Memorable Manitobans: James Murray Reid (1882-1933)

James Murray Reid Click to enlarge

Building contractor.

Born on 1 July 1882, he came to Canada in the early 20th century and established a reputation for excavation works for the Winnipeg and district area over a period of 30 years. He was present the morning after the 1903 landslide at Frank, British Columbia and helped in digging operations in search of victims.

On 20 December 1912, he married Margaret Smith “Maggie” Thomson (1886-1954) and they had two sons, James Murray Reid (1914-1990) and David Cameron “Cam” Reid (1918-2002). He was a member of the AF & AM (Fort Garry Lodge).

He died at his Winnipeg home, 938 Sherburn Street, on 8 April 1933 and was buried in the Old Kildonan Cemetery.

Some of his construction work in Manitoba included:

Building	Location	Year	Status
Harris Abottoir Meat Packing Plant (excavation)	Archibald Street, Winnipeg	1925	Demolished (2011)
Rose Theatre (excavation)	801 Sargent Avenue, Winnipeg	1926
Plaza Theatre (excavation)	104 Marion Street, Winnipeg	1926	Demolished (?)
Dominion Business College Building (excavation)	274 Osborne Street North, Winnipeg	1927
Picardy Candy Factory (excavation)	536-540 Broadway, Winnipeg	1928-1929	Demolished (1980)
Roxy Theatre (excavation)	385 Henderson Highway, Winnipeg	1929
Manitoba Telephone System Building (excavation)	166 Portage Avenue East, Winnipeg	1930-1932
Raleigh Apartments (excavation)	340 Vaughan Street, Winnipeg	1931
Christie Brown Building (excavation)	1147-1155 Notre Dame Avenue, Winnipeg	1931-1932
Winnipeg Auditorium (excavation)	200 Vaughan Street, Winnipeg	1931-1932

Sources:

Marriage registration [James Murray Reid, Margaret Smith Thomson], Manitoba Vital Statistics.

Birth registrations [James Reid, David Cameron Reid], Manitoba Vital Statistics.

“Million dollar industry,” Winnipeg Tribune, 17 October 1925, page 29.

“Theatre contracts let,” Manitoba Free Press, 10 July 1926, page 7.

“Dominion Business College opens new home, December 30,” Manitoba Free Press, 28 December 1927, page 5.

“Suites in Mall Plaza to have many conveniences,” Manitoba Free Press, 29 December 1927, page 8.

“Excavation contract on the new Dominion Business college building was let to James Reid,” Winnipeg Tribune, 28 December 1927, page 15.

“The excavation for the new Picardy Candy Factory done by James Reid,” Winnipeg Tribune, 28 May 1929, page 16.

“New Winnipeg construction,” Manitoba Free Press, 1 June 1929, page 46.

“Excavation work in the new Kodak Building executed by James Reid,” Winnipeg Tribune, 28 June 1930, page 16.

“Excavation contract for Vaughan Street block let,” Manitoba Free Press, 5 February 1931, page 6.

“James Reid received the contract for the excavation of the Auditorium site on the Mall,” Winnipeg Tribune, 3 December 1931, page 2.

Death registration [James Murray Reid], Manitoba Vital Statistics.

“James Reid, well known resident of Winnipeg, dies,” Winnipeg Free Press, 11 April 1933, page 2.

“Contractor dies,” Winnipeg Tribune, 11 April 1933, page 11.

Obituary [Margaret Smith Reid], Winnipeg Free Press, 23 November 1954, page 21.

The Year Past: Report of the City of Winnipeg Historical Buildings Committee, City of Winnipeg, 1979, pages 19-20.

Obituary [James Murray Reid], Winnipeg Free Press, 15 August 1990, page 42.

Obituary [D. Cameron Reid], Winnipeg Free Press, 5 May 2002.

Obituaries and burial transcriptions, Manitoba Genealogical Society.

This page was prepared by Jordan Makichuk and Gordon Goldsborough.

Page revised: 24 February 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: 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 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!