Memorable Manitobans: Aaron Akman (1880-1962)

Building contractor.

Born in Russia in 1880, he came to Canada in 1903 and settled at Winnipeg the following year. He was active in construction and real estate development, erecting many buildings around the city. He was founder and President of A. Akman and Son Limited.

He was married twice, first to Sarah Ida Kaplan (1884-1921) with whom he had four children: Esther Catherine Akman (1907-1993, wife of Charles Oscar Swartz), Abram “Lefty” Akman (1912-1996), Annette “Anna” Akman (1916-2013, wife of Abraham Averbach), and Bertha Akman (?-?, wife of Morris J. Rusen). His second wife was Jenny Robbins (1891-1963). The family lived at 284 St. Johns Avenue (circa 1926). He was active in the community as a member of the Winnipeg B'Nai B'Rith, YMHA, and Hebrew Sick Benefit Association.

He died at the St. Boniface Hospital on 27 July 1962 and was buried in the Hebrew Sick Benefit Cemetery. He is commemorated by an engineering scholarship at the University of Manitoba.

Some of his construction works in Manitoba included:

Building	Location	Year	Status
Commodore Apartments	624 Broadway, Winnipeg	1928
Tweedsmuir Apartments	301 Broadway, Winnipeg	1938
Drake Apartments	270 Broadway, Winnipeg	1940
Nelson Apartments	250 Broadway, Winnipeg	1940
Rosh Pina Synagogue	123 Matheson Avenue East, Winnipeg	1952

Sources:

Birth, marriage, and death registrations, Manitoba Vital Statistics.

1926 Canada census, FamilySearch.

“University announces new student awards,” Winnipeg Free Press, 10 April 1961, page 40.

Obituary, Winnipeg Tribune, 27 July 1962, page 43.

Obituary [Jenny Akman], Winnipeg Free Press, 3 December 1963, page 29.

Obituary [Esther Swartz], Winnipeg Free Press, 26 December 1993, page 44.

Obituary [Abram Akman], Winnipeg Free Press, 25 September 1996, page 32.

Obituary [Annette Hecter Averbach], Winnipeg Free Press, 27 April 2013.

We thank George Penner for providing additional information used here.

This page was prepared by Gordon Goldsborough.

Page revised: 28 May 2022

Memorable Manitobans This is a collection of noteworthy Manitobans from the past, compiled by the Manitoba Historical Society. We acknowledge that the collection contains both reputable and disreputable people. All are worth remembering as a lesson to future generations. Search the collection by word or phrase, name, place, occupation or other text: Custom Search Browse surnames beginning with: A | B | C | D | E | F | G | H | I | J | K | L | M | N | O | P | Q | R | S | T | U | V | W | Y | Z Browse deaths occurring in: 1984 | 1985 | 1986 | 1987 | 1988 | 1989 | 1990 | 1991 | 1992 | 1993 | 1994 | 1995 | 1996 | 1997 | 1998 | 1999 | 2000 | 2001 | 2002 | 2003 | 2004 | 2005 | 2006 | 2007 | 2008 | 2009 | 2010 | 2011 | 2012 | 2013 | 2014 | 2015 | 2016 | 2017 | 2018 | 2019 | 2020 | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 Send corrections and additions to this page to the Memorable Manitobans Administrator at biographies@mhs.mb.ca Criteria for Memorable Manitobans | Suggest a Memorable Manitoban | Firsts | Acknowledgements Help us keep history alive!