Memorable Manitobans: Arthur John Bonnett (1874-1942)

Arthur John Bonnett Click to enlarge

Building contractor, architect.

Born at Woodstock, Ontario on 4 July 1874, he came to Winnipeg in 1904 and worked as a general contractor under the name of A. J. Bonnett and Brothers.

On 15 February 1899, he married Catherine Annie Gillies (1879-1959) at Woodstock and they subsequently had three children: Cecil George Bonnett (1903-1978), Robert Frank Bonnett (1904-1957), and Marion Isabel Bonnett (1906-?, wife of Ellwood Simon Van Alstyne). He was a member of the Winnipeg Board of Trade, Builders’ Exchange, Masons (Lord Selkirk Lodge), IOOF (Hiawatha Lodge), St. John's Curling Club (President, 1922-1923), and St. John’s United Church.

He died at his Winnipeg home, 101 Cathedral Avenue, on 3 March 1942 and was buried in the St. John's Cathedral Cemetery.

Some of his construction works in Manitoba included:

Building	Location	Year	Status
Braemar Court	470-476 Balmoral Street, Winnipeg	1910
Braemar Court (annex)	470-476 Balmoral Street, Winnipeg	1910
Johnstone Block	209-215 Pacific Avenue, Winnipeg	1910
Jackson House	15 West Gate, Winnipeg	1912
Winnipeg Hebrew Free School (Talmud Torah)	121 Charles Street, Winnipeg	1912
Shragge Warehouse	400 King Street, Winnipeg	1913
Gronbach Block	394-396 Selkirk Avenue, Winnipeg	1914
Plaxton Block (addition)	244 Main Street, Winnipeg	1914	Demolished (1999)
Weidman Warehouse Stable	244-246 Jarvis Avenue, Winnipeg	1916	Destroyed by fire (27 February 2024)
Bettes Block (alterations)	289-295 Carlton Street / 353-355 Portage Avenue, Winnipeg	1919	Demolished (?)
John Deere Plow Warehouse (loading platform)	255 Sutherland Avenue, Winnipeg	1919
Sharpe Block	343-347 Portage Avenue, Winnipeg	1919	Demolished (?)
Weidman Warehouse (addition)	244-246 Jarvis Avenue, Winnipeg	1919	Destroyed by fire (27 February 2024)
Bucknam-Walmsley Garage Building	275 Smith Street, Winnipeg	1920	Demolished (1983)
Rice Knitting Warehouse	165 Selkirk Avenue, Winnipeg	1921
King Memorial United Church (superstructure)	127 Cobourg Avenue, Winnipeg	1927
Allen Garage	1370 Main Street, Winnipeg	1928	Demolished (?)
Imperial Oil Service Station	566 Osborne Street, Winnipeg	1929	Demolished (?)
Miles House	241 Cathedral Avenue, Winnipeg	1930
Monk House [Mrs. Mary Monk]	377 Oakwood Avenue, Winnipeg	1930
St. John’s Curling Rink (repairs)	305 Machray Avenue, Winnipeg	1931	Demolished (?)
Winnipeg Humane Society Building	1059 Logan Avenue, Winnipeg	1935	Demolished (?)

Sources:

Ontario birth registration [Cecil George Bonnett], Ancestry.

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

“Permits passed $10,000,000 mark,” Winnipeg Tribune, 10 July 1913, page 1.

“Issues permits for buildings worth $244,000,” Winnipeg Tribune, 25 March 1920, page 3.

“Building permits,” Winnipeg Tribune, 18 April 1925, page 15.

“Week’s permits exceed $100,000 by hood margin,” Winnipeg Tribune, 21 July 1928, page 5.

City of Winnipeg Building Permit 3145/1929 [Imperial Oil Service Station], City of Winnipeg Archives.

“Safeway Stores receive four building permits,” Winnipeg Tribune, 10 July 1929, page 3.

“Permits issued for new houses number fifteen,” Manitoba Free Press, 3 May 1930, page 24.

“Winnipeg building permits for four months nearing three million dollar mark,” Winnipeg Tribune, 3 May 1930, page 33.

“53 permits issued in week aggregate value of $77,800,” Winnipeg Tribune, 27 June 1931, page 6.

City of Winnipeg Building Permit 3847/1931 [St. John’s Curling Rink], City of Winnipeg Archives.

“Repairs to rink,” Manitoba Free Press, 14 November 1931, page 15.

“Building notes,” Winnipeg Tribune, 2 November 1935, page 5.

“New home near city pound for humane society,” Winnipeg Free Press, 9 November 1935, page 2.

“A. J. Bonnett, builder, dies,” Winnipeg Tribune, 3 March 1942, page 17.

“Frank Bonnett, early radio ‘ham’ dies at home,” Winnipeg Free Press, 15 January 1957, page 4.

Obituary [Catherine A. Bonnett], Winnipeg Tribune, 26 December 1959, page 27.

Obituary [Cecil G. Bonnett], Winnipeg Free Press, 11 December 1978, page 45.

Henderson’s Winnipeg and Brandon Directories, Henderson Directories Limited, Peel’s Prairie Provinces, University of Alberta Libraries.

Obituaries and burial transcriptions, Manitoba Genealogical Society.

We thank Rick Mutton and Jordan Makichuk for providing additional information used here.

This page was prepared by Gordon Goldsborough.

Page revised: 10 February 2025

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: 1975 | 1976 | 1977 | 1978 | 1979 | 1980 | 1981 | 1982 | 1983 | 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 | 2025 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!