(Redirected from Winnipeg, Manitoba)
'Winnipeg' (
IPA: /
wɪ.nɪ.pɛg/ or /
wɪ.nə.pɛg/) is the capital and largest city of the
Canadian province of
Manitoba. Located at the eastern edge of the great plains of
Western Canada, Winnipeg plays a prominent role in
transportation,
finance,
manufacturing,
agriculture and
education. Because all rail and highway traffic between eastern and western Canada must travel through or near the city, it is often called the "Gateway to the
West".
[3][4]
The city is located near the
geographic centre of North America,
[5] on a
flood plain at the
confluence of the
Red and
Assiniboine rivers, a point now commonly known as
The Forks. The
Red River Floodway protects the city from flooding. It is by far Manitoba's largest city with a population of 633,451.
1 The
Winnipeg Metropolitan Area (which includes Winnipeg and surrounding rural municipalities) has a population of 694,668
2 and is the eighth largest
Census Metropolitan Area in
Canada.
[6]
Winnipeg lies in close proximity to hundreds of lakes. including
Lake Winnipeg, Canada's fifth largest lake and the world's eleventh largest, as well as
Lake Manitoba and
Lake of the Woods.
[7]
The city is one of
Canada's major cultural centres and is home to the world famous
Royal Winnipeg Ballet. It boasts historic
architecture, scenic
waterways, numerous
parks, and numerous distinctive
neighbourhoods. Winnipeg hosted the
Pan-American Games in 1967 and 1999, the only city other than
Mexico City to have hosted the event twice.
Construction on the planned
Canadian Museum for Human Rights is slated to begin at the Forks during the fall of 2007. It will be the first Canadian national museum outside of the
National Capital Region.
A resident of Winnipeg is known as a Winnipegger.
History
Pre-20th century
Winnipeg lies at the confluence of the
Assiniboine River and
Red River, which is also known as
The Forks, and was a focal point on
canoe river routes travelled by
aboriginal peoples for thousands of years. The name ''Winnipeg'' is a transcription of a western
Cree word meaning "muddy waters".
Upper Fort Garry in the early 1870s
In 1738, the
Sieur de la Vérendrye built the first trading post on the site,
Fort Rouge, which was ultimately abandoned.
[8] Other posts were built in the Red River region.
Fort Gibraltar was built by the
North West Company in 1809 and
Fort Douglas was built by the
Hudson's Bay Company in 1812. The two companies fought fiercely over trade in the area with each destroying the other's fort over the course of several battles. In 1821, the Hudson Bay Company and North West Company ended their long rivalry with a merger.
Fort Gibraltar, a post of the North West Company on the site of present-day Winnipeg, was renamed
Fort Garry in 1822 and became the leading post in the region for the
Hudson Bay Company.
Fort Garry was destroyed in an 1826 flood, and rebuilt in 1835. It played a small role in fur trading, but housed the residence of the Governor of the Hudson's Bay Company for many years.
In 1869-1870, Winnipeg was the site of the
Red River Rebellion, a conflict between the local
Métis people led by
Louis Riel and newcomers from eastern Canada. This rebellion led directly to Manitoba's entry into Confederation as Canada's fifth province in 1870. On
November 8,
1873, Winnipeg was incorporated as a city. In 1876, the
post office officially adopted the name "Winnipeg," three years after the city's incorporation.
Upper Fort Garry today
Early 20th century
Winnipeg experienced a boom during the 1890s and the first two decades of the twentieth century, and the city's population grew from 25,000 in 1891 to more than 200,000 in 1921. Immigration increased during this period, and Winnipeg took on its distinctive multicultural character. The
Manitoba Legislative Building reflects the optimism of the boom years. Built of
Tyndall Stone and opened in 1920, its dome supports a bronze statue finished in gold leaf titled "Eternal Youth and the Spirit of Enterprise" but commonly known as the "
Golden Boy". The Legislature was built in the
neoclassical style that is common to many other North American state and provincial legislative buildings of the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries.
Winnipeg's growth slowed considerably after the opening of the
Panama Canal in 1914. The canal reduced reliance on Canada's rail system for international trade, and the increase in ship traffic helped
Vancouver surpass Winnipeg to become Canada's third-largest city in the 1920s.
Winnipeg General Strike
Main articles: Winnipeg General Strike of 1919
As a result of appalling labour conditions following
World War I, 35,000 Winnipeggers walked off the job in May 1919, in what came to be known as the
Winnipeg General Strike of 1919. The government broke the strike through arrests, deportation and violence. The strike ended June 21, 1919, when the
Riot Act was read and a group of
Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) officers charged a group of strikers; two strikers were killed and at least 30 others were injured, resulting in the day being known as ''
Bloody Saturday''. The lasting effect was a polarized population. One of the leaders of the strike,
J.S. Woodsworth, went on to found Canada's first major socialist party, the
Co-operative Commonwealth Federation (CCF), which would later become the
New Democratic Party.
Crowd gathered outside old City Hall during the Winnipeg General Strike,
June 21, 1919
Great Depression and World War II
The stock market crash in 1929 only hastened an already steep decline in Winnipeg. The
Great Depression resulted in massive unemployment, which was worsened by drought and depressed agricultural prices.
The Depression ended when
World War II broke out in 1939. Thousands of Canadians volunteered to join the forces. In Winnipeg, the old established armouries of Minto, Tuxedo (Fort Osborne) and McGregor were so crowded that the military had to take over other buildings to increase capacity.
Winnipeg played a large part in the
British Commonwealth Air Training Plan (BCATP). The mandate of the BCATP was to train flight crews away from the battle zone in Europe. Pilots, navigators, bomb aimers, wireless operators, air gunners, and flight engineers all passed through Winnipeg on their way to the various air schools across Western Canada. Winnipeg served as a headquarters for Command No. 2.
[9]
Post-World War II and 1950 flood
The end of World War II brought a new sense of optimism in Winnipeg. Pent-up demand brought a boom in housing development, but the building activity came to a halt in 1950 when the city was swamped by the
1950 flood, the largest flood to hit Winnipeg since 1861. The flood held waters above flood stage for 51 days. On
May 8,
1950, eight dikes collapsed and four of the city's eleven bridges were destroyed. Nearly 70,000 people had to be evacuated. Premier
Douglas Campbell called for federal assistance and Canadian Prime Minister
Louis St. Laurent declared a state of emergency. Soldiers from the
Princess Patricia's Canadian Light Infantry regiment staffed the relief effort for the duration of the flood. The federal government estimated damages at over $26 million, although the province insisted it was at least double that.
[10]
To prevent future floods, the Red River Basin Investigation recommended a system of flood control measures, including multiple diking systems and a floodway to divert the
Red River around Winnipeg. This prompted the construction of the
Red River Floodway under Premier
Dufferin Roblin.
Post 1970
The current city of Winnipeg was created when the
City of Winnipeg Act was amended to form
Unicity in 1971. The municipalities of
St. James-Assiniboia,
St. Boniface,
Transcona,
St. Vital,
West Kildonan,
East Kildonan,
Tuxedo,
Old Kildonan,
North Kildonan,
Fort Garry, and
Charleswood were amalgamated with the Old City of Winnipeg.
In 1979, the Eaton's catalogue building was converted into the first downtown mall in the city. It was called Eaton Place but changed its name to
Cityplace following the demise of the entire Eaton's chain in 1999.
Immediately following the
1979 energy crisis Winnipeg experienced a severe economic downturn in advance of the
early 1980s recession. Throughout the recession the city incurred closures of prominent businesses such as the
Winnipeg Tribune and the Swift's and
Canada Packers meatpacking plants.
[11]
In 1993, feeling that their community needs were not being fulfilled, the residents of
Headingley seceded from Winnipeg and officially became incorporated as a municipality.
Government
Winnipeg Convention Center in Backround
Municipal politics
Since 1992, the city of Winnipeg has been represented by 15 city councillors and a mayor elected every three years. The present Mayor
Sam Katz was elected to office in 2004 and re-elected in 2006. Katz is the first
Jewish mayor of Winnipeg.
Prior to 1972, Winnipeg was the largest of several cities and towns in a metropolitan area around the
Red and
Assiniboine rivers. "
Unicity" was created on July 27, 1971 and took effect with the first elections in 1972. The
City of Winnipeg Act incorporated the
R. M. of Charleswood,
R. M. of Fort Garry,
R. M. of North Kildonan,
R. M. of Old Kildonan,
Town of Tuxedo,
City of East Kildonan,
City of West Kildonan,
City of St. Vital,
City of Transcona,
City of St. Boniface,
City of St. James-Assiniboia,
City of Winnipeg and
The Metropolitan Corporation of Greater Winnipeg into one city.
Winnipeg is a
single-tier municipality governed by a
mayor-council system. The structure of the municipal government is set out by the province of
Manitoba in the City of Winnipeg Act. The mayor is elected by direct popular vote to serve as the
chief executive of the city. The City Council is a
unicameral legislative body representing geographical
wards throughout the city.
Provincial politics
Winnipeg is represented by 31 provincial Members of the
Legislative Assembly (MLAs), 25 of whom are members of the
New Democratic Party, four are members of the
Progressive Conservative Party and two are members of the
Liberal Party. In the
provincial election in 2007, the NDP won two ridings from the Conservatives, rising from 23 to its present 25 seats in the city. All three leaders of the provincial parties represent Winnipeg in the legislature.
Federal politics
Winnipeg is represented by eight
Members of Parliament: three
Conservatives, three
New Democrats and two
Liberals. There are six
Senators representing
Manitoba in
Ottawa. Only two list Winnipeg as the division they represent although all of them were residents of Winnipeg when appointed to the Senate. The political affiliation in the Senate is three Liberals, two Conservatives and one Independent.
Winnipeg panorama, from 1907
;History
The first elections for city government in Winnipeg were held shortly after the city was incorporated in 1873. On
January 5,
1874,
Francis Evans Cornish, former mayor of
London, Ontario defeated
Winnipeg Free Press editor and owner
William F. Luxton by a margin of 383 votes to 179. There were only 382 eligible voters in the city at the time but property owners were allowed to vote in every civic poll in which they owned property. Up until the year 1955, mayors could only serve one term. City government consisted of 13
aldermen and one mayor. This number of elected officials remained constant until 1920.
The inaugural Council meeting took place on
January 19,
1874 on the second floor of Bentley's, a newly constructed building on the northwest corner of
Portage and Main.
Construction of a new City Hall commenced in 1875. The building proved to be a structural nightmare and eventually had to be held up by props and beams. The building was eventually demolished in favour of building a new City Hall in 1883.
Winnipeg City Hall
A new City Hall building was constructed in 1886. It was a "Gingerbread" building built in
Victorian grandeur and symbolized Winnipeg's coming of age at the end of the nineteenth century. The building stood for nearly 80 years. There was a plan to replace it around the
World War I era, during the time that the
Manitoba Legislature was under construction, but the war delayed that process. In 1958, falling plaster almost hit visitors to the City Hall building. The tower eventually had to be removed and in 1962 the whole building was torn down.
Winnipeg City Council embraced the idea of a "Civic Centre" as a replacement for the old city hall. The concept originally called for an administrative building and a council building with a courtyard in between. Eventually, a police headquarters and remand centre (the Public Safety Building) and parkade were added to the plans. The four buildings were completed in 1964 in the
brutalist style, at a cost of $8.2 million. The Civic Centre and the
Manitoba Centennial Centre were connected by underground tunnels in 1967.
:''See also:
List of mayors of Winnipeg, Manitoba''
Geography and climate
Main articles: Geography and climate of Winnipeg
Winnipeg is situated just east of the longitudinal centre of Canada (near the geographical centre of North America), and approximately 100 kilometres (60 miles) north of the border with the
United States. It is near the eastern edge of the Canadian Prairies, and about 70 kilometres (45 miles) south of Lake Winnipeg. It is situated in the
floodplain of the Red River and is surrounded by rich agricultural land. The closest urban area with over 500,000 people is the
twin cities of
Minneapolis-St. Paul,
Minnesota.
Winnipeg Summers are warm to hot and often quite humid with frequent
thunderstorms. The summers in Winnipeg are similar to those experienced in cities in the
Midwestern United States. Spring and autumn are short and highly variable seasons. In a typical year temperatures range from -30° C to 30° C, recorded extremes are 40.6° C and -50° C (105.1° F to -52° F).
[12] The weather is characterized by an abundance of sunshine throughout the year. Winnipeg is the second sunniest city in Canada in the winter and has the second clearest skies year-round.
[13]
Due to its location in the centre of a large land mass and its distance from both mountains and oceans, Winnipeg has an extreme
continental climate. The city’s northerly location is also influential, though Winnipeg is located farther south than cities like
London or
Amsterdam. The city is famous for its long, cold and snowy winters, and is often referred to as “Winterpeg”. According to
Environment Canada, Winnipeg is the coldest city in the world with a population of over 600,000
[14]
| Winnipeg Climatological Data |
|---|
| Temperature | ||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | | Mean |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Record high °C (°F) | 8 (46) | 12 (53) | 23 (74) | 33 (94) | 37 (99) | 38 (100) | 38 (100) | 41 (105) | 39 (102) | 31 (90) | 24 (75) | 12 (53) | | |
|---|
| Average high °C (°F) | -13 (9) | -9 (17) | -1 (30) | 10 (51) | 19 (67) | 23 (74) | 26 (78) | 25 (77) | 19 (65) | 11 (51) | -1 (30) | -10 (15) | | 8 (47) |
|---|
| Mean °C (°F) | -18 (-0) | -14 (8) | -6 (21) | 4 (40) | 12 (54) | 17 (63) | 20 (67) | 19 (65) | 12 (54) | 5 (42) | -5 (22) | -14 (6) | | 3 (37) |
|---|
| Average low °C (°F) | -23 (-9) | -19 (-2) | -11 (12) | -2 (28) | 5 (41) | 11 (51) | 13 (56) | 12 (53) | 6 (43) | -0.3 (31) | -10 (15) | -19 (-2) | | -3 (26) |
|---|
| Record low °C (°F) | -42 (-44) | -45 (-49) | -38 (-36) | -26 (-15) | -11 (12) | -3 (26) | 1 (34) | 0.6 (33) | -7 (19) | -17 (1) | -34 (-29) | -38 (-36) | | |
|---|
| Precipitation and Sunshine Hours |
|---|
| Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Total mm (in) | 20 (0.8) | 15 (0.6) | 22 (0.9) | 32 (1.3) | 59 (2.3) | 90 (3.5) | 71 (2.8) | 75 (3.0) | 52 (2.1) | 36 (1.4) | 25 (1.0) | 19 (0.7) | | 514 (20) |
|---|
| Rainfall mm (in) | 0 (0.0) | 3 (0.1) | 8 (0.3) | 22 (0.9) | 58 (2.3) | 90 (3.5) | 71 (2.8) | 75 (3.0) | 52 (2.0) | 31 (1.2) | 6 (0.2) | 2 (0.1) | | 416 (16) |
|---|
| Snowfall cm (in) | 23 (9.1) | 14 (5.6) | 16 (6.2) | 10 (3.4) | 0.8 (0.3) | 0 (0) | 0 (0) | 0 (0) | 0.4 (0.2) | 5 (2.0) | 21 (8.4) | 20 (7.8) | | 111 (44) |
|---|
| Sunshine hours | 120 | 138 | 178 | 239 | 286 | 283 | 318 | 280 | 186 | 147 | 96 | 100 | | 2372 |
|---|
| Data recorded at Winnipeg International Airport by Environment Canada. Data spans 1971 to 2000. |
|---|
Winnipeg is one of Canada's sunniest cities, and the weather in all seasons is characterized by an abundance of sunshine. The city receives an average of 2,372 hours of sunshine per year compared with 1,928 hours at Vancouver and 2,037 hours at Toronto. July is the sunniest month, and November the least sunny. Winnipeg, like
Chicago, is also known as a windy city. The average annual wind speed is 16.9 km/h (10.5 mph), predominantly from the south. The city has experienced wind gusts of up to 129 km/h (80 mph). The windiest weather usually occurs during
blizzards or
thunderstorms. April is the windiest month, and July the least windy.
Tornadoes are not uncommon in the area, particularly in the spring and summer months.
:''See also:
List of Winnipeg neighbourhoods''
Transportation
Osborne Village
Winnipeg has had a public transit system since the 1880s, starting with horse-drawn streetcars. Electric streetcars from 1891 until 1955, and electric trolley buses from 1938 until 1970.
Winnipeg Transit now operates entirely with diesel buses. For decades, the city has explored the idea of a rapid transit link, either bus or rail, from downtown to the
University of Manitoba's suburban campus.
The city is directly connected to the
United States via
Highway 75 (a northern continuation of
I-29 and
US 75). The highway runs 107 kilometres to
Emerson, Manitoba, the 8th busiest border crossing.
[15] Much of the commercial traffic that crosses in Emerson either originates from or is destined to Winnipeg. Inside the city, the highway is locally known as Pembina Highway.
Winnipeg's
airport, recently renamed as
Winnipeg James Armstrong Richardson International Airport, is currently under redevelopment. A new terminal building is scheduled for completion by 2009. The field was Canada's first
international airport when it opened in 1928 as Stevenson Aerodrome.
[16]
Winnipeg is unique among North American cities its size in that it does not have
freeways within the urban area. Beginning in 1958, the primarily suburban Metropolitan council proposed a system of freeways, including one that would have bisected the downtown area. A modern four-lane highway called the
Perimeter Highway was built in 1969. It serves as an
expressway around the city (also known as a
ring road) with
interchanges and at-grade intersections that bypass the city entirely. It allows travellers on the
Trans-Canada Highway to avoid the city and continue east or west uninterrupted.
Winnipeg has also embarked on an ambitious wayfinding program erecting new signage at strategic downtown locations.
[17] The intention is to make it easier for travellers, specifically tourists to locate services and attractions.
Economy
Royal Canadian Mint in Winnipeg
Winnipeg is an important regional centre of commerce, industry, culture, finance, and government.
In 2003 and 2004, Canadian Business magazine ranked Winnipeg in the top 10 cities for business. In 2006, Winnipeg was ranked by
KPMG as one of the lowest cost locations to do business in Canada.
[18] As with much of Western Canada, in 2007, Winnipeg experienced both a building and real estate boom. In May of 2007, the Winnipeg Real Estate Board reported the best month in its 104-year history in terms of sales and volume.
[19]
Approximately 375,000 people are employed in Winnipeg and the surrounding area. Winnipeg's largest employers are either government or government-funded institutions: the Province of Manitoba, the City of Winnipeg, the
University of Manitoba, the
Health Sciences Centre, the Casinos of Winnipeg, and
Manitoba Hydro. Approximately 54,000 people or 14% of the work force are employed in the public sector.
There are several large private sector employers, as well:
Manitoba Telecom Services,
CanWest Global Communications,
Palliser Furniture,
Great-West Life Assurance,
Motor Coach Industries,
Convergys,
New Flyer Industries,
Boeing Canada Technology,
Bristol Aerospace,
Nygård International,
Canad Inns and
Investors Group.
A number of large privately held family-owned companies operate out of Winnipeg. The most famous of these is
James Richardson & Sons. The Richardson building at
Portage and Main was the first skyscraper to grace that corner. Other private companies include
Ben Moss Jewellers,
Frantic Films and
Paterson Grain.
Winnipeg is the site of
Canadian Forces Base Winnipeg and the headquarters of
1 Canadian Air Division, as well as home to several reserve units. See
#Military in this article.
The
Royal Canadian Mint located in eastern Winnipeg is where all circulating coinage in Canada is produced. The plant, established in 1975, also produces coins for many other countries in the world.
Winnipeg is also home to the
National Microbiology Laboratory, Canada's front line in its response to
SARS and one of only 15
Biosafety level 4 microbiology laboratories in the world.
Demographics
The City of Winnipeg is home to 648,000 residents, with a CMA of 706,700. The CMA does not include the city of Selkirk or the RM of West St.Paul.
[20]
As of the 2006 census:
[21]
★ Caucasian: 78.0%
★ Aboriginal: 8.6%
★ Total visible minority: 13.4%, as follows:
★ Filipino: 4.9%
★ South Asian: 2.0%
★ Black: 1.9%
★ Chinese: 1.8%
★ Southeast Asian: 0.8%
★ Latin American: 0.7%
★ Japanese: 0.3%
★ Korean: 0.2%
★ Arab: 0.2%
★ Other minority or multiple minorities: 0.6%.
'Religious affiliation'
★
Roman Catholic: 29.8%
★ No religion: 21.0%
★
United Church of Canada: 12.7%
★
Anglican: 7.0%
★
Lutheran: 4.4%
★
Ukrainian Catholic: 2.7%
★
Mennonite: 2.6%
★
Jewish: 2.1%
★
Baptist: 2.1%
★
Pentecostal: 1.1%
★
Buddhist: 0.9%
★
Sikh: 0.9%
★
Muslim: 0.8%
★
Greek Orthodox: 0.7%
★
Presbyterian: 0.7%
★
Hindu: 0.6%
★
Christian (not included elsewhere): 3.6%
★
Protestant (not included elsewhere): 1.9%
Religious affiliations with less than 0.5% are not listed here. Units are in percent of population. 1.4% of the population did not respond. Source: Statistics Canada (Census 2001).
'Languages spoken'
The most common languages spoken by Winnipeggers are:
In terms of Canada's
official languages: 88.0% spoke English only, 11.0% both English and French, 0.9% neither English nor French, and 0.1% French only.
;Growth
Winnipeg's growth rate has increased by 2.2 percent since the 2001 census, while the population of Manitoba increased by 2.6 per cent over the same five-year time period.
Education
Education is a responsibility of the provincial government in Canada.
In Manitoba, education is governed principally by The Public Schools Act and The Education Administration Act, as well as regulations made under both Acts. Rights and responsibilities of the Minister of Education, Citizenship and Youth and the rights and responsibilities of school boards, principals, teachers, parents and students are set out in the legislation.
There are two major universities, a community college, a private
Mennonite college and a
French college in
St. Boniface
The
University of Manitoba is the largest university of the province of Manitoba, most comprehensive and only research-intensive post-secondary educational institution. It was founded in 1877, making it Western Canada’s first
university. In a typical year, the university has an enrollment of 24,542 undergraduate students and 3,021 graduate students.
The
University of Winnipeg received its charter in 1967 but its roots date back more than 130 years. The founding colleges were
Manitoba College 1871, and
Wesley College 1888, which merged to form
United College in 1938.
Winnipeg is also home to numerous private schools, both religious and secular.
:''See also:
List of schools in Winnipeg''
Sports
Main articles: Sport in Winnipeg
Winnipeg has a long and storied sports history. It has been home to several professional
hockey,
football and
baseball franchises. There has also been numerous university and amateur athletes over the years who have left their mark.
;Current professional franchises
'''Club''' |
'''League''' |
'''Venue''' |
'''Established''' |
'''Championships''' |
Winnipeg Blue Bombers |
Canadian Football League |
Canad Inns Stadium |
1930 |
10 |
Manitoba Moose |
American Hockey League |
MTS Centre |
1996 |
0 |
Winnipeg Goldeyes |
Northern League |
CanWest Global Park |
1994 |
1 |
Winnipeg is also the only Canadian city to have hosted the
Pan-American Games. It has hosted the games twice, in
1967 and
1999.
Arts and culture
Main articles: Winnipeg Arts and Culture
Winnipeg is well known across the prairies for its arts and culture.
[22] Among the popular cultural institutions in the city are: the
Royal Winnipeg Ballet, the
Winnipeg Art Gallery (WAG), the
Manitoba Opera, the
Manitoba Museum (formerly the Museum of Man and Nature), the
Manitoba Theatre Centre, the
Prairie Theatre Exchange, and the
Winnipeg Symphony Orchestra. The city is home to several large festivals. The
Winnipeg Fringe Theatre Festival is North America's second largest Fringe Festival, held every July. Other festivals include
Folklorama, the
Jazz Winnipeg Festival, the
Winnipeg Folk Festival, the
Winnipeg Music Festival, the
Red River Exhibition, and ''
Le Festival du Voyageur''.
The
Winnipeg Public Library is a
public library network with 20 branches throughout the city, including the central Millennium Library.
Winnipeg is well known for its murals.
[23] Many buildings in the downtown area and extending into some suburban areas have murals painted on the sides of buildings.
[24] Although some are advertisements for shops and other businesses, many are historical paintings, school art projects, or downtown beautification projects. Murals can also be found on several of the downtown traffic light switch posts and fire hydrants.
Winnipeg also has a thriving
film community, beginning as early as 1897 with the films of
James Freer to the production of local independent films of today, such as those by
Guy Maddin. It has also supported a number of
Hollywood productions, including
''Shall We Dance'' (2004), the
Oscar nominated film ''
Capote'' (2005), and ''
The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford'' (2006). Several locally-produced and national television dramas have also been shot in Winnipeg. The
National Film Board of Canada and the
Winnipeg Film Group have produced numerous award-winning films .
There are several TV and Film production companies in Winnipeg. Some of the prominent ones are
Frantic Films,
Buffalo Gal Pictures,
Les Productions Rivard and
Eagle Vision.
Winnipeg is also associated with various music acts. Among the most notable are
Neil Young,
The Guess Who,
Bachman-Turner Overdrive,
Venetian Snares,
Chantal Kreviazuk,
Bif Naked,
Comeback Kid,
The Waking Eyes,
Jet Set Satellite, the
New Meanies,
Propagandhi,
The Weakerthans,
The Perpetrators,
Crash Test Dummies, and
The Duhks.
Winnipeg is the subject of the song "One Great City!" by
the Weakerthans (a music group that originated in Winnipeg). The song makes allusion to the slow growth and lost industry in the town.
[25] The title of the song is the slogan on signs welcoming visitors to Winnipeg. The city is also mentioned in Neil Young's "Don't Be Denied".
Aaron Funk, a Winnipeg-based
Breakcore artist better known as
Venetian Snares, released a
concept album in
2005 based on his hatred of Winnipeg.
Winnipeg has also achieved some acclaim for being the "
Slurpee Capital of the World," since
1999, as its residents have a year-round penchant for the icy slush served in convenience stores.
[26]
;Local media
Winnipeg has two daily newspapers, six English television stations, one French television station, 25 AM and FM radio stations and a variety a regional and nationally based magazines that call the city home.
;Winnie-the-Pooh
★
Winnipeg bear, the inspiration for
Winnie-the-Pooh, was not actually born in Winnipeg. Instead, Winnipeg bear was purchased in
White River, Ontario, by an officer (Lieutenant
Harry Colebourn) of the
Fort Garry Horse cavalry regiment en route to his embarkation point for the front lines of
World War I. He named the bear after the regiment's home town of Winnipeg. In 1924, on an excursion to the
London Zoo with neighbour children,
Christopher Robin Milne, son of author
A. A. Milne, was introduced to Winnie for the first time.
★ An
E.H. Shepard painting of "Winnie the Pooh" is the only known oil painting of Winnipeg’s famous bear cub. It was purchased at an auction for $285,000 in
London, England late in 2000. The painting is displayed in the Pavilion Gallery in
Assiniboine Park.
Military
Canadian Forces Base Winnipeg, co-located at the
Winnipeg James Armstrong Richardson International Airport, is home to many flight operations support divisions, as well as several training schools. It is also the headquarters of
1 Canadian Air Division (1CdnAirDiv, formerly Air Command Headquarters) and the Canadian
NORAD Region Headquarters. The base is supported by over 3,000 military personnel and civilian employees.
17 Wing of the
Canadian Forces is based at CFB Winnipeg. The Wing comprises three squadrons and six schools. It also provides support to the Central Flying School. Excluding the three levels of government, 17 Wing is the fourth largest employer in the city.
The Wing also supports 113 units stretching from
Thunder Bay, to the
Saskatchewan/
Alberta border and from the
49th Parallel to the high
Arctic. 17 Wing also acts as a deployed operating base for
CF-18 Hornet fighter-bombers assigned to the Canadian
NORAD Region.
Two squadrons based in the city are:
★ '
402 “City of Winnipeg” Squadron'. This squadron flies the Canadian-designed and -produced de Havilland
CT-142 Dash 8 navigation trainer in support of the Canadian Forces Air Navigation School’s Air Navigators and Airborne Electronic Sensor Operator training programs.
★ '435 “Chinthe” Transport and Rescue Squadron'. This squadron flies the powerful Lockheed
CC-130 Hercules tanker/transport in the airlift search and rescue roles. In addition, 435 Squadron is the only Air Force squadron equipped and trained to conduct air-to-air refueling of fighter aircraft in support of operational and training activities at home and abroad. The CC-130 Hercules tanker is a key asset for the Canadian NORAD Region in its mission to defend Canada and the United States against aerial threats that originate outside or within North American airspace.
Winnipeg is home to a number of reserve units: the
Royal Winnipeg Rifles and
Queen's Own Cameron Highlanders of Canada infantry, 735 Communications Regiment, 17 Service Battalion, and 17 (Winnipeg) Field Ambulance at Minto Armoury, the
Fort Garry Horse armoured reconnaissance regiment at McGregor Armoury, and HMCS Chippewa naval reserve.
For many years, Winnipeg was the home of The Second Battalion,
Princess Patricia's Canadian Light Infantry, or 2 PPCLI. Initially, the battalion was based at the Fort Osborne Barracks near present day Osborne Village. They eventually moved to the Kapyong Barracks located in the
River Heights/
Tuxedo part of Winnipeg. Since 2004, the 550 men and women of the battalion have operated out of
Canadian Forces Base Shilo near
Brandon.
Crime
In 2004, Winnipeg had the fourth highest overall crime rate among Canadian
Census Metropolitan Area cities listed with 12,167
Criminal Code of Canada offences per 100,000 population. Only
Regina,
Saskatoon, and
Abbotsford had higher crime rates. Winnipeg had the highest rate among centres with populations greater than 500,000.
[27] The crime rate was 50% higher than that of
Calgary and more than double the rate for
Toronto.
In 2005, Statistics Canada shows Manitoba had the highest decline of overall crime in Canada at nearly 8%. Winnipeg dropped from having the highest rate of murder per capita in the country. That distinction now belongs to
Edmonton. Manitoba did continue to lead all other provinces in auto thefts, almost all of it centered in Winnipeg.
[28]
To combat auto theft,
Manitoba Public Insurance (MPI), also known as Autopac, established financial incentives for motor vehicle owners to install ignition immobilizers in their vehicles. Most new vehicles include these devices as standard features. These devices make it almost impossible for would-be vehicle thieves to "hot-wire" the vehicle. Recently, MPI has advised that they are requiring all "at risk" vehicles to have an immobilizer installed or ones insurance will not be renewed.
Winnipeg is 'protected' by the
Winnipeg Police Service, which has over 1350 members.
Twinnings
This is a list of Winnipeg's
sister cities and the date the agreement with each location was signed.
★ Setagaya, Tokyo, Japan (October 5, 1970)
★ Reykjavík, Iceland (September 7, 1971)
★ Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA (January 31, 1973)
★ Lviv, Ukraine (November 26, 1973)
★ Manila, Philippines (December 31, 1979)
★ Taichung, Taiwan (April 2, 1982) |
★ Kuopio, Finland (June 11, 1982)
★ Beer-Sheva, Israel (May 15, 1984)
★ Chengdu, China (February 24, 1988)
★ Chinju, South Korea (April 1, 1992)
★ San Nicolás de los Garza, Mexico (July 23, 1999) |
See also
★
Assiniboine Valley Railway
★
Downtown Winnipeg
★
List of cities in Canada
★
Valour Road
★
Ukrainian Labour Temple
★
Winnipeg Police Service
Notes
;Cited
1. Population and dwelling counts, for Canada and census subdivisions (municipalities), 2006 and 2001 censuses - 100% data
2. Winnipeg Census Metropolitan Area (CMA) with census subdivision (municipal) population breakdowns
3. Winnipeg History Imperial Oil website
4. Winnipeg History City of Winnipeg website
5. [1] USGS Survey
6. Population and dwelling counts, for census metropolitan areas (ALL), 2006 and 2001 censuses - 100% data
7. Lake Winnipeg World Lake Database
8. Parks Canada The Forks National Historic Site of Canada
9. World War II
10. Manitoba Royal Commission
11. Hansard
12. Environment Canada. "Canadian Climate Normals or Averages 1971-2000". Retrieved on: August 12, 2007.
13. Environment Canada. "Winnipeg MB". Retrieved on: August 3, 2007.
14. Weather Winners WebSite
15. North American Inland Ports NAIPN
16. Transportation Found Locally
17. Wayfinding Signage System Destination Winnipeg
18. Winnipeg Advantages
19. Bidders go Big
20. City of Winnipeg Community Highlights
21.
★ 24.3% of the population were 19 or under
★ 27.4% were between 20 and 39
★ 34.0% were between 40 and 64
★ 14.3% were 65 and older
'Visible minorities'
Statistics Canada asks census respondents whether they are aboriginal and whether they belong to a visible minority. Published figures for 2001:
22. http://ius.uwinnipeg.ca/pdf/art_report.pdf
23. The Murals of Winnipeg Bob Buchanan
24. New Festival CBC
25. jam! Showbiz, Album Review: Weakerthans Darryl Sterdan
26. Winnipeg Crowned Slurpee Capital CTV
27. Winnipeg Crime rate - Statistics Canada
28. Neighbourhood Characteristics and the Distribution of Crime in Winnipeg - Statistics Canada, Extracted November 29, 2005
References
★ J. M. Bumsted, ''The Winnipeg General Strike of 1919: An Illustrated History'' 1994, 140 pp. heavily illus; ISBN 0-920486-40-1.
★ Ramsay Cook; ''The Politics of John W. Dafoe and the Free Press'' (1963), 305 pp. B&W illustrations; ISBN 0802051197
★ Grayson, J. P., and L. M. Grayson, "The Social Base of Interwar Political Unrest in Urban Alberta". ''Canadian Journal of Political Science'', 7: 289-313 (1974)
★ Kenneth McNaught; ''A Prophet in Politics: A Biography of J. S. Woodsworth'' (RICH: Reprints in Canadian History) (Paperback) Introduction Allen Mills. (2001), 304 pp.; ISBN 0802084273
★ Norman Penner, ed., ''Winnipeg 1919: The Strikers' Own History of the Winnipeg General Strike'' (Toronto: 1973)
★ K. W. Taylor; "Voting in Winnipeg During the Depression" ''Canadian Review of Sociology and Anthropology'' v 19 #2 1982. pp 222+
★ Taylor, K. W., and Nelson Wiseman, "Class and Ethnic Voting in Winnipeg: The Case of 1941". Canadian Review of Sociology and Anthropology 14: 174-87 1977
★ Wiseman, Nelson and K. W. Taylor, "Ethnic vs Class Voting: the Case of Winnipeg, 1945". Canadian Journal of Political Science 7: 314-28 1974
★ Wiseman, Nelson and K. W. Taylor, "Class and Ethnic Voting in Winnipeg During the Cold War". Canadian Review of Sociology and Anthropology 16: 60-76 1979
|
External links
★
Winnipeg.ca - Official Winnipeg website
★
Canadian Climate Normals 1971-2000: Winnipeg at Environment Canada
★
Winnipedia
★
Transit Riders' Union of Winnipeg
★
Miles MacDonell Collegiate Alumni Association - Local Winnipeg History
★
Winnipeg and Manitoba stories- 250 stories about Winnipeg and Manitoba History
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