Athlete, railwayman.
Born at Kildonan on 26 January 1873, brother of Magnus L. Flett, he was described as one of Winnipeg’s best all-around athletes, being proficient in many sports. He was especially noteworthy as a player with the Victoria Hockey Club, becoming the first person of Indigenous descent to win the Stanley Cup, in February 1896. He left Winnipeg in 1919 and moved to Toronto (Ontario). At the time of his death he was General Manager of the hotel, dining car, and Pullman departments of the Canadian National Railways, based at Montreal (Quebec). He died while golfing at the St. Charles Country Club on 30 June 1927 and was buried in the Old Kildonan Cemetery.
Death registration, Manitoba Vital Statistics.
“Many attend funeral of Roderick Flett,” newspaper clipping dated 5 July 1927. [Manitoba Legislative Library, Biographical Scrapbook B8]
“Noted athlete of early days here is dead,” Winnipeg Tribune, 2 July 1927, page 8.
We thank Naim Cardinal and Kerrin Asmundson for providing additional information used here.
This page was prepared by Gordon Goldsborough.
Page revised: 13 September 2026
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 SearchBrowse 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 | ZBrowse 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 | 2026
Send corrections and additions to this page
to the Memorable Manitobans Administrator at biographies@mhs.mb.caCriteria for Memorable Manitobans | Suggest a Memorable Manitoban | Firsts | Acknowledgements
Help us keep
history alive!
