Winnipeg - Postcards of Stations

 

There was never a Union Station in Winnipeg - the CP and CN were always separate!

... a decade or so ago, that's how an expert stranger from The Internet set me straight.

He was both right and wrong at the same time, I think.

There are blog posts which take weeks to research or prepare ... to the point that they cause physical pain from repetitive strain. And there are lazy posts where one just shows a few postcards. 

... As one ages, one develops the wisdom to do more and more lazy posts where the artifacts are allowed to speak for themselves. Finally, without paying for a 'large' website, one can now have the satisfaction of posting the highest resolution image that anyone would ever want to see ... or to save for future reference or sharing.

Contributing to the overall body of historical resources which are available to all is still a rewarding pastime. As we all well know, things on the internet probably will be there for a long, long time.

Recently, I was excited to discover two image 'artifacts' on Eric's website regarding where the Canadian Northern Railway station in Portage la Prairie had been located. I've had a photo of the station with a newly outshopped steam locomotive for years. However, this location trivia was sort of my elusive Holy Grail - I could never, ever find the answer anywhere. Some even questioned the idea that Portage had 'other' stations beyond the two buildings which still exist in 2022.

Hopefully, images like these will someday provide a similar answer to someone with a long-standing curiosity about an aspect of historical trivia. 

No publisher's identification. Undated, unused.

Chas. A Meyers & Co. Undated, unused.

Advance Culture and Post Card Depot, 537 Main Street, Winnipeg. Mailed to Youngstown, Ohio in 1906. 

The old map below shows the general location of railway facilities.

Count up all the different railway companies if you want.

Blue lines represent streetcar routes.

from: Government of Canada Atlas, 1915.

Northern Photo Services. Undated, unused.

Postcard caption: "Union Station situated on Main Street just south of Portage and Main in Winnipeg."

Goldin & Co, Winnipeg from CNR photo. Mailed to Hamilton, Ontario, July 1960.

Above: The station building can be seen beyond the trainsheds and under the postmark stain.

Valentine Edy Company, Winnipeg. Unused, undated. Printed USA.

Valentine & Sons United Publishing, Toronto and Winnipeg. Undated, unused. Printed: USA. (card published circa 1912)

Valentine & Sons Publishing, Montreal, Toronto, Winnipeg. Printed: Great Britain. (card published circa 1913)

Notice the Canadian Northern style (the style later adopted by Canadian National) number plate on the 1125.

Thank you to Jim Christie for sending along 

this excellent contemporary engineering and construction record 

for the Winnipeg Union Station.

Winnipeg's New Union Passenger Depot, 1910