Historic Sites of Manitoba: Winnipeg Post Office Shards and Plaque (Mostyn Park, Winnipeg)

Link to:
Postmasters | Photos & Coordinates | Sources

Designed by Dominion Government architect David Ewart, Winnipeg’s sixth post office, located on the south side of Portage Avenue between Fort and Garry streets, was constructed in 1908 by the construction firm of Kelly Brothers at a cost of $750,000 under the supervision of Toronto architects Darling and Pearson. The four-storey, steel frame structure also housed the Parcel Customs Department, the Dominion Lands Department, and the Federal Public Works Department. The location of the building helped to establish Portage Avenue as the leading retail street in Winnipeg. However, by 1958, the post office had closed and in the fall of 1962, it was demolished.

In 1990, some salvaged limestone column sections were re-erected during the upgrading of Mostyn Park on Mostyn Place (Granite Way).

Postmasters

Period	Postmasters
1908-1920	Peter Campbell McIntyre (1854-1920)
1921-1934	Thomas Tofield Bower (1867-1968)
1934-1940	W. F. Lough
1940-1944	J. W. Dickson
1944-?	T. A. Rutledge
?-1958	?

Photos & Coordinates

Postcard view of the Winnipeg Post Office (circa 1910) by Israel Meyers Source: Rob McInnes Winnipeg Post Office Shards and Plaque in Mostyn Park (2010) Source: City of Winnipeg Site Coordinates (lat/long): N49.88265, W97.15200 denoted by symbol on the map above

Postal Employees among First World War Casualties

Name	Occupation	Service	Rank	Birth Date	Death Date
Charles Ramsey Ainslie	Postal Clerk	8th Battalion, Canadian Infantry	Private	1 January 1893	23 September 18
Walter Clifford Bertram [Next of Kin]	Postal Clerk	44th Battalion, Canadian Infantry	Private	16 October 1888	27 September 1918
Arthur Vivian Burlton	Clerk	Royal Flying Corps	Captain	11 April 1895	30 August 1917
John Caldwell [Next of Kin, Masonic]	Shoemaker	Canadian Army Medical Corps	Regimental Sergeant Major	17 October 1879	17 December 1917
William Henry Didsbury	Postman	16th Battalion, Canadian Infantry	Private	8 May 1884	23 April 1915
Louis Joseph Ovide Ducharme [Next of Kin]	Civil Servant - Post Office	76th Battery, Canadian Field Artillery	Lieutenant Colonel	20 March 1860	12 March 1917
Ira Hyde Glasgow	Railway Mail Clerk	78th Battalion, Canadian Infantry	Lieutenant	21 June 1882	9 April 1917
Albert Harold Hammill [Stonewall]	Railway Mail Clerk	Canadian Postal Corps	Corporal	18 March 1892	26 November 1918
Harold Poole Hooper	Postman	27th Battalion, Canadian Infantry	Private	13 December 1880	21 August 1917
James Gourlay Hughes	Letter Carrier	43rd Battalion, Canadian Infantry	Private	1 May 1892	1 October 1918
John Arthur Huntley [Elkhorn]	Railway mail clerk	1st Canadian Mounted Rifles	Private	?	7 April 1917
Ernest Lumbert	Postal Clerk	27th Battalion, Canadian Infantry	Private	15 November 1882	4 April 1916
Donald MacKenzie [Brandon Armoury]	Postman	52nd Battalion, Canadian Infantry	Private	19 June 1881	23 September 1916
Peter Kenneth McIntosh [Holland]	Bandsman-Assistant in Post Office	49th Battalion, Canadian Infantry	Private	8 May 1893	31 October 1917
Arthur William McLachlan [Boissevain]	Railway Mail Clerk	44th Battalion, Canadian Infantry	Private	22 October 1893	2 October 1918
Thomas Milton [Next of Kin]	General Post Office Employee	1st Battalion, Black Watch (Royal Highland Regiment)	Sergeant	?	9 May 1915
Thomas Harry Petley [Brandon Armoury]	P.O. Clerk	43rd Battalion, Canadian Infantry	Private	20 August 1884	10 October 1916
James Allan Reid [Portage la Prairie]	Postal Clerk	5th Battalion, Canadian Infantry	Sergeant	25 November 1890	26 September 1916
Frederick Reginald Smith [Next of Kin]	Post Office Department	28th Battalion, Canadian Infantry	Private	16 October 1885	28 September 1915
Ivan Smith [Stonewall]	Railway Mail Clerk	20th Battalion, Canadian Infantry	Private	25 February 1883	14 March 1916
William George Smith	Post Office Clerk	44th Battalion, Canadian Infantry	Private	7 April 1884	28 October 1917
Stanley Stevenson	Clerk	10th Battalion, Canadian Infantry	Private	15 December 1893	26 April 1915
William Thomson [Next of Kin]	Postal Clerk	8th Battalion, Canadian Infantry	Private	24 October 1892	29 September 1918
Stephen Helgi Thorson [Next of Kin]	Railway Mail Clerk	42nd Battalion, Canadian Infantry	Private	29 April 1892	16 September 1916
Alfred Clinton Totty	Post Office Clerk	78th Battalion, Canadian Infantry	Private	1 August 1897	2 September 1918
Alfred Villiers [Next of Kin]	Transfer Agent	5th Battalion, Canadian Infantry	Private	10 November 1883	9 September 1916
Stanley Walker	Mail Clerk	10th Battalion, Canadian Infnatry	Private	29 July 1896	21 May 1915
Charles Collier Wilford	Post Clerk	52nd Battalion, Canadian Infantry	Private	6 March 1886	23 July 1918
Thomas Arnold Williams	Letter Carrier	Princess Patricia's Canadian Light Infantry	Private	18 August 1894	9 April 1917

See also:

Historic Sites of Manitoba: Postal Coat of Arms (Assiniboine Park, Winnipeg)

Manitoba Business: Kelly Brothers / Manitoba Construction Company / Kelly Brothers and Mitchell / Thomas Kelly and Sons

Sources:

Information for this page was provided by The City of Winnipeg’s Planning, Property and Development Department, which acknowledges the contribution of the Government of Manitoba through its Heritage Grants Program.

Post Offices and Postmasters, Library and Archives Canada.

We thank Darryl Toews for providing additional information used here.

This page was prepared by Gordon Goldsborough.

Page revised: 2 June 2024

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