Bankers Row, Main Street
(PAM, Winnipeg - Streets - 
Main 10906 1 N19677)

Bannatyne and Family
(PAM, Bannatyne,
  A.G.B. 4-N120624)

The Grain Exchange
(PAM, Winnipeg - Buildings - Businesses - Grain Exchange/Princess 2, 
N19674)

Princess Street
(PAM, Winnipeg
 - Streets - Princess 2
 N4826)

Stagehand, Pantages 
Theatre (PAM, Winnipeg -
 Theatres - Playhouse 12 - 
N4216)

Victoria Park
(PAM, N11900)

• Served as the original core of the City of Winnipeg
• Declared a National Historic Site on September 27, 1997by the federal Minister of Canadian Heritage, the Honourable Sheila Copps
• Covers a twenty city block area with approximately 150 heritage buildings
• Selected as one of a few urban areas to receive this distinction
• The Historic Winnipeg (HW) By-law defines the boundaries of the Exchange District and legally protects municipally designated structures within its boundaries.
• There are almost 80 municipally designated buildings in the Exchange District with a further 52 on the inventory, any of which may fit the criteria for municipal designation.
• Only one building (the former Great-West Life) within the Exchange District has been designated by the Province of Manitoba.
• Area buildings registered as National Historic Sites include:
  • The Pantages Theatre
  • The Royal/Union Bank Tower and Annex
  • The Confederation Building
  • Early Skyscrapers: Confederation Life Building, Bank of Hamilton, and Union Trust
  • The Walker Theatre (located just outside the boundary of the district)
• The 1919 Winnipeg General Strike is a federally commemorated event in the Exchange District at William and Main Street.

McDermot Street East of Main Street

Fringe Festival in Old Market Square

Other Canadian Historic Districts with National Historic Site Status

Other Canadian historic districts with National Historic Site status include streetscapes, former company towns, and vibrant urban areas. This short inventory of other sites demonstrates that the Exchange District is a unique and historically noteworthy area. Other districts of national significance include:

The Benefits of National Designation of the Exchange District

• While national designation of the Exchange District offers no legal protection of the built resources and cultural landscape, it is an honour that can be used as a marketing and conservation tool.
• When the news of the designation became public in the spring of 1998, international news agencies printed the story in newspapers in Grande Prairie, Alberta; Chicago, Illinois; and even as far away as Florida.
• National Historic Sites are commemorated by the Historic Sites and Monuments Board of Canada (HSMBC) by installation of a bronze plaque at the site. The Board has two styles of plaques, one for sites and another for districts.
• The plaque for the Exchange District National Historic Site contains a bilingual explanation of the national significance of the site, three archival photographs, and a map of the district. The following inscription is found on the plaque:

  This remarkable group of commercial buildings vividly illustrates Winnipeg’s transformation between 1878 and 1913 from a modest pioneer settlement to western Canada’s largest metropolitan centre. The district’s banks, warehouses, and early skyscrapers recall the city’s dominance in the fields of finance, manufacturing, wholesale distribution and the international grain trade. Designed by a number of well known architects, the buildings of the Exchange District reflect an approach to architecture that was innovative, functional and stylish. The First World War and the Great Depression contributed to the end of Winnipeg’s spectacular boom era, leaving the district virtually intact. Through the efforts of dedicated citizens since the 1970s, the Exchange District has been preserved as a distinctive legacy from a formative period in Canada’s economic development.

• In October 1999, the Historic Sites and Monuments Board of Canada hosted a plaque unveiling ceremony at the Pantages Theatre.

New National Historic Site Banners for the  Exchange District

Historic Sites and Monuments Board  Ceremony, Pantages Theatre in  October 1999

Exchange District Commemorative Posters

• The Exchange District Business Improvement Zone (BIZ) in co-operation with the City of Winnipeg, the Province of Manitoba, and Parks Canada produced a set of commemorative posters for the Exchange District National Historic Site.
• The poster set is a spliced reproduction of a 1912 panoramic photo showing Main Street and the west side of the Exchange District.
• It is available for purchase at several Winnipeg locations and the BIZ.
• Proceeds go toward the development and enhancement of programs in the District.
• Contact the BIZ at (204) 942-6716 or by email at info@exchangedistrict.org for further information.

The left side of the poster. (PAM, Winnipeg Views 1911 (1) N19604-N19610)

The right side of the poster. (PAM, Winnipeg Views 1911 (1) N19604-N19610)