Memorable Manitobans: Walter Millar (1856-1945)

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Walter Millar
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Merchant.

Born at Lachute, Quebec on 4 July 1856, he apprenticed in the hardware business there before coming to Manitoba in 1878 and establishing at Portage la Prairie what was believed to be the first hardware store west of Winnipeg, bringing his stock by way of a scow on the Assiniboine River. During his long residence in Portage la Prairie, he served on the city council and was a Life Member of the Board of Governors for the Portage General Hospital.

On 3 June 1896, he married Christina Ellen Campbell (1869-1966) at Winnipeg. They had seven children: Elizabeth Walker Millar (1897-1998), Campbell Millar (1899-1976), Walter Millar (1901-?), Margaret Ellen Millar (1903-1983), Anna Corina Millar (1905-?), Gavin Murray Millar (1908-1992), and Claire Isabel Millar (1911-1996, wife of J. Hassard). He was a member of the AF & AM (Assiniboine Lodge No. 7) and First Presbyterian Church, and was an avid curler, participating in bonspiels in Canada and the US. He retired from business in 1932 and moved to Winnipeg.

He died at his Winnipeg home, 94 Middle Gate, on 26 December 1945 and was buried in the Kildonan Cemetery.

Sources:

Marriage registration, Manitoba Vital Statistics.

1901 and 1911 Canada censuses, Automated Genealogy.

“Walter Millar dies; pioneer merchant,” Winnipeg Free Press, 28 December 1945. [Manitoba Legislative Library, Biographical Scrapbook B9]

Obituaries and burial transcriptions, Manitoba Genealogical Society.

We thank Diane Eyford for providing additional information used here.

This page was prepared by Gordon Goldsborough.

Page revised: 7 September 2022

Memorable Manitobans

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.

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