Saint Boniface, Manitoba
Encyclopedia
Winnipeg
Winnipeg is the capital and largest city of Manitoba, Canada, and is the primary municipality of the Winnipeg Capital Region, with more than half of Manitoba's population. It is located near the longitudinal centre of North America, at the confluence of the Red and Assiniboine Rivers .The name...
, home to much of the Franco-Manitoban
Franco-Manitoban
Franco-Manitobans are a community of French Canadians and other French-speaking people living in Manitoba. Most Franco-Manitobans have roots in Quebec. However, many are of Métis and Belgian ancestry while others have ancestors that came directly from France, its former colonies and other...
community. It features such landmarks as the Cathédrale de Saint Boniface (St. Boniface Cathedral), Boulevard Provencher, the Provencher Bridge
Provencher Bridge (Winnipeg)
The Provencher Bridge is a bridge across the Red River in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada. The bridge links downtown Winnipeg with St. Boniface, a Winnipeg community across the Red River...
, Esplanade Riel
Esplanade Riel
The Esplanade Riel is a pedestrian bridge located in Winnipeg, Manitoba designed by Colin Douglas Stewart of Wardrop Engineering and Étienne Gaboury, Architect and completed in 2003. It spans the Red River connecting downtown Winnipeg with St. Boniface. It is paired with a vehicular bridge,...
, St. Boniface Hospital
St. Boniface General Hospital (Winnipeg)
St. Boniface General Hospital is Manitoba's second-largest hospital, located in the St. Boniface neighbourhood of Winnipeg. It was founded by the Sisters of Charity of Montreal in 1871, and was the first hospital in Western Canada...
, the Collège universitaire de Saint-Boniface
Collège universitaire de Saint-Boniface
The Université de Saint-Boniface, or USB, is a university college affiliated with the University of Manitoba and located in the Saint Boniface district of Winnipeg, Manitoba , Canada....
and the Royal Canadian Mint
Royal Canadian Mint
The Royal Canadian Mint produces all of Canada's circulation coins, and manufactures circulation coins on behalf of other nations. The Mint also designs and manufactures: precious and base metal collector coins; gold, silver, palladium, and platinum bullion coins; medals, as well as medallions and...
. It covers the southeast part of the city and includes le Vieux Saint-Boniface (Old St. Boniface), Norwood, Windsor Park, Southdale, Southland Park, Royalwood, Sage Creek and Island Lakes, plus a large industrial area. The ward is represented by a member of Winnipeg City Council
Winnipeg City Council
The Winnipeg City Council is the governing body of the city of Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada.Members represent wards throughout the city, and are known as councillors.-2006-2010:Council elected in the 2006 election:-2010-2014:...
, and also corresponds to the neighbourhood clusters of St. Boniface East and West. The population is 65,000 (Statistics Canada Census 2006).
History
Red River Colony
The Red River Colony was a colonization project set up by Thomas Douglas, 5th Earl of Selkirk in 1811 on of land granted to him by the Hudson's Bay Company under what is referred to as the Selkirk Concession. The colony along the Red River of the North was never very successful...
were among the area's first 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
Louis Riel
Louis David Riel was a Canadian politician, a founder of the province of Manitoba, and a political and spiritual leader of the Métis people of the Canadian prairies. He led two resistance movements against the Canadian government and its first post-Confederation Prime Minister, Sir John A....
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
Manitoba Schools Question
The Manitoba Schools Question was a political crisis in the Canadian Province of Manitoba that occurred late in the 19th century, involving publicly funded separate schools for Roman Catholics and Protestants...
).
Early educational, cultural and social-service institutions were started by religious orders, including the Sisters of Charity of Montréal (Grey Nuns) who arrived in 1844. The Collège de Saint-Boniface (dating back to 1818), a founding college of University of Manitoba
University of Manitoba
The University of Manitoba , in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada, is the largest university in the province of Manitoba. It is Manitoba's most comprehensive and only research-intensive post-secondary educational institution. It was founded in 1877, making it Western Canada’s first university. It placed...
, and St Boniface General Hospital grew from these institutions.
The early economy was oriented to agriculture. Union Stockyards, developed 1912-13, became the largest livestock exchange in Canada and focal point for a meat-packing and -processing industry. By the early 1900s, numerous light and heavy industries were established. St Boniface was incorporated as a town in 1883 and as a city in 1908. In 1971, St. Boniface was amalgamated, along with several neighboring communities, into the City of Winnipeg. As one of the larger French communities outside Québec, it has often been a centre of struggles to preserve French language and identity within Manitoba.
Culture
Every February Le Festival du VoyageurFestival du Voyageur
The Festival du Voyageur is an annual 10-day winter festival which takes place in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada during February. "Voyageur" refers to those who worked for a fur trading company and usually travelled by canoe.This event is held in Winnipeg's French Quarter, Saint-Boniface, and is...
takes place outdoors at Whittier Park and Fort Gibraltar
Fort Gibraltar
In the early 19th century fur-trading was the main industry of Western Canada. Two companies had an intense competition over the trade. The first, the Hudson's Bay Company was a London, England-based organization. The second, the North West Company was based in Montreal...
.
Notable people from Saint Boniface
Saint Boniface is the birthplace of:- Len CariouLen CariouLeonard Joseph “Len” Cariou is a Canadian actor, best known for his portrayal of Sweeney Todd in the original cast of Sweeney Todd, the Demon Barber of Fleet Street...
- BroadwayBroadway theatreBroadway theatre, commonly called simply Broadway, refers to theatrical performances presented in one of the 40 professional theatres with 500 or more seats located in the Theatre District centered along Broadway, and in Lincoln Center, in Manhattan in New York City...
actor - Butch GoringButch GoringRobert "Butch" Goring is a retired Canadian ice hockey player. He played 16 seasons in the National Hockey League for the Los Angeles Kings, New York Islanders and Boston Bruins. He is a four-time Stanley Cup winner with the Islanders. Since retiring as a player he has served as head coach of...
- professional hockey player - George R. D. GouletGeorge R. D. GouletGeorge Richard Donald Goulet is a Canadian Métis best-selling author, historian, public speaker, retired lawyer and prostate cancer survivor.-Life:...
- best selling Métis author - Bob HunterRobert Hunter (journalist)Robert Lorne Hunter was a Canadian environmentalist, journalist, author and politician. A member of the Don't Make a Wave Committee in 1969 with Dorothy and Irving Stowe, Marie and Jim Bohlen, and Ben and Dorothy Metcalfe...
- GreenpeaceGreenpeaceGreenpeace is a non-governmental environmental organization with offices in over forty countries and with an international coordinating body in Amsterdam, The Netherlands...
founder - Earl MindellEarl MindellEarl Lawrence Mindell is a Canadian-American writer and nutritionist who currently resides in Beverly Hills, California. He is a writer who has authored over 45 books on health and wellness, and is a strong advocate of nutrition as preventive medicine and homeopathy.- Personal life and education...
- Writer & Nutritionist - Maurice PaquinMaurice PaquinMaurice Paquin is a Franco-Manitoban comedian and singer. Born in June 1947, in Dauphin, Manitoba, Maurice completed Provencher Elementary School in St. Boniface, Manitoba; West Hill Collegiate High School in Toronto, Ontario; obtained a Baccalaureat es Arts at Université de Montréal in 1967; and...
, Singer & Comedian - Louis RielLouis RielLouis David Riel was a Canadian politician, a founder of the province of Manitoba, and a political and spiritual leader of the Métis people of the Canadian prairies. He led two resistance movements against the Canadian government and its first post-Confederation Prime Minister, Sir John A....
- Métis leader and Founder of Manitoba - Gabrielle RoyGabrielle RoyGabrielle Roy, CC, FRSC was a French Canadian author.- Biography :Born in Saint Boniface , Manitoba, Roy was educated at Saint Joseph's Academy...
- French-language author - Lucille StarrLucille StarrLucille Starr is a Franco-Manitoban / British Columbian singer, songwriter, and yodeler best known for her 1964 hit single, "Quand Le Soleil Dit Bonjour Aux Montagnes" .-Biography:...
- (née Savoie) singer - Beatrice Culleton Mosionier - author of April Raintree
Media
Francophone radio stations CKXL-FMCKXL-FM
CKXL-FM is a community owned French-language radio station in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada that broadcasts on the FM band at a frequency of 91.1 FM. The station's studio is located in the St...
and CKSB
CKSB (AM)
CKSB is a Canadian radio station, broadcasting at 1050 AM and 90.5 FM in Winnipeg, Manitoba. It is an affiliate of Radio-Canada's Première Chaîne network.-History:...
, and Radio-Canada television station CBWFT
CBWFT
CBWFT is Radio-Canada's French language television station in Winnipeg, Manitoba. It is broadcast locally on channel 3 cable 10, and on Bell TV channel 118.-History:...
are located in St. Boniface.
Sports
St. Boniface is represented by the St. Boniface RielsSt. Boniface Riels
The St Boniface Riels are a Canadian junior ice hockey team currently based in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada. They are part of the Manitoba Major Junior Hockey League ....
hockey team which plays in the Manitoba Major Junior Hockey League
Manitoba Major Junior Hockey League
The Manitoba Major Junior Hockey League is a Junior ice hockey league in Manitoba, Canada. Founded in 1970, the league is not a member of Hockey Canada and has operated privately since its inception on private funds and donations.-History:...
.
| Team | Founded | League | Arena | Championships |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| St. Boniface Riels St. Boniface Riels The St Boniface Riels are a Canadian junior ice hockey team currently based in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada. They are part of the Manitoba Major Junior Hockey League .... |
1971 | MMJHL | Southdale Arena | 5 |
External links
- Tourisme Riel
- Saint Boniface Heritage Centre
- History of St. Boniface Cathedral
- Festival de Voyageur
- St. Boniface Detailed Area Plan (1973) - (Warning: transcription incomplete)