History of the
Business District
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of the Business District
The Exchange District lies in Downtown Winnipeg just north
of Canada's most famous corner - Portage and Main. The District
derives its name from the Winnipeg Grain Exchange, the centre
of the grain industry in Canada, and the many other exchanges
which developed in Winnipeg during the period from 1881- 1918.
Winnipeg was one of the fastest growing cites in North America
at the turn of the century and was known as the Chicago of
the North. Indeed, some of its architects came from the windy
city to practice in Winnipeg and most local architects were
strongly influenced by the Chicago style. What remains of
their work today is the Exchange District - one of the most
historically turn-of- the-century commercial district on the
continent.
Known throughout North America for its Chicago-style buildings,
The Exchange District is the centre of commerce in western
Canada. The District developed from the banks of the red river
at the foot of Bannatyne and McDermot Avenues. Most commercial
traffic came along the Red River from St. Paul, Minnesota
where the nearest rail line passed. Goods were shipped to
Winnipeg by steamer (or by ox - driven Red River carts). But
this could only be done during high water in the spring. The
first shipment of wheat left the levee at post Office (now
Lombard Avenue) in 1876, moving south to St. Paul then through
the United States by railroad to Eastern Canada. In 1878,
a branch line was constructed from St.Paul to Winnipeg allowed
goods to be shipped more cheaply to and from the main line
markets.
The Canadian Pacific Railway eventually decided to build
its transcontinental line through Winnipeg even though one
of the governments of the day had wanted to route it through
Selkirk on Lake Winnipeg. It established its Western Canadian
headquarters in Winnipeg with the arrival of the main line
in 1881, an unprecedented land boom followed. Main Street
land prices reached over $2000 per lineal foot, surpassing
even those in Chicago. These prices were not to be reached
in again until in recent years. Thousands of settlers came
west from Europe and eastern Canada to farm the land. As a
result, Winnipeg business developed quickly to meet the needs
of the growing western population.
Businessmen lobbied for the reduction of freight over which
the railroad had a monopoly and in 1886 and 1890 respectively,
Winnipeg received special rates for shipping goods to western
Canada and from eastern Canada. Eastern Canadian wholesalers
together with Winnipeg business opened branches in the District
and built huge warehouses to store goods which were shipped
to the city on the Canadian Pacific line. There developed
in Winnipeg a commercial elite of men from Ontario and Quebec
who were Anglo-Saxon, Protestant and mostly self- made. They
were to take an important role in the establishment of many
Winnipeg institutions and many were to serve as mayor or aldermen.
The Winnipeg Grain and Produce Exchange was founded in 1887
and within a few years, Winnipeg had become one of the world's
fastest-growing grain centres. As well, Winnipeg was one of
the largest rail centres in North America with twelve lines
passing through the city by 1890 and over eighty wholesale
business located in the District. Wholesale were shipped in
from the lake Superior ports in the spring and grain was shipped
out from Winnipeg to the Lakehead in the fall. The Exchange
represented Canada throughout the world and it largely financed
Winnipeg's growth. Together with the a strong world economy
support by an increase in gold reserves, the Exchange attracted
many British and Eastern Canadian banks, trusts, insurance
and mortgage companies to the District to do business.
Through the Winnipeg Grain Exchange, the city was linked
to other major financial centres of London and Liverpool and
New York and Chicago. Most Canadian financial institutions
established their Western Canadian headquarters Winnipeg and
by 1910, there were almost twenty banking halls and offices
in Main Street between City Hall and Portage Avenue. Many
Winnipeg-based financial companies were also established.
It was fully expected that Winnipeg would become one of north
America's most important cities and that Western Canada would
surpass Eastern Canada in economic importance. In 1904, Winnipeg
was the fastest growing city in Canada ; in 1905, it was the
fastest growing city of its size in North America.
Winnipeg did become the third largest city in the dominion
of Canada by 1911 with twenty-four rail lines converging on
it and over 200 wholesale businesses. The Great War from 1914-18
slowed its growth however, and with the opening of the Panama
Canal in 1913, there was a new route for shipping goods from
Eastern Canada and Europe to the West coast and the far East
to the larger markets on the East Coast. Most of Winnipeg's
development thereafter occurred on Portage Avenue and streets
to the south. Winnipeg's slow growth did mean though that
few of the District's Chicago-style buildings would be demolished.
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