Historic Sites of Manitoba: Canadian Fairbanks-Morse Company Building / Siloam Mission (300 Princess Street, Winnipeg)

This four-storey brick building at the southwest corner of Henry Avenue and Princess Street in Winnipeg was designed by Montreal-based architects Brown and Vallance and built in 1911 by contractor George Hughes Archibald for the machinery manufacturers of the Canadian Fairbanks-Morse Company. Measuring 117 feet by 97 feet, the building was constructed at a cost of about $100,000.

The main floor of the building contained a loading area along with a display area, while the second floor contained offices and the third and forth floors had storage space. The company originally manufactured weighing scales but later diversified into pumps, engines, windmills, coffee grinders, radios, farm tractors, feed mills, locomotives, and industrial supplies.

The Canadian Fairbanks-Morse Company occupied this building until 1950 when it moved to a new building on Garry Street. This building was bought and occupied by farm implement manufacturer Massey-Harris Company.

In 2005, the Christian humanitarian agency Siloam Mission took control of the building and, in March 2017, it became a municipally-designated historic site.

Canadian Fairbanks-Morse Company Building (1915) Source: Winnipeg Tribune, 25 September 1915, page 59 Siloam Mission Building (April 2017) Source: George Penner Siloam Mission Building (December 2022) Source: Jordan Makichuk Site Location (lat/long): N49.90449, W97.13794 denoted by symbol on the map above

See also:

Memorable Manitobans: George Hughes Archibald (1877-1959)

Manitoba Business: Massey-Harris Company Limited

Historic Sites of Manitoba: Municipally Designated Historic Sites

Sources:

City of Winnipeg Building Permit 833/1911, City of Winnipeg Archives.

“The Canadian Fairbanks-Morse Co., Limited,” Winnipeg Tribune, 25 September 1915, page 59.

Canadian Fairbanks-Morse Company Warehouse (300 Princess Street) by Murray Peterson, City of Winnipeg Historical Buildings and Resources Committee, June 2015.

“Siloam Mission warehouse granted heritage status,” CBC News, 7 March 2017.

Biographical Dictionary of Architects in Canada, 1800-1950 by Robert G. Hill, Toronto.

This page was prepared by Jordan Makichuk, Gordon Goldsborough, and George Penner.

Page revised: 19 February 2023

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