Construction of this small, open-air chapel in the community of St. Norbert, in what is now the southern part of Winnipeg, was begun by Father Joseph-Noel Ritchot in 1870. Dedicated to the Virgin Mary, Ritchot credited her with intercession in the 1869-1870 dispute between the Metis, led by Louis Riel, and the Canadian federal government. That dispute resulted in the entrenchment of Metis rights in The Manitoba Act of 1870 under which Manitoba entered Confederation. The original panelled ceiling, now housed in a nearby church, was painted in the mid-1880s by artist Constantin Tauffenbach. In 1989, the chapel became a provincially-designated historic site and a Manitoba Heritage Council commemorative plaque was unveiled on 15 October 1995. It was refurbished as part of the Manitoba Prairie Churches project.
La Chapelle de Notre-Dame-du-Bon-Secours (June 2017)
Source: George Penner
Interior of La Chapelle de Notre-Dame-du-Bon-Secours (June 2017)
Source: George PennerSite Coordinates (lat/long): N49.76558, W97.14516
denoted by symbol on the map above
See also:
Historic Sites of Manitoba: Provincially Designated Historic Sites
Historic Sites of Manitoba: Historic Sites Advisory Board of Manitoba / Manitoba Heritage Council
Historic Sites of Manitoba: Manitoba Prairie Churches Project / Manitoba Prairie Icons Project
La Chapelle de Notre-Dame-du-Bon-Secours, 80 rue St. Pierre, St. Norbert, Manitoba Historic Resources Branch.
Manitoba Heritage Council Commemorative Plaques and Manitoba Community Commemorative Plaques, Fiscal Year 1995-1996, Historic Resources Branch, 1996.
This page was prepared by Gordon Goldsborough and George Penner.
Page revised: 3 November 2022
Historic Sites of Manitoba
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