Historic Sites of Manitoba: West Clements Block / Bijou Theatre (494 Main Street, Winnipeg)

A plaque at this site on the west side of Main Street in Winnipeg was erected to commemorate the West Clement Block that once stood near here.

In 1884, John Rickard Clements commissioned architect brothers Charles Arnold Barber and Earle William Barber to design a curving three-storey red brick building along this bend in Main Street. Another pair of architect brothers Alexander D. Melville and William N. Melville added a Vaudeville theatre, the Bijou, to the rear of the building facing Albert Street in 1904 for John Albert Schuberg and Frederick Burrows.

The theatre closed in 1956 and the building was destroyed by fire on 4 April 1979.

West Clements Block / Bijou Theatre commemorative plaque (April 2022) Source: Gordon Goldsborough Site Coordinates (lat/long): N49.89863, W97.13954 denoted by symbol on the map above

See also:

Memorable Manitobans: John Rickard Clements (1838-1926)

Memorable Manitobans: Charles Arnold Barber (1848-1915)

Memorable Manitobans: Earle William Barber (1855-1915)

Memorable Manitobans: Alexander D. Melville (1873-1949)

Memorable Manitobans: William N. Melville (1876-?)

Memorable Manitobans: John Albert “Johnny Nash” Schuberg (1875-1953)

Historic Sites of Manitoba: Winnipeg Court House (494 Main Street, Winnipeg)

Sources:

“Six city businesses gutted by fires,” Winnipeg Free Press, 5 April 1979, page 1.

“Artifact search fruitless,” Winnipeg Free Press, 23 May 1979, page 5.

This page was prepared by Gordon Goldsborough.

Page revised: 23 April 2022

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