In many parts of the world, a house dating from the late nineteenth century would be nothing special. Many cities and towns in Europe have buildings going back much further than that, and even ordinary people’s homes are often much older. However, in the Canadian city of Winnipeg, Manitoba, a large brick house near downtown is special for two reasons: besides being a good example of late Victorian architecture, it also has the distinction of being the former home of Sir Hugh John Macdonald, a Manitoba politician who for a short time served as the premier of the province.
The History of Sir Hugh John Macdonald and Dalnavert
As the Manitoba government’s web page on provincial heritage sites states, Dalnavert was built in 1895 for Sir Hugh John Macdonald, son of Canada’s first prime minister, member of Parliament, member of the Legislative Assembly in Manitoba, police magistrate, lawyer, and briefly premier of the province of Manitoba. Over the years, the house was the site of many parties and political events. Dalnavert was built in the Queen Anne style by architect Charles H. Wheeler and was, at the time, representative of the style of building common in wealthy neighborhoods. The name “Dalnavert” was a reminder of the Macdonald family’s origins, as the former premier’s maternal grandmother had been born in a town of that name in Scotland.
Dalnavert House stayed in the Macdonald family until after Sir Hugh John’s death in 1929, as the City of Winnipeg’s Historical Building Committee’s report on the house indicates. At the time, the area had large and stately homes, but as Winnipeg’s population grew, many of these houses were converted into rooming houses or torn down to make way for apartment buildings. Dalnavert almost came to the same end when a developer wanted to demolish the house down and build an apartment block. Instead, the Manitoba Historical Society bought the building and restored it to its 1895 appearance, opening it as a museum in 1974.
Dalnavert House as a National Historic Site
Since its restoration, Dalnavert, also called Sir Hugh John Macdonald House, has drawn in visitors of many ages and backgrounds. As the Manitoba Historical Society’s Dalnavert web page states, the house is now an official National Historic Site of Canada with a mandate of encouraging an understanding and appreciation of the late Victorian era in Winnipeg’s history. Guided tours and special events highlight the building’s history and give both young and old the chance to experience something of life as it might have been a century ago. The Visitor’s Centre, built in 2005, also has many interesting features, having been built partly from recycled materials with special energy- and water-saving features. The house itself, however, looks much like it must have during the days when the Macdonald family lived there.
Dalnavert is no longer the stately home it once was, but visitors can still go to experience life as it once was a century ago.
Sources:
City of Winnipeg. "61 Carlton Street."
Government of Manitoba. "Manitoba Provincial Heritage Site No. 29."
Manitoba Historical Society. "Dalnavert Museum & Visitors' Centre."
Susan Huebert - My name is Susan Huebert, and I'm a writer and editor from Winnipeg, Manitoba. I've always enjoyed words, and I graduated with a Bachelor ...
