This one-storey brick building at the southwest corner of Andrews Street and Magnus Avenue in Winnipeg, measuring 87 feet by 60 feet, was designed by local architect Max Zev Blankstein. It was built between 1922 and 1923 by the Rodin Fuel Company, at a cost of about $40,000, as a satellite facility of the main Hebrew Free School on Charles Street.
Its original cornerstone, now partially covered by the entrance door, written in Yiddish, was laid at a ceremony on 20 August 1922 attended by Rabbi Israel Isaac Kahanovitch, Rabbi Herbert J. Samuel, and city alderman Abraham Albert Heaps. It translates as “This cornerstone was laid by Reb. Joel Mayer and his wife Rebeccah Leah. Tessler in the year 5680.” The school contained five classrooms, two playrooms, and an assembly hall.
The school closed in 1947 and the building has been used for various purposes over the years.
Winnipeg Hebrew Free School (no date)
Source: Jewish Heritage Centre of Western Canada, JHS 1022, N30239
The former Winnipeg Hebrew Free School (April 2015)
Source: Gordon Goldsborough
The former Winnipeg Hebrew Free School (January 2023)
Source: Jordan Makichuk
Cornerstone of the former Winnipeg Hebrew Free School (no date)
Source: Bert SchafferSite Coordinates (lat/long): N49.91813, W97.14511
denoted by symbol on the map above
See also:
Memorable Manitobans: Max Zev Blankstein (1874-1931)
Historic Sites of Manitoba: Winnipeg Hebrew Free School (Talmud Torah) / German Society Building (121 Charles Street, Winnipeg)
Historic Sites of Manitoba: I. L. Peretz Folk School / St. John’s Leisure Centre (601 Aikins Avenue, Winnipeg)
Historic Sites of Manitoba: Manitoba Agricultural College / Asper Jewish Community Campus (Tuxedo Avenue, Winnipeg)
City of Winnipeg Building Permit 2126/1922, City of Winnipeg Archives.
“Tenders for Winnipeg Hebrew Free School,” Winnipeg Tribune, 5 June 1922, page 2.
“Construction in Winnipeg during June is expected to show big improvement,” Manitoba Free Press, 10 June 1922, page 16.
“Weeks permits reach $403,250,” Winnipeg Tribune, 22 July 1922, page 16.
“Corner stone of new Jewish school is laid,” Winnipeg Tribune, 21 August 1922, page 7.
Coming of Age: A History of the Jewish People of Manitoba by Allan Levine, Heartland Associates Inc., Winnipeg, 2009, pages 139-141.
Hebrew Free School, 200 Andrews Street by Murray Peterson, Peterson Projects, February 2009.
We thank Jordan Makichuk, Stan Carbone, Bert Schaffer, and Andrew Morrison (Jewish Heritage Centre of Western Canada) for providing additional information used here.
This page was prepared by Gordon Goldsborough.
Page revised: 28 March 2023
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