A four-storey brick building at the northwest corner of Selkirk Avenue and Powers Street in Winnipeg, measuring 60 feet by 105 feet, was designed by local architect John Hamilton Gordon Russell and built in 1911 by contractor Sveinn Brynjolfsson at a cost of about $100,000. Its cornerstone was laid on 20 June 1911. The building was used into the early 1920s as the North Winnipeg Branch of the Young Men's Christian Association (YMCA).
In 1926, the building became the first home for St. Paul's High School and College, a private Catholic facility for boys and young men. Within five years, however, it did not have sufficient space for further growth so, in 1931, the St. Paul's facility moved to the former Manitoba College building on Ellice Avenue.
The building appears to have been demolished sometime between 1934 and 1941.
YMCA North Winnipeg Building (no date)
Source: St. Paul's High School Archive
YMCA North Winnipeg Building (no date)
Source: Archives of Manitoba, Winnipeg Buildings - General - YMCA / Selkirk Avenue #1Site Coordinates (lat/long): N49.91553, W97.14405
denoted by symbol on the map above
See also:
Memorable Manitobans: John Hamilton Gordon Russell (1863-1946)
Memorable Manitobans: Sveinn Brynjolfsson (1856-1930)
Historic Sites of Manitoba: YMCA Building / Birks Building (276 Portage Avenue, Winnipeg)
Historic Sites of Manitoba: YMCA Building (301 Vaughan Street, Winnipeg)
Historic Sites of Manitoba: Manitoba College / St. Paul’s High School and College (Ellice Avenue, Winnipeg)
Manitoba Organization: St. John’s College
Historic Sites of Manitoba: Manitoba College / St. Paul’s High School and College (Ellice Avenue, Winnipeg)
“Will be good building,” Manitoba Free Press, 23 April 1910, page 25.
“Tenders,” Manitoba Free Press, 1 September 1910, page 2.
“Many permits granted since Saturday - Branch YMCA on Selkirk Avenue,” Winnipeg Tribune, 29 March 1911, page 1.
“Branch in North Winnipeg,” Manitoba Free Press, 21 June 1911, page 9.
Henderson’s Winnipeg and Brandon Directories, Henderson Directories Limited, Peel’s Prairie Provinces, University of Alberta Libraries.
Biographical Dictionary of Architects in Canada, 1800-1950 by Robert G. Hill, Toronto.
We thank Samantha Eadie (St. Paul's High School) for providing additional information used here.
This page was prepared by Gordon Goldsborough and Jordan Makichuk.
Page revised: 6 July 2024
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