Historic Sites of Manitoba: Canadian Bank of Commerce Building / Millennium Centre (389 Main Street, Winnipeg)

Link to:
Photos & Coordinates | Sources

The present structure at 389 Main Street is the third Bank of Commerce building to occupy the site. In 1893, on its arrival in Winnipeg, the bank leased space in the Bannatyne Block that once stood here and opened a branch under manager F. H. Mathewson. Six years later, the bank purchased then demolished the block and hired the Toronto architectural firm of Darling and Pearson, assisted by local architect Charles H. Wheeler, to design a replacement. Its first manager was John Aird, who later served in the bank’s senior management. By 1910, the building was no longer large enough so it was dismantled carefully and moved to Regina where it was re-erected.

Adjacent properties had been purchased quietly so a new, larger building could be erected at a cost of about $750,000. Constructed by the Lyall-Mitchell Company, the new bank opened officially in October 1912, with public banking space on the main floor and administrative offices on the second to fourth floors. The bank’s solicitors, Machray, Dennistoun, Locke and Crawley, were on the fifth floor, and a caretaker’s suite, restaurant, and washrooms were on the sixth floor. Safety deposit boxes were in the basement and mechanical equipment was in the subbasement.

A memorial tablet to the staff of the Winnipeg Branch of the Canadian Bank of Commerce who served in the First World War was unveiled by Governor General Sir Julian H. G. Byng of Vimy at a ceremony on 15 October 1923. The names of the 91 Winnipeg employees who served in the war are inscribed on the memorial with 17 of those identified as having been killed. The tablet was designed by Toronto sculptor W. S. Allward, who also designed the Vimy Memorial in France, and was built by the Winnipeg Marble and Tile Company. It is set in the wall of the building’s main entrance.

Relatively few renovations were made to the building through the years. In 1969, the bank relocated to the nearby Richardson Building and left this building vacant. Following public outcry, it was saved from demolition by the City of Winnipeg and, in 1979, became a municipally-designated historic site. In 2000, the building was donated by Marwest Management Canada Limited to the newly-formed 389 Main Street Heritage Corporation. With modest renovations supported by a donation from the W. H. & S. E. Loewen Foundation, the building was re-christened as the Millennium Centre. It now hosts weddings, banquets, and other events.

Managers

Period

Manager

1893-?

F. H. Mathewson

?-1899

?

1899-1908

John Aird (1855-1938)

1908-?

?

Photos & Coordinates

Canadian Bank of Commerce Building No. 2

Canadian Bank of Commerce Building No. 2 (c1910)
Source: Winnipeg Illustrated, Peels Prairie Provinces, University of Alberta

The former Canadian Bank of Commerce building, now the Millennium Centre

The former Canadian Bank of Commerce building, now the Millennium Centre (June 2014)
Source: Gordon Goldsborough

Millennium Centre

Millennium Centre (February 2021)
Source: George Penner

Entrance to the Millennium Centre

Entrance to the Millennium Centre (August 2024)
Source: Greg Petzold

Former management offices on the second floor of the building

Former management offices on the second floor of the building (May 2003)
Source: Gordon Goldsborough

Lighting above the grand glass dome

Lighting above the grand glass dome (May 2003)
Source: Gordon Goldsborough

The vaults

The vaults (May 2003)
Source: Gordon Goldsborough

Site Coordinates (lat/long): N49.89666, W97.13846
denoted by symbol on the map above

First World War Casualties

Name

Occupation

Service

Rank

Birth Date

Death Date

Lewis MacKenzie Bean
[Next of Kin]

Clerk

16th Battalion, Canadian Infantry

Private

29 December 1892

23 April 1915

Clarence Edward Buzzell

Bank Clerk

78th Battalion, Canadian Infantry

Lance Corporal

18 December 1889

24 December 1916

George Jacobs Cameron
[Next of Kin]

Bank Clerk

16th Battalion, Canadian Infantry

Private

18 February 1895

1 October 1918

William Henry Dore

Banking

107th Squadron, Royal Air Force

Captain

27 April 1892

9 August 1918

George William Fraser
[Next of Kin]

Bank Clerk

16th Battalion, Canadian Infantry

Sergeant

9 December 1892

13 June 1916

Stanley Hodge
[First Baptist, Stonewall]

Bank Manager

1st Canadian Mounted Rifles

Private

11 March 1897

14 September 1918

Gerald Edward Latimer
[Armoury, Brandon College, Next of Kin]

Bank Clerk

Princess Patricia’s Canadian Light Infantry

Private

9 September 1892

9 April 1917

St. George Otway Lloyd
[Grandview]

Bank Clerk

78th Battalion, Canadian Infantry

Sergeant

1 March 1893

19 February 1917

John Low
[Next of Kin]

Clerk

16th Battalion, Canadian Infantry

Private

3 May 1883

18 May 1915

Earle Carman MacCallum
[Next of Kin]

Bank Clerk

78th Battalion, Canadian Infantry

Lieutenant

30 July 1893

30 October 1917

Alexander Pearson MacMillan MC
[Next of Kin]

Bank Accountant

1st Canadian Mounted Rifles

Lieutenant

10 July 1889

26 August 1918

Haslett Morrison
[Next of Kin, Wesley College]

Clerk

61st Battalion, Canadian Machine Gun Corps

Major

27 July 1890

23 April 1918

Rae Brydon McCarthy
[Next of Kin]

Banker (Can. Bank of Commerce)

78th Battalion, Canadian Infantry

Lieutenant

6 April 1890

9 April 1917

Joseph Andrew Bright McClure
[Next of Kin]

Bank Commissionaire

27th Battalion, Canadian Infantry

Lieutenant

20 July 1877

21 August 1917

William Langston Ross

Bank Clerk

61st Battalion, Canadian Infantry

Private

26 February 1889

9 May 1920

George Baxby Syddall
[Next of Kin, St. Margarets]

Banker

Canadian Infantry & 65 Squadron, Royal Flying Corps

Captain

1 October 1887

4 January 1918

Harvey Fleming Wilson

Bank Clerk

The Royal Canadian Regiment

Private

10 June 1895

30 October 1917

See also:

Memorable Manitobans: Robert Wilson (1855-1919)

Memorable Manitobans: John Aird (1855-1938)

Manitoba Business: Lyall-Mitchell Company

Manitoba Business: Machray, Sharpe, and Company

Historic Sites of Manitoba: Municipally Designated Historic Sites

Sources:

“Baron Byng, of Vimy, unveils war memorials,” Winnipeg Tribune, 15 October 1923, pages 1, 3.

389 Main Street, The Canadian Bank of Commerce, Winnipeg Historical Buildings Committee, December 1980.

For the names of First World War casualities from Manitoba who do not appear on any physical monument in the province, see the Manitoba Historical Society War Memorial. If you know of a name that is omitted from this list, please contact the MHS War Memorial Researcher Darryl Toews (darryl@mhs.mb.ca).

Soldiers of the First World War - Canadian Expeditionary Force, Library and Archives Canada.

Canadian Virtual War Memorial, Veterans Affairs Canada.

Financial support for research reported on this page was provided by the Manitoba Heritage Grants Program (2015-2016).

We thank Terry Webber, George Penner, and Greg Petzold for providing additional information used here.

This page was prepared by Gordon Goldsborough and Darryl Toews.

Page revised: 7 September 2024

Historic Sites of Manitoba

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