)
  Metro
5,306.79 km2 (2,048.96 sq mi)
Elevation
[1]
234 m (768 ft)
Population
 (2016) [2]
  Suburb58,520
  Density2,400/km2 (6,200/sq mi)
   Metro
778,489
Time zone UTC-6 (CST)
  Summer (DST) UTC-5 (CDT)
Area code(s) Area codes 204 and 431

St-Boniface (or Saint-Boniface) is a city ward [3] and neighbourhood in Winnipeg. Along with being the centre of the Franco-Manitoban community, it ranks as the largest francophone community in Western Canada. [4]

Contents

It features such landmarks as the St. Boniface Cathedral, Boulevard Provencher, the Provencher Bridge, Esplanade Riel, Saint Boniface Hospital, the Université de Saint-Boniface, and the Royal Canadian Mint.

The area covers much of eastern Winnipeg, including le Vieux Saint-Boniface ('Old St. Boniface'). It consists of the neighbourhoods of Norwood West, Norwood East, Windsor Park, Niakwa Park, Niakwa Place, Southdale, Southland Park, Royalwood, Sage Creek, and Island Lakes, among others, plus a large industrial area. [3] The ward is represented by Matt Allard, a member of Winnipeg City Council, and also corresponds to the neighbourhood clusters of St-Boniface East and West. The population was 58,520 according to the Canada 2016 Census. [2]

History

St Boniface Cathedral St. Boniface Cathedral 2.jpg
St Boniface Cathedral
Esplanade Riel at the edge of St-Boniface Esplanade Riel bridge Winnipeg, Manitoba.jpg
Esplanade Riel at the edge of St-Boniface
Condominiums in St. Boniface, Winnipeg Condominiums in St Boniface, Winnipeg.JPG
Condominiums in St. Boniface, Winnipeg

Succeeding cultures of indigenous peoples lived in the area for thousands of years before European exploration. It is an area of historic Ojibwe occupation.

Fur traders and European mercenaries hired by Thomas Douglas, Lord Selkirk, to protect his fledgling Red River Colony were among the area's first European settlers. With the founding of a Roman Catholic mission in 1818, St. Boniface began its role in Canadian religious, political and cultural history: as mother parish for many French settlements in Western Canada; as the birthplace of Louis Riel and fellow Métis who struggled to obtain favourable terms for Manitoba's entry into Confederation; and as a focus of resistance to controversial 1890 legislation to alter Manitoba's school system and abolish French as an official language in the province (see Manitoba Schools Question).

French-speaking religious orders, including the Sisters of Charity of Montreal (better known as the Grey Nuns), who arrived in 1844, founded the early educational, cultural and social-service institutions, such as St. Boniface Hospital, the first in Western Canada. Early French-speaking missionary Catholic priests in the region founded the Collège de Saint-Boniface (dating to 1818) to teach Latin and general humanities to the local boys; it is now the Université de Saint-Boniface.

St-Boniface was incorporated as a town in 1883 and as a city in 1908.

The early economy was oriented to agriculture. Industrialization arrived in the early 20th century. The 165-acre (67 ha) [5] Union Stockyards, developed 1912–13, became the largest livestock exchange in Canada and a centre of the meat-packing and -processing industry. By the early 1900s, numerous light and heavy industries were established. Redevelopment of the Stockyards site as a housing and retail area by Olexa Developments of Calgary is scheduled for 2020.[ needs update ] It is planned that in the first phase of the development, 600 housing units are to be constructed. [5]

In the 1950s and 1960s the neighbourhoods of Windsor Park and Southdale developed into residential areas. In 2016 Windsor Park had a population of 10,050 [6] and Southdale had a population of 6,450. [7]

In 1971, Saint-Boniface was amalgamated, along with several neighbouring communities, into the City of Winnipeg. [8] [9] As one of the largest French-Canadian communities outside Québec, it has often been a centre of struggles to preserve French-Canadian language and culture within Manitoba.

Places and culture

The St-Boniface area covers much of the eastern part of Winnipeg, including le Vieux Saint-Boniface ('Old St. Boniface'). [10]

It also includes the Canadian National Railway's Symington Yards, a major rail-handling facility; and the Union Stockyards, which were once the largest of their kind in Canada. [11]

Neighbourhoods

The St-Boniface city ward, represented by City Councillor Matt Allard, is composed of the following neighbourhoods: Archwood, Dufresne, Central St-Boniface, Holden, Island Lakes, Maginot, The Mint, Mission Industrial, Niakwa Park, Niakwa Place, North St-Boniface, Norwood East, Norwood West, Southdale, Stock Yards, and Windsor Park. [3]

The ward mostly corresponds to the community area of St-Boniface and neighbourhood clusters of St-Boniface East and West, which are used by Statistics Canada for demographic purposes. [2] However, while the community area—or clusters—include all of the neighbourhoods of the city ward, it also extends eastward past Lagimodière Boulevard [lower-alpha 1] to Plessis Road, thereby including the neighbourhoods of Dugald, Royalwood, Sage Creek, Southland Park, St-Boniface Industrial Park, and Symington Yards. [12] [13]

Culture

CCFM Building in St-Boniface CCFM, St. Boniface.png
CCFM Building in St-Boniface

St-Boniface is home to the Festival du Voyageur, held annually in February outdoors at Whittier Park and Fort Gibraltar, as well as Cinémental, the city's annual francophone film festival. [14]

The area also hosts the Centre culturel franco-manitobain (CCFM; the Franco-Manitoban Cultural Centre), which features an art gallery, theatres, meeting rooms, and a community radio station; [15] Le Musée de Saint-Boniface Museum, a local museum dedicated to Franco-Manitoban culture and history; [16] and Le Cercle Molière, a French-language theatre group and Canada's oldest theatre company. [17]

The Centre du Patrimoine is a heritage centre housing the largest Franco-Manitoban archives in Manitoba, as well as the Société historique de Saint-Boniface (SHSB), the oldest historical society in western Canada. [18]

Landmarks

The area features such landmarks as the Boulevard Provencher, [lower-alpha 2] Esplanade Riel, Fort Gibraltar, Lagimodière-Gaboury Park, the Provencher Bridge, the Royal Canadian Mint, St. Boniface Cathedral (including the grave of Louis Riel in its churchyard), [11] St-Boniface Hospital, and the Université de Saint-Boniface.

The House of Archbishop Alexandre-Antonin Taché, which is now used for administrative purposes by the Archdiocese of St. Boniface, is one of the oldest stone buildings in western Canada. [19] [20]

Notable people

Media

Winnipeg's three Francophone radio stations, CKXL-FM, CKSB-10-FM and CKSB-FM, are located in St-Boniface and are licensed there, a legacy of when St-Boniface was a separate city.

The French-language weekly newspaper La Liberté is also based in St-Boniface.

Sports

St-Boniface is represented by the St. Boniface Riels hockey team which plays in the Manitoba Major Junior Hockey League (MMJHL). The St-Boniface Riels were founded in 1971. They play at the Southdale Arena and have won five MMJHL championships: 1971–1972, 1972–1973, 1984–1985, 1985–1986, 2014–2015. [24]

Further reading

Notes

  1. The local name of Winnipeg Route 20.
  2. The local name of Winnipeg Route 57.

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Université de Saint-Boniface</span>

The Université de Saint-Boniface (USB) is a French-language public university located in the Saint Boniface neighbourhood of Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada. An affiliated institution of the University of Manitoba, the university offers general and specialized university degree programs as well as technical and professional training. In 2014, 1,368 regular students were enrolled. Its Continuing Education Division, which includes a language school, has also counted over 4,200 enrolments.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Franco-Manitoban</span> Ethnic and/or linguistic group in Manitoba, Canada

Franco-Manitobans are French Canadians or Canadian francophones living in the province of Manitoba. According to the 2016 Canadian Census, 40,975 residents of the province stated that French was their mother tongue. In the same census, 148,810 Manitobans claimed to have either full or partial French ancestry. There are several Franco-Manitoban communities throughout Manitoba, although the majority are based in either the Winnipeg Capital Region or the Eastman Region.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Saint Boniface Cathedral</span> Church building in Manitoba, Canada

Saint Boniface Cathedral is a Roman Catholic cathedral of Saint Boniface, Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada. It is an important building in Winnipeg, and is the principal church in the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Saint Boniface, serving the eastern part of Manitoba province as well as the local Franco-Manitoban community. The church sits in the centre of the city at 190 avenue de la Cathédrale, Saint Boniface. Before the fire on July 22, 1968, which destroyed the previous building on site, the church was a minor basilica.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Norbert Provencher</span> Canadian clergyman and missionary (1787–1853)

Joseph-Norbert Provencher was a Canadian clergyman and missionary and one of the founders of the modern province of Manitoba. He was the first Bishop of Saint Boniface and was an important figure in the history of the Franco-Manitoban community.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Charleswood, Winnipeg</span> Suburb of Winnipeg

Charleswood is a residential community and neighbourhood in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada. It is located in the South-West of the city and is bordered by the neighbourhoods Tuxedo to the East, Fort Whyte to the South, and the Rural Municipality of Headingley on the West. It's boundaries are Roblin and the Assiniboine River to the north, Shaftesbury Boulevard on the East, Wilkes Avenue to the South and the Perimeter Highway to the West.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Southdale (electoral district)</span> Provincial electoral district in Manitoba, Canada

Southdale is a provincial electoral division in the Canadian province of Manitoba. It was created in the provincial redistribution 1999, mostly out of Niakwa and part of St. Vital. The riding is located in the southeastern section of the City of Winnipeg.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Alexandre-Antonin Taché</span> Canadian Roman Catholic priest

Alexandre-Antonin Taché, O.M.I., was a Canadian Roman Catholic priest, missionary of the Oblate order, author, and the first Archbishop of Saint Boniface in Manitoba, Canada.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Festival du Voyageur</span> Winter festival in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada

The Festival du Voyageur is an annual 10-day winter festival that takes place in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada. The event is held each February in Winnipeg's French quarter, Saint-Boniface, and is western Canada's largest winter festival. It celebrates Canada's fur-trading past and unique French heritage and culture through entertainment, arts and crafts, music, exhibits, and displays.

St. Vital is a ward and neighbourhood of Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">St. James-Assiniboia, Winnipeg</span> Suburb in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada

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Taché Avenue is a street in the neighbourhood of St. Boniface in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada. The road forms a portion of the city's primary diking system to defend against flooding along the Red River.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">St. Norbert, Winnipeg</span> Suburb of Winnipeg

St. Norbert is a bilingual neighbourhood and the southernmost suburb of Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada. While outside the Perimeter Highway, it is still part of the city. As of the 2016 Census, the population of St. Norbert is 5,850.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Le Musée de Saint-Boniface Museum</span> Civic museum in Manitoba, Canada

Le Musée de Saint-Boniface Museum is a museum in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada, that is dedicated to Franco-Manitoban and Métis culture and history.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Saint Boniface</span> Catholic ecclesiastical territory

The Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Saint-Boniface is a Latin archdiocese in part of the civil Province of Manitoba in Canada. Despite having no suffragan dioceses, the archdiocese is nominally metropolitan and is an ecclesiastical province by itself. It is currently led by Archbishop Albert LeGatt.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">St. Adolphe, Manitoba</span> Place in Manitoba, Canada

St. Adolphe, or Saint Adolphe, originally called Pointe-Coupée, is a community in the Rural Municipality of Ritchot, Manitoba, Canada. It is located along the east bank of the Red River, approximately 12 kilometres south of Winnipeg.

The 2002 Winnipeg municipal election was held on 23 October 2002 to elect a mayor, councillors and school trustees in the city of Winnipeg.

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Riel House</span> National Historic Site in Winnipeg, Canada

Riel House is a National Historic Site commemorating the life of the Métis politician and activist Louis Riel, and also the daily life of Métis families in the Red River Settlement. The house is situated in the historic St. Vital parish of Winnipeg, in Manitoba, Canada. From 1865, the residence belonged to Riel's mother, Julie Riel (Lagimodière), and housed his brothers and their families. Louis Riel lived along with them from his return to Red River in 1868, through the Red River Resistance, until his exile in 1870. It is also where his body lay in state for two days in December 1885, after his sentencing and execution for murder and treason, before being buried in St. Boniface. The house remained within the possession of Riel descendants until 1968, when it was acquired by the Winnipeg Historical Society.

École Provencher is the oldest school in Saint Boniface, Winnipeg, Manitoba.

References

  1. "Elevation at St. Boniface". earthtools.org. Retrieved December 25, 2019.
  2. 1 2 3 "2016 Census Data - St. Boniface Community Area" (PDF). City of Winnipeg. July 24, 2019. Retrieved August 24, 2019.
  3. 1 2 3 "St. Boniface Ward - Electoral Wards". City of Winnipeg. Retrieved 2021-06-26.
  4. "St. Boniface - Destinations - Tourisme Riel". tourismeriel.com. Retrieved 2021-06-26.
  5. 1 2 Kavanagh, Sean (September 24, 2019). "Winnipeg city hall gets first look at massive St-Boniface development proposal: Former Canada Packers plant, Union Stockyards site could feature mix of apartments, condos, businesses". CBC News Manitoba.
  6. "2016 Census Data - Windsor Park" (PDF). Winnipeg.ca. July 24, 2019. Retrieved October 27, 2019.
  7. "2016 Census Data - Southdale" (PDF). Winnipeg.ca. July 24, 2019. Retrieved October 27, 2019.
  8. "Winnipeg: Government and Politics". The Canadian Encyclopedia . Retrieved 2009-07-16.
  9. Mullin, Barry (December 31, 1971). "Multi-Faceted Past Makes St-Boniface Colourful". Winnipeg Free Press. p. 17.
  10. Economic Development Winnipeg–Tourism Winnipeg (2017). "Winnipeg Maps & Publications: St-Boniface". www.tourismwinnipeg.com. St-Boniface layout map (PDF).
  11. 1 2 "Saint Boniface district (Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada)". Encyclopedia Britannica. Retrieved 2021-06-26.
  12. "Data St-Boniface East (UD): 2016 Census web", Winnipeg.ca
  13. "Data St-Boniface West (UD): 2016 Census". Winnipeg.ca.
  14. Simon Fuller, "Cinemental coming to a screen near you". Winnipeg Free Press , October 7, 2014.
  15. "Vision and Mission". CCFM. Retrieved 2019-11-25.
  16. "Welcome". Le Musée de Saint-Boniface Museum. Retrieved November 26, 2019.
  17. "Cercle Molière - French Theater - St-Boniface - Destinations - Tourisme Riel". tourismeriel.com. Retrieved 2021-06-26.
  18. "Centre du Patrimoine/Heritage Centre, SHSB - St-Boniface - Destinations - Tourisme Riel". tourismeriel.com. Retrieved 2021-06-26.
  19. "Historic Sites of Manitoba: Archbishop of St-Boniface Residence (151 Avenue de la Cathedrale, Winnipeg)". www.mhs.mb.ca. Retrieved 2021-06-26.
  20. "Archbishop's House - St-Boniface - Destinations - Tourisme Riel". tourismeriel.com. Retrieved 2021-06-26.
  21. Winnipeg Free Press, Wednesday, January 27, 1937, Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada
  22. "Hockey loses Dawson". Winnipeg Free Press. Winnipeg, Manitoba. March 30, 1987. p. 45. Lock-green.svg
  23. Goldsborough, Gordon (2017-12-25). "Memorable Manitobans: Earl Phillip Dawson (1925-1987)". Manitoba Historical Society. Retrieved 2019-06-11.
  24. "St. Boniface Riels". MMJHL. Retrieved 15 October 2012.

49°54′00″N97°06′00″W / 49.900°N 97.100°W / 49.900; -97.100