Historic Sites of Manitoba: Blue Ribbon Warehouse (334 McDermot Avenue, Winnipeg)

This six-storey brick building on McDermot Avenue in Winnipeg was built in 1911 for the Blue Ribbon Tea Company.

Some employees of the company who were killed during service in the First World War were commemorated at a 61st Battalion concert held at the Walker Theatre on 13-14 December 1915, or in a 101st Battalion souvenir program dedicated to Colonel Henry Norlande Ruttan on 24 April 1916.

Blue Ribbon Warehouse (October 2022) Source: Gordon Goldsborough Blue Ribbon Warehouse (October 2022) Source: Gordon Goldsborough Site Coordinates (lat/long): N49.89825, W97.14447 denoted by symbol on the map above

First World War Casualties

Name	Occupation	Service	Rank	Birth Date	Death Date
Robert Frederick Aitken [Augustine Presbyterian, Next of Kin]	Chemist	78th Battalion, Canadian Infantry	Lieutenant	31 May 1894	9 April 1917
John Robertson Baird [Augustine Presbyterian, Canadian Club, Next of Kin]	Bookkeeper	1st Canadian Mounted Rifles	Private	2 February 1891	5 June 1916
Herbert Ormond Chipperfield [Next of Kin, Vimy Ridge]	Tea Packer	44th Battalion, Canadian Infantry	Private	5 March 1893	11 May 1917
John Galt [Next of Kin, St. Lukes Anglican]	Merchant	Lord Strathcona's Horse	Lieutenant	1 May 1891	9 December 1915
George Geddes	Carpenter	2nd Division Signal Company, Canadian Engineers	Lance Corporal	29 April 1893	17 June 1917
Adam Reid [Next of Kin]	Tea Packer	44th Battalion, Canadian Infantry	Private	16 January 1897	10 August 1918
Alfred John Tooze [Vimy Ridge]	Tea Packer	44th Battalion, Canadian Infantry	Private	10 September 1892	30 April 1917

See also:

Historic Sites of Manitoba: Anne Building / Blue Ribbon Building (88 Arthur Street, Winnipeg)

Historic Sites of Manitoba: Anne Building / Blue Ribbon Building (87 King Street, Winnipeg)

Sources:

Henderson’s Winnipeg and Brandon Directories, Henderson Directories Limited, Peel’s Prairie Provinces, University of Alberta Libraries.

This page was prepared by Kerrin Asmundson, Gordon Goldsborough, and Darryl Toews.

Page revised: 10 December 2023

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