A site on St. Anne’s Road along the Seine River in the southern part of St. Vital in Winnipeg was opened in mid-1966 beside the newly constructed Perimeter Highway. Constructed by 31-year-old Gerhard Henry “Hardy” Priess (1935-1971) and his wife Alma, the Conestoga Campsites was probably aimed at the increasing volumes of motoring campers that were passing by. The campground occupied six acres of land along the Seine River and had 100 camp sites. There was a small store with groceries and souvenirs, an office and residence for the Priess family, a washroom building, and a swimming pool. By the 1980s, it was described by a visitor as a “broken down roadside attraction from a bygone era.” Closed in the early 2000s, much of the area is now occupied by residential developments. A portion of the Seine River Greenway walking trail winds through the abandoned campground. Several campsite markers and a derelict picnic table were present at the time of a late 2016 site visit.
Campsite marker from the former Conestoga Campsites (October 2016)
Source: Gordon Goldsborough
Picnic table with campsite marker in the background (October 2016)
Source: Gordon GoldsboroughSite Location (lat/long): N49.81018, W97.06788
denoted by symbol on the map above
See also:
Historic Sites of Manitoba: Abandoned Manitoba
“Dominion City News,” Steinbach Carillon News, 9 June 1966, page 17.
Advertisement, Winnipeg Free Press, 23 July 1966, page 24.
“Campsites,” Winnipeg Free Press, 30 August 1969, page 56.
Henderson’s Winnipeg and Brandon Directories, Henderson Directories Limited, Peel’s Prairie Provinces, University of Alberta Libraries.
Obituary [Gerhard Henry Priess], Steinbach Carillon News, 10 November 1971, page 20.
Classified advertisement, Winnipeg Free Press, 18 July 1991, page 33.
“Campground owner tied up, beaten in robbery,” Winnipeg Free Press, 3 September 2002, page 6.
We thank Jerry Gosselin and Tom Dobson for providing information used here.
This page was prepared by Gordon Goldsborough.
Page revised: 6 August 2017
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