26 Edmonton Street
May 25th, 2024 & May 26th, 2024Saturday: 11:00am - 5:00pmSunday: 11:00am - 5:00pm
26 Edmonton Street is not large but is garnished with ornate Victorian detail and retains its original floor plan. With a main floor area of 116 sq m (1,250 sq ft), numerous features of the house reflect its original owners and their contribution to our local history. Porches, entrance locations, stained glass and woodwork offer a glimpse into Manitoba’s past.
One of few remaining single family homes in Winnipeg’s City Centre, 26 Edmonton Street was custom built in 1902 for John and Susan Harris. John Walter Harris (1845-1926) was a civil engineer who left his Ontario birthplace, arriving at the Red River Settlement via steamboat on August 5, 1873. He was one of 1,869 founding residents when the settlement was incorporated as Winnipeg on November 8, 1873.
Harris traveled up and down the Red River in the 1870’s, surveying the townsites of Emerson, Bird’s Hill and Selkirk ahead of the arrival of the railway from Minnesota in 1877. Harris wore many hats in Winnipeg’s youth, first as City Assessor in 1879 and from 1882 onward as City Surveyor. During his long 36 year career as a bureaucrat his assessments and surveys guided Winnipeg’s feverish growth to a population of over 176,230 when he retired in 1916.