Designed by local architect Max Blankstein, this three-storey, stone-faced structure on Main Street in Winnipeg, measuring 19 feet by 84 feet, was built in 1913 by G. Martin for merchant Nathan Zimmerman and his descendants William and Louis. Their business on the main floor evolved gradually from a general and second-hand clothing store to a loan office and pawn shop. It was later a jewellery and diamond brokerage.
The two upper floors were intended originally as office space but was mostly used as residential suites, except for a period in the 1950s when some members of the family operated a law firm in the street-facing rooms of the second floor. The top two floors were connected by stairs and fire doors to the adjoining building, built in 1903, at 671-673 Main.
The Zimmermans moved out of the block in the early 1970s and it became the Lighthouse Mission, providing community services for area residents. It is a municipally-designated historic site.
Lighthouse Mission (April 2017)
Source: George Penner
Lighthouse Mission (January 2023)
Source: Jordan MakichukSite Coordinates (lat/long): N49.90331, W97.13499
denoted by symbol on the map above
See also:
Memorable Manitobans: Max Zev Blankstein (1874-1931)
Historic Sites of Manitoba: Municipally Designated Historic Sites
City of Winnipeg Building Permit 2401/1913, City of Winnipeg Archives.
Zimmerman Block, 669 Main Street, Winnipeg Historical Buildings Committee, March 1986.
Zimmerman Block, Winnipeg Architecture Foundation.
This page was prepared by Gordon Goldsborough, Nathan Kramer, George Penner, and Jordan Makichuk.
Page revised: 15 May 2023
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