This one-storey brick building on Osborne Street in Winnipeg, measuring 28 feet by 90 feet, was constructed in 1929 by the Western Construction Company as a grocery store for Piggly Wiggly Canadian Limited at a cost of about $10,000. It opened officially on 6 July 1929. In the late 1930s, the building was taken over by Safeway Stores and, from 1957 to 1982, it hosted the Osborne branch of the Winnipeg Public Library.
The building was occupied by a used bookstore at the time of a 2020 site visit but it was vacant in 2023. Its exterior is extensively modified from its original appearance.
Former Safeway store on Osborne Street in Winnipeg (April 2020)
Source: George Penner
Former Safeway store on Osborne Street in Winnipeg (August 2023)
Source: Jordan MakichukSite Coordinates (lat/long): N49.86217, W97.13168
denoted by symbol on the map above
See also:
Manitoba Business: Western Construction Company
Manitoba Business: Piggly Wiggly Canadian Limited
Manitoba Business: Safeway Stores Limited
City of Winnipeg Building Permit 1455/1929, City of Winnipeg Archives.
“Advance in 1929 over 1928 total $160,000,” Manitoba Free Press, 11 May 1929, page 57.
“Piggly Wiggly 3 more stores for Winnipeg,” Winnipeg Tribune, 5 July 1929, page 5.
“Piggly Wiggly company opens store no. 20,” Winnipeg Tribune, 26 October 1929, page 29.
Osborne Library, Winnipeg Public Library.
We thank Jordan Makichuk and Maddy Hamm for providing additional information used here.
This page was prepared by George Penner and Gordon Goldsborough.
Page revised: 18 May 2024
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