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Chief Traders | Photos & Maps | Sources
Manitoba House was a fur-trading post established on the western shore of Lake Manitoba, south of The Narrows, in the late 1810s or early 1820s. Located near today’s community of Kinosota, in the Rural Municipality of Alonsa, it was one of the first inland posts of the Hudson’s Bay Company. It was a modest facility. A map at the Archives of Manitoba shows that, in 1891, there were six buildings at the site but no palisade around them. A 1½-story log building and attached kitchen was the home of the trader, surrounded by a garden, and four other outbuildings were a trading store, provision store, fur store and general warehouse, and flour store. Nearby was a road from the new community of Westbourne to the south and, on Lake Manitoba, a wharf for people arriving by water. On 21 August 1871, Treaty No. 2 was signed here after being negotiated (along with Treaty No. 1) at Lower Fort Garry.
Manitoba House closed in 1911 after a long period of decline. The buildings were used by a series of families as a dwelling and store. In 1928, the buildings were sold and most were moved to a farm north of Alonsa. The kitchen part of the residence was moved to a nearby spot, and some of the remaining logs were used to build a church at Reedy Creek. Through much of the 20th century, only a few depressions in the ground marked the former site of Manitoba House. In the early 1970s, a group of local residents working under the auspices of the Manitoba Metis Federation constructed a replica of the former fur trade post. At the time of a 2018 site visit, three abandoned and degraded buildings were seen.
Period
Chief Trader
1852-1853
Richard Hardisty (1832-1889)
1854-1861
?
1862-1864
Archibald “Archie” McDonald (1836-1915)
1865-1874
Ewen McDonald (1839-1909)
1875-1879
?
1880-1887
Alexander Roff “Alex” Lillie (1831-1907)
1888-1890
?
1891-1902
David Armit
1905-1911
?
Map of Manitoba House showing the Trader's residence (#1), kitchen (#2), trading store (#3), provision store (#4), fur store and general warehouse (#5), and flour store (#6). Across the road was a dormitory for men, stables, and ice house (1891)
Source: Hudson’s Bay Company Archives, Archives of Manitoba
Remains of a Manitoba House replica building from the 1970s (November 2018)
Source: Gordon Goldsborough
Remains of a Manitoba House replica building from the 1970s (November 2018)
Source: Gordon GoldsboroughSite Location (lat/long): N50.92929, W98.86517
denoted by symbol on the map above
See also:
Events in Manitoba History: Treaty 2 (August 1871)
Historic Sites of Manitoba: Lower Fort Garry (RM of St. Andrews)
Historic Sites of Manitoba: Indian Treaty No. 1 Plaque (RM of St. Andrews)
Many Trails to Manitou-Wapah by Manitoba Village History Committee, 1993, page 141.
We thank Harry Duckworth for providing additional information used here.
This page was prepared by Jeffrey Allan, Gordon Goldsborough, Myles Kopytko, and Holly Thorne.
Page revised: 6 August 2022
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