A one-storey brick building on Main Street North in Carman, measuring 32 feet by 80 feet, was designed by the Winnipeg architectural firm of Northwood and Chivers and built between late 1929 and early 1930 by the construction firm of Brown and Barker at a cost of about $15,000, as a grocery for Safeway Stores Limited. It opened officially on the 17 January 1930.
Store managers through the years included J. Fountain (1930-?), Alex Ferwarn (?-?), Freeman Lucking (?-1952), Laddie Fedrick (1952-1954), Harvey Gluck (1954-1957), Jim Baccari (1957-1958), Ralph Clearwater (1958-1960), and Ron Stanger (1960-1989). The store closed on the 2 December 1989 and it was the last of the original first-wave Safeway stores to close. Through the years, the building’s exterior was renovated from its original appearance so as to be completely unrecognizable.
Four days after Safeway closed in 1989, it reopened as D & M Fine Foods and the grocery store operated for the next 24 years. Re-sold in 2013, a bank foreclosure ended the business in late 2013. Sold to owners of the business on the building’s north side, it was demolished in November 2023 to permit expansion of that business.
Former site of the Safeway store in Carman (March 2024)
Source: Gordon GoldsboroughSite Coordinates (lat/long): N49.50763, W98.00321
denoted by symbol on the map above
See also:
Manitoba Business: Northwood and Chivers / Northwood Chivers and Casey
Manitoba Business: Brown and Barker
Manitoba Business: Safeway Stores Limited
“Big contracts are awarded to local firms,” Winnipeg Tribune, 19 October 1929, page 8.
“Flashback ... demolition day for Carman’s 26-1st Street SW,” Carman-Dufferin Standard, 7 December 2023, page 2.
We thank Ray Cruickshank for providing additional information used here.
This page was prepared by Jordan Makichuk.
Page revised: 11 April 2024
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