Historic Sites of Manitoba: Wood Building / Merchants Building (250 McDermot Avenue, Winnipeg)

This building was constructed in two stages, the north portion being built in 1898 by Philip Burnett and the south portion in 1902, using consistent construction materials and design. Both parts were designed by James H. Cadham. It was originally the home of hardware dealer George D. Wood, later the Wood Vallance Company, that was acquired by the hardware firm of Marshall-Wells Company. Beginning in the mid-1920s, a series of smaller tenants occupied the building, now a municipally-designated historic site. The office of the Manitoba Historical Society was located in the building from 2004 to 2007.

An honour roll for employees of the Wood Vallance Company who were killed during the First World War was publicized in early 1919.

Wood Building (circa 1903) Source: An Illustrated Souvenir of Winnipeg by W. A. Martel & Sons. Merchants Building (April 2011) Source: Gordon Goldsborough Merchants Building (February 2021) Source: George Penner Site Coordinates (lat/long): N49.89708, W97.14080 denoted by symbol on the map above

First World War Casualties

Name	Occupation	Service	Rank	Birth Date	Death Date
Thomas Cartwright [Next of Kin]	Warehouseman	78th Battalion, Canadian Infantry	Private	23 September 1891	19 November 1916
Sidney George Dunn	Hardware Clerk	1st Deport Battalion, Canadian Infantry	Private	30 March 1884	27 April 1918
John Robert Gibbins [Next of Kin, Vimy Ridge]	Clerk	44th Battalion, Canadian Infantry	Private	23 April 1895	23 August 1917
John Erskine Clark Milliken [Next of Kin]	Clerk	78th Battalion, Canadian Infantry	Private	29 July 1897	9 April 1917
Donald Rose [Next of Kin]	Clerk	27th Battalion, Canadian Infantry	Private	16 September 1888	15 September 1916
John J. Wilkie	Clerk	Canadian Ordnance Corps	Corporal	1872	18 February 1917

See also:

Memorable Manitobans: George Duncan Wood (1858-1907)

Historic Sites of Manitoba: Municipally Designated Historic Sites

Sources:

“Our boys who sacrificed, fought and died that all might enjoy everlasting peace,” Winnipeg Tribune, 25 January 1919, page 63.

Merchants Building (250 McDermot Avenue), Winnipeg Historical Buildings Committee, May 2007.

We thank George Penner for providing additional information used here.

This page was prepared by Gordon Goldsborough and Darryl Toews.

Page revised: 13 January 2022

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