Saint Boniface, Manitoba
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Saint Boniface is an area of the city of Winnipeg, home to the Franco-Manitoban community. It features such landmarks as the Cathédrale de Saint Boniface (St. Boniface Cathedral), Boulevard Provencher, the Provencher Bridge, Esplanade Riel, St. Boniface Hospital, the Collège universitaire de Saint-Boniface and the Royal Canadian Mint. It covers the southeast part of the city and includes le Vieux Saint-Boniface (Old St. Boniface), Norwood, Windsor Park, Southdale, Southland Park, Royalwood, Sage Creek and Island Lakes, plus a large industrial area. The population is 45,600 (Statistics Canada Census 2001).
Community radio station CKXL (French) and Radio-Canada television station CBWFT (French) and radio station CKSB (French) are all located in St. Boniface.
Every February Le Festival du Voyageur takes place outdoors at Parc Whittier Park and Fort Gibraltar.
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[edit] History
Fur traders and European mercenaries hired by Lord Selkirk to protect his fledgling Red River Colony were among the area's first settlers. With the founding of a Roman Catholic mission in 1818, St Boniface began its role in Canadian religious, political and cultural history - as mother parish for many French settlements in Western Canada; as the birthplace of Louis Riel and fellow Métis who struggled to obtain favourable terms for Manitoba's entry into Confederation; and as a focus of resistance to controversial 1890 legislation to alter Manitoba's school system and abolish French as an official language in the province (see Manitoba Schools Question).
Early educational, cultural and social-service institutions were started by religious orders, including the Sisters of Charity of Montréal (Grey Nuns) who arrived in 1844. The Collège de Saint-Boniface (dating back to 1818), a founding college of University of Manitoba, and St Boniface General Hospital grew from these institutions.
The early economy was oriented to agriculture. Union Stockyards, developed 1912-13, became the largest livestock exchange in Canada and focal point for a meat-packing and -processing industry. By the early 1900s, numerous light and heavy industries were established. St Boniface was incorporated as a town 1883 and a city 1908. As one of the larger French communities outside Québec, it has often been a centre of struggles to preserve French language and identity within Manitoba.
[edit] Notable people from Saint Boniface
Saint Boniface is the birthplace of:
- Len Cariou - Broadway actor
- Butch Goring - professional hockey player
- George R. D. Goulet - best selling Métis author
- Bob Hunter - Greenpeace founder
- Earl Mindell - Writer & Nutritionist
- Louis Riel - Métis leader and Founder of Manitoba
- Gabrielle Roy - French-language author
- Lucille Starr - singer
- Beatrice Culleton Mosionier - author of April Raintree
[edit] Sports
St. Boniface is represented by the St. Boniface Riels hockey team which plays in the MMJHL
| Team | Founded | League | Arena | Championships |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| St. Boniface Riels | 1971 | MMJHL | Bertrand Arena | 5 |
[edit] External links
- Tourisme Riel
- Saint Boniface Heritage Centre
- History of St. Boniface Cathedral
- Festival de Voyageur
- St. Boniface Detailed Area Plan (1973) - (Warning: transcription incomplete)
[edit] References
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