This brick and stone building at the southeast corner of Portage Avenue and Donald Street in Winnipeg, measuring 130 feet by 133.6 feet, was designed by local architect John Woodman for owner James Albert Manning Aikins. Construction of an originally seven-storey structure, between early 1906 and mid-1907, was supervised by Frank Robert Evans, with structural steel frame and concrete designed by engineer Claude Allen Porter Turner (1869-1955) of Minneapolis, Minnesota. The contractors were William James Hodgins and T. E. Thompson and the cost was about $225,000. In the original configuration, there were five retail spaces on the ground floor and offices on the upper six floors.
The Aikins Block opened officially in June 1907 but was soon renamed Somerset Building. In 1911, two additional floors designed by John Woodman were built by the construction firm of J. McDiarmid and Company at a cost of about $70,000. This brought the building to its present height of nine floors.
In 1935, alterations to the building's entrance and ground floor facade, which included the installation of a neon sign over the entrance, were completed by the construction firm of Fraser and MacDonald at a cost of about $8,000. Subcontractors on the project were Taylor Painting and Decorating Company (painting), McCaine Electrical Company (electrical), J. Fabris and Son (marble and tile), Dominion Bronze Company (bronze fixtures), and D. McConnachie (plastering).
One of the prominent early occupants in the building’s main floor was the bookstore of Russell, Lang and Company. It closed in 1937. The following year, the bookstore space was renovated by Fraser and MacDonald, at a cost of about $10,000, to accommodate the American retailer F. W. Woodworth Company. Other interior alterations to the building at the same time cost about $5,000.
Aikins Block under construction (1906)
Source: The Improvement Bulletin, 29 December 1906, page 13.
Aikins Block under construction (1906)
Source: Manitoba Free Press, 6 December 1906, page 38.
Somerset Building (1908)
Source: The Western Architect, May 1908, page 83.
Somerset Block (July 2017)
Source: George PennerSite Coordinates (lat/long): N49.89362, W97.14299
denoted by symbol on the map above
See also:
Memorable Manitobans: John Woodman (1861-1944)
Memorable Manitobans: Frank Robert Evans (1865-1949)
Memorable Manitobans: William James Hodgins (1853-1935)
Memorable Manitobans: James Albert Manning Aikins (1851-1929)
Memorable Manitobans: James McDiarmid (1855-1934)
Manitoba Business: Fraser and MacDonald
City of Winnipeg Building Permit 528/1906, City of Winnipeg Archives.
The Canadian Contract Record, Volume 17, 21 March 1906, page 7.
“Contract let for big block,” Manitoba Free Press, 13 April 1906, page 2.
Winnipeg Fire Insurance Map #50, August 1906, Library and Archives Canada.
“The J. A. M. Aikins Building Winnipeg,” The Improvement Bulletin, 6 October 1906, pages 15-16.
“J. A. M. Akins’ new block. Corner Portage and Donald - under construction,” Manitoba Free Press, 6 December 1906, page 38.
“Aikins Building,” Manitoba Free Press, 6 December 1906, page 38.
“New Aikins Building, Winnipeg, Man.,” The Improvement Bulletin, 29 December 1906, page 13.
“Another view of the Aikins Block,” The Improvement Bulletin, 29 December 1906, page 13.
“The Somerset Building,” Manitoba Free Press, 29 June 1907, page 29.
“Somerset Building, corner Portage and Donald,” Manitoba Free Press, 29 June 1907, page 29.
“Somerset Building, Winnipeg, Manitoba,” The Western Architect, May 1908, page 83.
Winnipeg Fire Insurance Map #50, December 1910 - revised May 1914, Library and Archives Canada.
City of Winnipeg Building Permit 2115/1911, City of Winnipeg Archives.
“Successful test of building,” Manitoba Free Press, 20 June 1911, page 28.
“Finishing up,” Manitoba Free Press, 2 December 1911, page 13.
City of Winnipeg Building Permit 3499/1935, City of Winnipeg Archives.
“Building notes,” Winnipeg Tribune, 17 August 1935, page 7.
“Neon sign will be placed over entrance of Somerset Building,” Winnipeg Tribune, 20 July 1935, page 5.
City of Winnipeg Building Permit 900/1938, City of Winnipeg Archives.
City of Winnipeg Building Permit 951/1938, City of Winnipeg Archives.
“Building permits growing weekly,” Winnipeg Free Press, 28 March 1938, page 6.
“Permits lagging,” Winnipeg Free Press, 14 May 1938, page 24.
Winnipeg fire insurance map, #105 December 1955, City of Winnipeg Archives.
Somerset Block, 294 Portage Avenue by Murray Peterson, Winnipeg Historical Buildings and Resources Committee, May 2019.
We thank Darryl Resch and George Penner for providing additional information used here.
This page was prepared by Jordan Makichuk and Gordon Goldsborough.
Page revised: 19 January 2025
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