Memorable Manitobans: David Wynyard Bellhouse (1861-1952)

Farmer, architect.

Born at Sale, Manchester, England on 22 April 1861, son of Richard Taylor Bellhouse (1825-1906) and Ida Elizabeth Wynyard (?-1869), he was educated at Stuttgart, Germany and Neuchatel, Switzerland then studied architecture at Bruges, Belgium.

He came to Manitoba in 1883 and farmed at Cypress River until 1897 when he moved to Winnipeg and, for the next four years, worked in the engineering department of the Canadian Pacific Railway. He then worked in the office of Samuel Hooper and commenced work as an architect on his own account in 1906.

On 24 March 1886, he married Emma Mary Stacpoole (1866-1936) of Cypress River. They had two sons, Richard Wynyard Bellhouse (1891-1916) and Edward Ainslie Stacpoole Bellhouse (1896-1965). He was an avid cricket player, playing on the city championship team in 1903, and a member of the Anglican church.

He died at his residence in Fort Garry Court on 29 October 1952 and was buried in the Elmwood Cemetery.

Some of his architectural works in Manitoba included:

Building	Location	Year	Status
Christ Church	25 Second Street SW, Portage la Prairie	1903
MacNab and Roberts Warehouse	118-122 Lombard Avenue, Winnipeg	1903	Demolished (?)
Steele Block	919-925 Main Street, Winnipeg	1906
Cadillac Block	421 Qu’Appelle Avenue, Winnipeg	1907-1908	Demolished (?)
Christie Hotel	Gimli	1907
Royal Bowling Alley	233 Notre Dame Avenue, Winnipeg	1907	Demolished (?)
Sanderson House	252 Kingsway, Winnipeg	1907
Winnipeg Cricket Club Pavilion	Broadway, Winnipeg	1907	Demolished (?)
Bain House (expansion)	69 East Gate, Winnipeg	1908
Jenkins House	67 Middle Gate, Winnipeg	1908
Quo Vadis Block	405-409 Qu’Appelle Avenue, Winnipeg	1908	Demolished (?)
Armstrong House (William T. Armstrong)	804 Preston Avenue, Winnipeg	1909
Chevrier House	22 Middle Gate, Winnipeg	1909
Hegan House	188 Yale Avenue, Winnipeg	1909
Hunt House	43 Middle Gate, Winnipeg	1909
Robinson House	20 Avonherst Street, Winnipeg	1909
Stratford Hall	285 College Avenue, Winnipeg	1909
Styles House (William G. Styles)	97 Academy Road, Winnipeg	1909	Demolished (circa 1939)
Ashford Block	381 Balmoral Street, Winnipeg	1910
Burrows Stewart and Milne Warehouse	130 James Street, Winnipeg	1910
Dingle Brothers Warehouse	Stanley Street, Winnipeg	1910	Demolished (?)
Edgett House	276 Harvard Avenue, Winnipeg	1910
Henderson Building	332 Bannatyne Street, Winnipeg	1910
Box House (Henry J. Box)	Wellington Crescent, Winnipeg	1911
Dagg House	39 West Gate, Winnipeg	1911
McNab House (J. C. McNab)	St. Vital, Winnipeg	1911
Reliance Ink Company Factory	McGree Street, Winnipeg	1911
Coronado Apartments	485 Furby Street, Winnipeg	1912
Crump Block	Charlotte Street, Winnipeg	1912
Holy Trinity Anglican Church Parish Hall	Smith and Graham	1912
Horn House	131 West Gate, Winnipeg	1912
Burnham House (John D. Burnham)	333 Yale Avenue, Winnipeg	1913
Gaults Limited Warehouse	Gomez Street, Winnipeg	1913
St. Edward’s Roman Catholic Church	836 Arlington Street, Winnipeg	1913
Martin Bole and Wynne Warehouse	576 McDermot Avenue, Winnipeg	1914
River Heights Presbyterian Church	255 Oak Street, Winnipeg	1915-1916
St. Thomas Anglican Church	1567 William Avenue West, Winnipeg	1923
Pirt House (Wesley Wright Pirt)	227 Waverley Street, Winnipeg	1923
Weidman House	1 Ruskin Row, Winnipeg	1926
Churchill House (Leon Churchill)	41 Kingsway	1926-1927
Gauer House (Henry Gauer)	1095 Wellington Crescent, Winnipeg	1929

See also:

MHS Archives: Personal Memoirs: David Wynyard Bellhouse: Biography of a Winnipeg Architect by David R. Bellhouse (November 2024, PDF format), hard copy is available for purchase at https://www.amazon.ca/dp/096960534X

Sources:

Birth, marriage, and death registrations, Manitoba Vital Statistics.

Who’s Who in Western Canada: A Biographical Dictionary of Notable Living Men and Women of Western Canada, Volume 1, edited by C. W. Parker, Vancouver: Canadian Press Association, 1911.

The Story of Manitoba by F. H. Schofield, Winnipeg: The S. J. Clarke Publishing Company, 1913.

“D. W. Bellhouse, ex-city architect, dies at age 91,” Winnipeg Free Press, 30 October 1952, page 16.

Henderson Building (332 Bannatyne Street), City of Winnipeg Historical Buildings Committee, March 2005.

Biographical Dictionary of Architects in Canada, 1800-1950 by Robert G. Hill, Toronto.

We thank Jim Busby, Jordan Makichuk, and David Bellhouse for providing additional information used here.

This page was prepared by Gordon Goldsborough.

Page revised: 1 December 2024

Memorable Manitobans This is a collection of noteworthy Manitobans from the past, compiled by the Manitoba Historical Society. We acknowledge that the collection contains both reputable and disreputable people. All are worth remembering as a lesson to future generations. Search the collection by word or phrase, name, place, occupation or other text: Custom Search Browse surnames beginning with: A | B | C | D | E | F | G | H | I | J | K | L | M | N | O | P | Q | R | S | T | U | V | W | Y | Z Browse deaths occurring in: 1975 | 1976 | 1977 | 1978 | 1979 | 1980 | 1981 | 1982 | 1983 | 1984 | 1985 | 1986 | 1987 | 1988 | 1989 | 1990 | 1991 | 1992 | 1993 | 1994 | 1995 | 1996 | 1997 | 1998 | 1999 | 2000 | 2001 | 2002 | 2003 | 2004 | 2005 | 2006 | 2007 | 2008 | 2009 | 2010 | 2011 | 2012 | 2013 | 2014 | 2015 | 2016 | 2017 | 2018 | 2019 | 2020 | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 | 2025 Send corrections and additions to this page to the Memorable Manitobans Administrator at biographies@mhs.mb.ca Criteria for Memorable Manitobans | Suggest a Memorable Manitoban | Firsts | Acknowledgements Help us keep history alive!