Historic Sites of Manitoba: Origin of the Trail Plaque (St. Anne’s Road, Winnipeg)

In the nineteenth century, the only way to travel the prairies was by horse, with heavy goods being hauled by oxen. A network of trails soon criss-crossed the country, with two major trails from the south to haul supplies to the community, and to send merchandise to market. One of the most important was the Crow Wing Trail, which ran up the east side of the Red River, passing through Ridgeville, Manitoba to what is now the intersection of St. Mary’s and St. Anne’s roads. This was an alternate route to the Pembina Trail during the 1850s when the Sioux wars in Minnesota made other trails dangerous.

The old Crow Wing Trail has almost vanished but traces still remain—most notably near St. Pierre-Jolys. This St. Vital Historical Society plaque is located on the east side of St. Anne’s Road, near the beginning of the former trail.

Origin of the Trail Plaque (2010) Source: City of Winnipeg Site Coordinates (lat/long): N49.86420, W97.11072 denoted by symbol on the map above

See also:

Historic Sites of Manitoba: Crow Wing Trail Monument (Joubert Street, St-Pierre-Jolys)

The Old Crow Wing Trail by J. C. Schultz
MHS Transactions, Series 1, Number 45, 1894

Sources:

Information for this page was provided by The City of Winnipeg’s Planning, Property and Development Department, which acknowledges the contribution of the Government of Manitoba through its Heritage Grants Program.

This page was prepared by Gordon Goldsborough.

Page revised: 2 March 2021

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