Elm Park, Winnipeg

Elm Park is a neighbourhood in the city of Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada. It is located in the northern section of the district of St. Vital, and is bounded by the Red River on the north, St. Mary's Road on the east, Fermor Avenue on the south, and Dunkirk Drive on the west. As of the 2001 census, Elm Park had a population of 1,745. [cite web |url=http://www.winnipeg.ca/census/2001/Community%20Areas/St.%20Vital%20Neighbourhood%20Cluster/Neighbourhoods/St.%20Vital%20North/St.%20Vital%20North%20Neighbourhoods/Elm%20Park/Elm%20Park%20.pdf |title=ELM PARK |accessdate=2008-07-31 |work=2001 CENSUS DATA |publisher=City of Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada, web site |date= ]

History

The neighbourhoods of Elm Park and Kingston Crescent (located to the west of Dunkirk Drive) were originally a park founded by Albert William Austin's Winnipeg Street Railway Company in 1890. The trolley company had recently extended a line to just north of the Red River along what is now Osborne Street; by founding Elm Park directly across the river from the end of the trolley line, Austin hoped to increase off-peak and weekend use of the line. [cite web |url=http://cec.chebucto.org/ClosPark/Elm-Park.html |title=Elm Park information |accessdate=2008-07-31 |work=Closed Canadian Parks |publisher=Coaster Enthusiasts of Canada |date= ] The trolley company built a pontoon bridge for foot traffic, and Elm Park soon became a popular summertime destination for Winnipeg residents.

The popularity of Elm Park waned in the 1910s. It closed in approximately 1912 when the pontoon bridge was replaced by a steel truss bridge. Eventually the lands to the east of Dunkirk Drive were bought by the City of St. Vital; the new neighbourhood was named Elm Park after the former park. [cite web |url=http://www.seniors.cimnet.ca/cim/19C99_51T3141T50T3124T52T3788.dhtm |title=St Vital's Phenomenal Development Reviewed |accessdate=2008-07-31 |author=H.G.W. |work=Volume 7, No. 1 |publisher=St. Vital Lance |date=1932-01-28] Although most of the land in the east of the new neighbourhood was converted into single-family housing (with some apartment buildings along St. Mary's Road), most of the land in the southwest corner was converted into the home of the Winnipeg Canoe Club, eventually becoming a private golf course. [cite web |url=http://maps.google.ca/maps?q=elm+park,+winnipeg&ie=UTF8&ll=49.857768,-97.117553&spn=0.011869,0.038624&z=15&iwloc=addr |title=Elm Park Rd Winnipeg, MB |accessdate=2008-07-31 |work=Google Maps |publisher=Google |date= ] There are also three small public parks remaining of what was once Elm Park - Dean Finlay Park on the corner of Sunset Boulevard and Killarney Street, Carey Park on Elm Park Road, and St. Vital Memorial Park on Fermor Avenue. [Citation
title = Sherlock's Map of Winnipeg and Surrounding Areas.
volume = Map 25
isbn = 978-1-895229-67-7] Many of the older oak, ash, elm, and cottonwood trees were retained during development and line the streets of the current subdivision.

Elm Park is the home of Glenlawn Collegiate, Windsor School, and St. Mark's Anglican Church. It is in the federal riding of Saint Boniface and the provincial riding of St. Vital.

References