This three-storey brick building at the corner of Portage Avenue and Maryland Street in Winnipeg, measuring 50 feet by 175 feet, was designed by local architect John Danley Atchison and built in 1916 by the Sutherland Construction Company for the Willys-Overland Company, at a cost of about $60,000.
In 1938, Leonard and McLaughlin Motors, an automobile dealership that sold Nash, Cadillac, and Dodge vehicles, vacated its building farther down Portage Avenue and moved into this building, occupying it until the mid- to late-1960s. The original “Sales and Service” lettering is still visible on the south facade.
Leonard and McLaughlin Garage and Auto Sales Building (1938)
Source: Winnipeg Free Press, 28 March 1938, page 5.
Interior of Leonard and McLaughlin Garage and Auto Sales Building (1940)
Source: Winnipeg Free Press, 14 February 1940, page 4.
The former Willys-Overland Building (no date)
Source: Kerrin Asmundson
The former Willys-Overland Building (April 2018)
Source: George Penner
The former Willys-Overland Building (May 2022)
Source: Gordon GoldsboroughSite Coordinates (lat/long): N49.88771, W97.16079
denoted by symbol on the map above
See also:
Memorable Manitobans: John Danley Atchison (1870-1959)
Manitoba Business: Sutherland Construction Company
Memorable Manitobans: Alexander Robert Leonard (1869-1942)
Historic Sites of Manitoba: Leonard and McLaughlin Garage and Auto Sales Building / CBC Building (541 Portage Avenue, Winnipeg)
“City & district,” Manitoba Free Press, 24 October 1916, page 5.
“Two big garages are being built,” Manitoba Free Press, 28 October 1916, page 8.
“New location for an old firm,” Winnipeg Free Press, 28 March 1938, page 5.
“Auto service department,” Winnipeg Free Press, 14 February 1940, page 4.
“Your Winnipeg headquarters with over 40 years of continual customer service,” Winnipeg Free Press, 2 April 1963, page 73.
“Notice to all car buyers,” Winnipeg Free Press, 25 October 1966, page 24.
This page was prepared by Kerrin Asmundson, George Penner, Jordan Makichuk, and Gordon Goldsborough.
Page revised: 27 December 2022
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