A two-storey brick residence on Dumoulin Street in Winnipeg, designed by architect Joseph-Azarie Senecal and constructed between 1912 and 1913 by contractor Joseph Adolphe Biron, is all that remains of a macaroni-making facility operated here by businessman Henri Constant. Having come to Canada from Marseilles, France where his family had made pasta for generations, Constant operated the facility until the Fall of 1928 when it was purchased by C. H. Catelli and Company of Montreal. In early 1929, Catelli moved its operations to a larger building on Henry Avenue.
While the Constant family remained in the house, the macaroni factory stood vacant until early 1938 when it was used for a short time as an industrial college to train young men in diesel mechanics and welding. The Constants reacquired the building around 1941. Constant Macaroni Products Limited, established in 1936 by two of the Constant children, Madeleine Constant (c1907-1996) and Lucien Constant (1912-1993), was moved from a site on Ross Avenue back into the original factory. It operated there until the building was destroyed in a massive fire on 27 August 1962. The company closed in 1970.
A machine shop and garage that had been part of the original factory were demolished in 2019 to make way for a new residence. A pair of millstones used to grind wheat into flour for pasta-making remain at the site.
Machine shop and garage of the former Constant macaroni factory at left and Constant family home at right (June 2002)
Source: Murray Peterson
Rear view of the Constant House (August 2020)
Source: Gordon GoldsboroughSite Coordinates (lat/long): N49.89383, W97.11900
denoted by symbol on the map above
See also:
Memorable Manitobans: Henri Constant (1878-1970)
Memorable Manitobans: Joseph Adolphe Biron (1864-1938)
Historic Sites of Manitoba: Turner-Walker Block / Catelli Building / McCormicks Building (425 Henry Avenue, Winnipeg)
Historic Sites of Manitoba: Abandoned Manitoba
[advertisement], Manitoba Free Press, 9 October 1928, page 17.
[classified ad], Winnipeg Tribune, 10 February 1938, page 18.
“Blaze destroys macaroni plant,” Winnipeg Tribune, 27 August 1962, page 29.
Obituary [Lucien Clement Constant], Winnipeg Free Press, 4 July 1993, page 35.
Obituary [Madeleine Constant], Winnipeg Free Press, 28 April 1996, page 84.
Old St. Boniface: A Study of its Urban Growth and Historic Built Environment by Sheila C. Grover, Winnipeg Historical Buildings Committee, 2003.
We thank Murray Peterson and Joseph Constant for providing information used here.
This page was prepared by Gordon Goldsborough.
Page revised: 6 November 2021
Historic Sites of Manitoba
This is a collection of historic sites in Manitoba compiled by the Manitoba Historical Society. The information is offered for historical interest only.
Browse lists of:
Museums/Archives | Buildings | Monuments | Cemeteries | Locations | OtherInclusion in this collection does not confer special status or protection. Official heritage designation may only come from municipal, provincial, or federal governments. Some sites are on private property and permission to visit must be secured from the owner.
Site information is provided by the Manitoba Historical Society as a free public service only for non-commercial purposes.
Send corrections and additions to this page
to the MHS Webmaster at webmaster@mhs.mb.ca.Help us keep history alive!
