ST. VITAL MUSEUM
St. Vital Historical Society
GRAND OPENING

GRAND OPENING OF THE ST. VITAL MUSEUM
The Museum was officially opened on Saturday, May 24th, 2008 when the ribbon was cut by Councillor Gord Steeves, MLA Nancy Allan, SVHS past-president Neil Webb and Tom McGouran from 92CITI-FM.

OPERATED BY THE
ST. VITAL HISTORICAL SOCIETY INC.,
A NON-PROFIT ORGANIZATION THAT SERVES TO PRESERVE AND PROMOTE THE HISTORY OF THE
"CITY OF ST. VITAL".

IF YOU WISH TO BECOME A MEMBER OF THE ST. VITAL HISTORICAL SOCIETY OR DONATE TO THE MUSEUM, PLEASE CONTACT US AT:

email: info@svhs.ca
phone: (204) 255-2864
Mail:
St. Vital Museum
600 St. Mary's Road
Winnipeg, MB, R2M 3L5

Charitable tax receipts are issued for donations $10.00 and over.

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Special Events

Grand Opening

About 150 people were on hand May 24th, 2008, to officially open the St. Vital Museum. Operated by the St. Vital Historical Society, the museum occupies the south bay of the historic firehall, the former magistrate's courtroom and offices once used by the St. Vital Police Department.

Pancake Breakfast

Above, right: Volunteers cooking the celebratory breakfast. Smitty's supplied the grill and pancake mix. Sausages were supplied by Miller's Meats.

Past Events

PANCAKE BREAKFAST Rain or Shine! | Saturday, June 26th | 9:00am - 12:00 noon

Join us for a pancake breakfast on Saturday, June 26th, from 9:00am to 12:00 noon, sponsored by Smitty's and Miller's Meats. As our last event had to be cancelled due to rain, this breakfast will definitely take place rain or shine! Picnic tables will be set up in the parking lot behind the museum, overlooking the scenic Red River. In the event of rain, the breakfast will be held in our bay behind door Number One, in front of Fire Truck No. 1.
Pancake Breakfast ticket prices: Adults: $5.00 / Children 12 & under: $3.00
*Click here to view the poster*

DOORS OPEN WINNIPEG | Saturday, May 29th | 10:00am - 4:00pm
& Sunday, May 30th | 12:00 noon - 4:00pm

The 7th annual Doors Open Winnipeg event is your opportunity to become acquainted with the city’s architectural legacies! In addition to introducing the public to Winnipeg's architecture, history and culture, it consistently proves to be a fantastic attraction. Doors Open originated in France in the 1980s, with the number of participating countries increasing in ten years to 47 and the number of visitors reaching the 20 million mark in 2000. The Doors Open phenomenon came to Canada when Toronto began an annual event in 2000, attracting 76,000 visitors to over 90 buildings that year and keeps on growing!

The St. Vital Museum Attraction:

The current home of the St. Vital Museum is a two-storey brick structure with stone facing on the main level. Erected in 1914, the station housed both the St. Vital Police and Fire Departments, the latter of which first began operating with 3 horse-drawn carriages and six firemen. At the rear were stables for horses which drew the wagons and sleighs up until the 1930's at which point pumper trucks were used. The second floor of the building also originally provided living quarters for the firemen.
In 1974, the station was retired when St. Vital amalgamated with the City of Winnipeg and achieved its status as a designated heritage building in 1982.

*Special Event: The St. Vital Museum will be hosting the grand opening of our new exhibit showcasing the great flood of 1950. There are approximately 100 photos of people and places in this collection, including one published in LIFE magazine.
*View the news article from the Winnipeg Sun* (PDF Format)

SATURDAY, May 29th:

10am - 12 noon: PANCAKE BREAKFAST sponsored by Smitty's and Miller's Meats. Everyone is welcome to join us! Pancake Breakfast ticket prices: Adults $5.00 / Children 12 & under $3.00
10am - 4pm: the museum will remain open during the breakfast and the rest of the afternoon.
*View the poster* (PDF Format)

SUNDAY, May 30th:

12 noon - 4pm: The museum will be open for the afternoon. Come out and see this architectural gem in the heart of Old St. Vital!

ST. VITAL BULLDOGS BBQ | September 12th, 2009 | 1:00pm - 3:00pm

Have a hotdog with a Bulldog

The St. Vital Museum will be honouring the 1968 and 1969 Canadian Senior football champions, the St. Vital Bulldogs!
This event will be held at the rear of the St. Vital Museum, 600 St. Mary's Road on Saturday, September 12th from 1:00pm to 3:00pm. Prices are $5.00 for adults and $3.00 for children under 12. Tickets include a hamburger or hotdog, soft drink, coleslaw, fruit salad and cookie.
Bring your family and friends and meet the Bulldogs!

Click here to view the poster!

A "MAGER" AFTERNOON IN THE PARK | July 25th, 2009 | 12:00 Noon

For Mager Descendants and Friends

To celebrate the 150th anniversary of the day Victor Mager arrived along with his relatives at the Red River Settlement; now Winnipeg, his descendants are gathering together for an afternoon in the park! Victor Mager was the first reeve of St. Vital and also built its first schoolhouse.
This event is being held at the St. Norbert Provincial Heritage Park, 40 Turnbull Drive, St. Norbert, MB (located 3 km south of the perimeter on Highway 75). Inside the park there are tours available of two restored homes from the 1800's. Inside one of them, the Turenne House, are many items from the Mager family including Victor Mager's chair, his cane, a settee as well as Mager family clothes and photos.
BRING YOUR PICNIC LUNCH AND GET TOGETHER WITH THE FAMILY!

Click here to view the poster and for more info!

DOORS OPEN WINNIPEG | May 23rd & 24th | 10am - 6pm both days

Free Weekend Event! Sponsored by Heritage Winnipeg

The St. Vital Museum will be part of the "Doors Open Winnipeg" event on Saturday, May 23rd and on Sunday, May 24th. The event is an introduction to Winnipeg's architecture, history and culture and about "celebrating the stories our buildings tell".
This free event is open from 10am - 6pm both days at the St. Vital Museum, 600 St. Mary's Road, in the former offices of the St. Vital Police and Magistrate's court. The building itself also housed St. Vital's first fire department and on display is the original 1939 Fargo pumper truck.
A pancake breakfast will kick off the St. Vital event at 10am on Saturday, May 23rd!

"Chow down on Smitty's famous pancakes and sausages from Miller's Super Valu Meats!"


Please come and join us!



Click here to visit Doors Open Winnipeg website for more info

MANITOBA DAY | Tuesday May 12th, 2009 | 10:00am - 3:00pm

Sponsored by the St. Vital Historical Society and the Union National Metisse Saint Joseph du Manitoba.

Come out and celebrate Manitoba Day with us! May 12, 2009 marks the 139th birthday of Manitoba as a province.
In 1869, Louis Riel, now known as the "Father of Manitoba", established a provisional government as part of the Red River Rebellion. Negotiations between this government and the Canadian government eventually resulted in the creation of the Province of Manitoba and its entry into Confederation in 1870. The Manitoba Act was given Royal Assent in the 33rd year of Queen Victoria's reign on May 12, 1870. It is a Canadian Statute and is still part of the Constituion of Canada.
We will be celebrating at the St. Vital Museum, 600 St. Mary's Road between 10am & 3pm. We'd love to see you there!

JANE's WALK | Sunday, May 3rd, 2009 | 3:00pm

The St. Vital Historical Society will be a part of Jane's Walk

The tour will begin at 3:00pm from the St. Vital Museum, located in the old firehall (built in 1914) at 600 St. Mary's Road.
On display in the museum is St. Vital F.D. Number One, a 1939 Fargo pumper truck and Victor mager's diary which includes a note on the shooting of Thomas Scott in March, 1870.
The tour will start south on St. Mary's Road to Mager's second home, built in 1916 and then head north to the historic junction of St. Mary's and St. Anne's. On this site was located the livery and dairy farm of Abraham Guay, who loaned his horse to Louis Riel to make his first escape to the United States.
The walk will continue north to Fifth Avenue along the east side of St. Mary's then cross over for a walk south along the Red River with stops at Guay Park and the cenotaph dedicated to St. Vital war heroes, including Sgt. Major John Robert Osborn, VC. Osborn jumped on a grenade on December 19th, 1941 during the Japanese advance on Hong Kong saving the lives of seven of his men. The park is located on St. Boniface 103; property at one time owned by Louis Riel and subsequently purchased by Abraham Guay in 1883.
Continuing south, the tour will pass the Morier home, built in 1914, and a replica of the arch that spanned St. Mary's Road in 1913 to welcome the very first streetcar.
The tour will then wrap up at the museum, where coffee and tea will be served.
Please come out and join us!


Click here to visit the Jane's Walk website for more info!

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