Manitoba Business: Manitoba Power Commission / Manitoba Hydro-Electric Board / Winnipeg Hydro / Manitoba Hydro

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Manitoba Power Commission | Winnipeg Hydro-Electric System | Manitoba Hydro-Electric Board | Manitoba Hydro | Facilities | Sources

Several corporate entities have existed in Manitoba to develop and market electric power in the province.

Manitoba Power Commission

The Manitoba Power Commission was created in early 1919 with the objective of delivering inexpensive electrical power to rural Manitobans at the cost of production. It constructed transmission lines around the province and operated crude-oil-burning power plants at Minnedosa and Virden. Initially, there was a single commissioner but it expanded to three commissioners in 1931.

On 1 April 1961, the Commission was amalgamated with the Manitoba Hydro-Electric Board to form Manitoba Hydro, although the merged entity is still known legally as the Manitoba Hydro-Electric Board.

Chairmen

Period

Chairman

1919-1921

James Maurice Leamy (1878-1933)

1921-1924

Joseph Rochetti (1879-?)

1924-1927

Clair Addison Clendening (1885-1950)

1927-1932

Douglas Lauchlin McLean (1886-1964)

1932-1946

Herbert Howard Cottingham (1880-1960)

1946-1948

William David Fallis (1909-1974)

1948-1961

Robert Charles Smellie (1898-1975)

Commissioners

Commissioner

Period

John Leslie Bodie (1909-1997)

1953-1957

Joseph Cameron Donaldson (1891-1973)

1960-1961

Gerald Frederick Habing (1908-1984)

1948-1961

Charles Etienne Huot (1908-1985)

1959-1961

John Joseph Kelly (1898-1952)

1948-1949

Patrick Angus Kennedy (1880-1962)

1948-1959

John William Sanger (c1887-1966)

1931-1945

Robert Charles Smellie (1898-1975)

1948-1949

General Managers

Period

General Manager

1932-1946

Herbert Howard Cottingham (1880-1960)

1946-1961

William David Fallis (1909-1974)

Assistant General Managers

Period

Assistant General Manager

?-1948

John W. Tomlinson (?-1971)

1949-1961

Leslie Bartlett Mackay (1901-1974)

Comptrollers

Period

Comptroller

?-1942

C. A. Glover

1943-1947

?

1948-1949

John E. Hamlin

1950-1954

Wilfred Richard Corner (1922-?)

1955-1961

A. K. McKean

Secretaries

Period

Secretary

1930s-1949

Leslie Bartlett Mackay (1901-1974)

1949-1961

George Arthur Wrighton (1903-1971)

Chief Engineers

Period

Chief Engineer

?-1948

John W. Tomlinson (?-1971)

1949-1961

Thomas Latimore Woodhall (1908-1980)

Manitoba Hydro-Electric Board

The Manitoba Hydro-Electric Board was established by the provincial government in 1949 to coordinate the development and operation of all electrical generating facilities in the province. For its first two years, it was operated by civil servant Donald Stephens, with formal appointments starting in 1951. The Board acquired the electrical assets of the Winnipeg Electric Company in January 1953. Eight years later, it was amalgamated with the Manitoba Power Commission to form Manitoba Hydro, although the combined entity continued to be known legally as the Manitoba Hydro-Electric Board.

Chairmen and General Managers

Period

Chairman and General Manager

1951-1956

Donald MacGregor Stephens (1903-1968)

Presidents and General Managers

Period

President and General Manager

1957-1961

Donald MacGregor Stephens (1903-1968)

Chief Engineers

Period

Chief Engineer

1960-1961

Thomas Edwards Storey (1906-1978)

Winnipeg Hydro-Electric System / Winnipeg Hydro

The Winnipeg Hydro-Electric System was created by the City of Winnipeg in 1911 to operate the Pointe du Bois Generating Station on the Winnipeg River. Later renamed Winnipeg Hydro, it merged with Manitoba Hydro in September 2002.

General Managers

Period

General Manager

1911-1912

James G. Rossman (?-?)

1912-1944

John Girdlestone Glassco (1879-1948)

1944-1951

John William Sanger (c1887-1966)

1952-1955

Herbert Lee Briggs (1903-1992)

1955-1960

Thomas Edwards Storey (1906-1978)

1960-1969

Donald Charles Bryden (c1905-1996)

1969-1978

Robert Thompson Harland (1917-2004)

1978-1988

Kenneth Hallgrimur “Ken” Hallson (1923-2006)

1988-2000

R. James Linton

2000-2001

Robert R. Tillotson (Acting)
George S. Gabriel (Acting)

2001-2002

Ian H. McKay

Assistant General Managers

Period

Assistant General Manager

1912-1948

?

1948-1952

Herbert Lee Briggs (1903-1992)

1952-1955

Thomas Edwards Storey (1906-1978)

1955-?

?

?-1977

Max “Spiggy” Spigelman (1912-2008)

1977-2002

?

Chief Engineers

Period

Chief Engineer

1912-1922

Edwin Victor Caton (1884-1972)

1922-?

John William Sanger (c1887-1966)

?-1948

?

1948-1952

Thomas Edwards Storey (1906-1978)

1952-1956

Leonard Arthur “Len” Bateman (1919-2019)

Manitoba Hydro

Formed in 1961 by the amalgamation of the Manitoba Power Commission and the Manitoba Hydro-Electric Board, it merged with Winnipeg Hydro in September 2002.

Chairs

Period

Chair

Before 1961

See Manitoba Power Commission and Manitoba Hydro-Electric Board

1961-1967

Donald MacGregor Stephens (1903-1968)

1968-1970

William David Fallis (1909-1974)

1970-1972

David Cass-Beggs

1972-1978

Leonard Arthur “Len” Bateman (1919-2019)

1978-1979

Leonhard Martin Wedepohl (1933-2013) - Acting (Vice-Chairman)

1979-1980

Charles Edward “Charlie” Curtis (1931-2022) - Acting (Vice-Chairman)

1980-1981

Kris Kristjanson

1981-1984

Saul Mark Cherniack (1917-2018)

1984-1988

Marc Eliesen

1988-1990

Alan Brian Ransom (1940-2020)

1991-2000

John McCallum

2000-2012

Victor H. “Vic” Schroeder

2012-2016

William Fraser

2016-2018

Sandford Riley

2018-2022

Marina James

2022-2023

Edward Kennedy

2023-?

Ben Graham

General Managers

Period

General Manager

1961-1971

William David Fallis (1909-1974)

1971-1974

George Reid (c1913-1983)

Presidents / Chief Executive Officers

Period

President / Chief Executive Officer

1974-1978

Leonard Arthur “Len” Bateman (1919-2019)

1978-1979

?

1980-1982

Laurie D. Blachford (1926-2022)

1983-1986

J. Arnason

1986-1990

G. H. Beatty

1990-2012

Robert Bryan “Bob” Brennan (?-2021)

2012-2015

Scott Thomson

2015-2019

Kelvin Shepherd

2019-2024

Jay Grewal

2024-?

Hal Turner - Acting

Secretaries

Period

Secretary

1961-?

John Francis Funnell (1925-2021)

Facilities

Hydro-Electric Generating Stations

Generating Station

River

Generators

Capacity (MW)

Builder

Construction Start

Construction Completed

Status

Grand Rapids

Saskatchewan

4

479

Manitoba Hydro-Electric Board / Manitoba Hydro

1960

1965

Operational

Great Falls

Winnipeg

6

129

Winnipeg Electric Railway Company

1914

1928

Operational

Jenpeg

Nelson

6

125

Manitoba Hydro

1972

1979

Operational

Kelsey

Nelson

7

286

Manitoba Hydro-Electric Board

1958

1961

Operational

Kettle

Nelson

12

1,220

Manitoba Hydro

1968

1974

Operational

Keeyask

Nelson

7

695

Keeyask Hydropower Limited Partnership

2014

2021

Operational

Laurie River

Laurie

3

10

Sherritt Gordon Mines

1952 (No. 1),
1958 (No. 2)

1952 (No. 1),
1958 (No. 2)

Operational

Limestone

Nelson

10

1,350

Manitoba Hydro

1985

1990

Operational

Long Spruce

Nelson

10

980

Manitoba Hydro

1973

1979

Operational

McArthur Falls

Winnipeg

8

56

Manitoba Hydro-Electric Board

1952

1955

Operational

Pinawa

Winnipeg

9

22

Winnipeg Electric Railway Company

1903

1906

Decommissioned

Pine Falls

Winnipeg

6

84

Manitoba Hydro-Electric Board

1949

1951

Operational

Pointe du Bois

Winnipeg

16

75

Winnipeg Hydro Electric System

1909

1926

Operational

Seven Sisters

Winnipeg

6

165

Winnipeg Electric Company

1929

1931 (phase 1),
1952 (phase 2)

Operational

Slave Falls

Winnipeg

8

68

Winnipeg Hydro Electric System

1930

1948

Operational

Wuskwatim

Burntwood

3

214

Manitoba Hydro

2006

2012

Operational

Converter Stations

Converter Station

Construction Start

Completed

Dorsey

1968

1971

Henday

1973

1978

Keewatinohk

2012

2018

Radisson

1967

1971

Thermal Plants

Thermal Plant

Capacity (MW)

Completed

Brandon

327

1958

Selkirk

125

1960

See also:

History of the Electrical Industry in Manitoba by David S. G. Ross
MHS Transactions, Series 3, 1963-64 Season

Historic Sites of Manitoba: Grand Rapids Fish Hatchery (McKay Avenue, Grand Rapids)

Historic Sites of Manitoba: Manitoba Power Commission War Memorial (820 Taylor Avenue, Winnipeg)

Historic Sites of Manitoba: Manitoba Power Commission Building (Minnedosa)

Historic Sites of Manitoba: Steele Block / Metropolitan Store (360 Portage Avenue, Winnipeg)

Historic Sites of Manitoba: Winnipeg Hydro War Memorial (Winnipeg)

Historic Sites of Manitoba: Winnipeg Hydro Fountain (Memorial Park, Winnipeg)

Historic Sites of Manitoba: Manitoba Power Commission Building (1075 Portage Avenue, Winnipeg)

Historic Sites of Manitoba: Manitoba Hydro-Electric Board Building / Manitoba Hydro Building (650 Harrow Street, Winnipeg)

Manitoba Business: Winnipeg Electric Railway Company / Winnipeg Electric Company

Events in Manitoba History: Rural Electrification

Powering the Province: Sixty Years of Manitoba Hydro by Manitoba Hydro, 2011.

The History of Electric Power in Manitoba,” Manitoba Hydro.

Sources:

“Rossman’s resignation accepted by council,” Winnipeg Tribune, 30 January 1912, page 5.

“Shift in Hydro dept. approved by committee,” Winnipeg Tribune, 26 August 1922, page 13.

“M’Lean resigns post as Chairman of Power Board,” Winnipeg Free Press, 16 December 1932, page 5.

“Cottingham quits Power Commission,” Winnipeg Tribune, 31 October 1946, page 1.

“R. C. Smellie heads Power Commission,” Winnipeg Free Press, 11 February 1948, page 3.

“Illness forces Fallis to resign,” Winnipeg Free Press, 18 October 1971, page 46.

Death registration [George Arthur Wrighton], British Columbia Vital Statistics.

Obituary [George Arthur Wrighton], Winnipeg Free Press, 30 October 1971, page 48.

“Top Hydro post goes to official of Brascan,” Winnipeg Free Press, 22 January 1980, page 1.

Generating Stations, Manitoba Hydro.

Converter Stations, Manitoba Hydro.

Winnipeg Hydro Reflections: 1911 to 2002 by Winnipeg Hydro, 2002.

Regional Cumulative Effects Assessment for Hydroelectric Developments on the Churchill, Burntwood and Nelson River Systems: Integrated Summary Report, Manitoba Hydro, 2017, page 152.

We thank Nathan Kramer and Bruce Owen (Manitoba Hydro) for providing additional information used here.

This page was prepared by Gordon Goldsborough.

Page revised: 13 February 2024