20 October 2005
Former CP Rail Station Hosts Centennial Bash
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The Aboriginal Centre of Winnipeg - once the hub of travel - will
host the Centennial Celebration of the former CP Rail station today.
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Winnipeg - It was once the hub of travel in a then-fledgling Winnipeg but today
the former CP Rail station will board passage down memory lane.
Better known these days as the Aboriginal Centre of Winnipeg, the familiar structure at 181 Higgins Ave. will play host to the CP Rail
Station's Centennial Celebration today.
History buffs and train fanatics will want to check out the building's Beaux-Arts architecture and to reminisce about
days when the station was overrun with travellers making a new life for themselves out west, heading overseas to war or just taking a
day-trip to Lake Winnipeg.
Considered Grandest Station
Built in 1904 and officially opened in Many 1905, the terminal was CPR's fourth in Canada and was long considered the railway's
grandest station.
Changes in the railway sector and the loss of Winnipeg's position in western economy eventually caused a decline in use, and the
construction of the VIA Rail station on Main Street in 1978 virtually ended public use of the station.
Since taking ownership of the site in December 1992, Winnipeg's aboriginal community has taken great pains to preserve its
architectural features.
Most notably, the rotunda has been returned to its former glory - a feat that no doubt helped the Aboriginal Centre of Winnipeg Inc.
win Heritage Winnipeg's 1997 Architecture Conservation Award.
The rotunda's most recent upgrades include air conditioning, acoustics and a modern sound system which - combined with the
Aboriginal Centre's restaurant and catering service - make the area an ideal venue for community events.
Tomorrow's event features a performance by the Winnipeg Symphony Orchestra's Brass Quintet at 11:30 a.m. and a plaque unveiling at
1:30 p.m.
Doors open at 10:30 a.m., and admission is free.
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