Central St. Boniface in Winnipeg, Manitoba — Canada’s Prairie Region (North America)

Le Couvent des Soeurs Grises / Grey Nuns' Convent

Le Couvent des Soeurs Grises /<br>Grey Nuns' Convent Marker image. Click for full size.

Photographed By Cosmos Mariner, June 15, 2022

1. Le Couvent des Soeurs Grises /
Grey Nuns' Convent Marker

Inscription. Click to hear the inscription.

[Français] Erigée à la fin des années 1840, cette maison a servi de premier couvent aux Sœurs Grises qui y firent de l’enseignement et dispensèrent des soins aux malades, aux orphelins et aux vieillards. Première institution de genre dans l’Ouest canadien, ce bâtiment, fait de pièces de chêne blanc, a été agrandi ultérieurement et il constitue aujourd’hui un bel exemple du style de construction des débuts de la colonisation de la rivière Rouge.

[English] This convent, which housed the first group of Grey Nuns to come to the West, was constructed between 1845 and 1851. As a mission house it provided facilities for the Nuns’ various works of education and charity, which included caring for the aged and for orphans, treating the sick and instructing children. It was the first institution of this kind in the West. The convent was built of white oaken logs and subsequently repaired and enlarged to meet changing needs. It is an outstanding example of early Red River frame construction.

Erected by Commission des lieux et monuments historiques du Canada / Historic

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Sites and Monuments Board of Canada.

Topics and series. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: Architecture • Charity & Public Work • Churches & Religion • Education. In addition, it is included in the Canada, Historic Sites and Monuments Board series list. A significant historical year for this entry is 1845.

Location. 49° 53.264′ N, 97° 7.411′ W. Marker is in Winnipeg, Manitoba. It is in Central St. Boniface. Marker can be reached from Tache Avenue just north of Rue Despins, on the right when traveling north. Marker is located on the Saint-Boniface Museum / Grey Nuns' Convent National Historic Site grounds. Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: 494 Tache Avenue, Winnipeg MB R2H 2B2, Canada. Touch for directions.

Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within walking distance of this marker. Sister Marguerite d’Youville / Sœur Marguerite d’Youville (here, next to this marker); Les Soeurs Nolin / Nolin Sisters (a few steps from this marker); The Five Saint Boniface Cathedrals (about 120 meters away, measured in a direct line); Jean Baptiste La Vérendrye and Jean-Pierre Aulneau (about 180 meters away); Chief One Arrow (about 210 meters away); The Creation of Manitoba (approx. 0.4 kilometers away); Forks of the Red and Assiniboine (approx. 0.4 kilometers

Photographed By Cosmos Mariner, June 15, 2022

2. Le Couvent des Soeurs Grises /
Grey Nuns' Convent Marker

(looking south • rightmost of two markers at this location)

away); Pierre Gaultier de Varennes et de La Vérendrye (approx. 0.4 kilometers away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Winnipeg.

Regarding Le Couvent des Soeurs Grises / Grey Nuns' Convent. Canadian Register of Historic Places (1991/03/29). Also listed as Grey Nuns' Convent National Historic Site of Canada (1958/11/03). Also Manitoba Provincial Heritage Site No. 56. Also designated as a Winnipeg Landmark Heritage Structure (1995/02/28).

Related markers. Click here for a list of markers that are related to this marker.

Also see . . .
1. Grey Nuns' Convent National Historic Site of Canada.

Grey Nuns’ Convent National Historic Site of Canada is a gracious two-storey hipped roof structure showing influences of Hudson’s Bay Company construction techniques in its squared log construction and European classicism in its symmetrical nine-bay facade. Sited facing the Red River and downtown Winnipeg, it is an important element in the historic Roman Catholic ecclesiastical complex of St. Boniface. The building now serves as the Saint-Boniface Museum.

(Submitted on March 31, 2023, by Cosmos Mariner of Cape Canaveral, Florida.)

2. Le Musée de Saint-Boniface Museum

Le Couvent des Soeurs Grises / Grey Nuns' Convent image. Click for full size.

Photographed By Cosmos Mariner, June 15, 2022

3. Le Couvent des Soeurs Grises / Grey Nuns' Convent

(northwest elevation • Louis Riel millstones in foreground)

It is located in the oldest building in Winnipeg, a former convent run by the Grey Sisters. The former nunnery has been an orphanage, a school, a seniors' home, and was the first incarnation of the St. Boniface Hospital. The nuns moved into the house in December 1846, at which time only the exterior of the first floor and the floor of the second floor above the kitchen had been completed. Due to the extreme temperatures of the region, it was necessary to somehow insulate the room. The nuns used bison pelts hung from the ceiling to do this.

(Submitted on March 31, 2023, by Cosmos Mariner of Cape Canaveral, Florida.)

3. Grey Nuns' Convent.

The magnificent two-storey Red River frame building skillfully combined the rectangular symmetrical plan and hipped roof adopted by the Hudson's Bay Company with French Canadian design influences introduced by its designer, L'Abbé Louis François Laflèche. It is an outstanding example of early Red River frame construction and one of the oldest dwellings still in use in the Prairie Provinces.

(Submitted on March 31, 2023, by Cosmos Mariner of Cape Canaveral, Florida.)

Le Couvent des Soeurs Grises / Grey Nuns' Convent (<i>west/front elevation</i>) image. Click for full size.

Photographed By Cosmos Mariner, June 15, 2022

4. Le Couvent des Soeurs Grises / Grey Nuns' Convent (west/front elevation)

Credits. This page was last revised on March 31, 2023. It was originally submitted on March 29, 2023, by Cosmos Mariner of Cape Canaveral, Florida. This page has been viewed 85 times since then and 22 times this year. Photos: 1, 2, 3, 4. submitted on March 31, 2023, by Cosmos Mariner of Cape Canaveral, Florida.