Memorable Manitobans: Edward Parkinson (1878-1953)

Architect.

Born at Halifax, England in December 1878, he trained as an architect there before coming to Canada in 1910. During the First World War, he served in Egypt for five years with the Mediterranean Expeditionary Force. Returning to Winnipeg, he worked as an assistant in various architectural offices before beginning his own practice sometime before 1926.

He formed a partnership with James H. Halley in January 1927 and advertised that the new studio was taking over the practice of John Danley Atchison after he moved to California. Parkinson later worked with Arthur E. Cubbidge. He served as President of the Manitoba Association of Architects (1929). From 1938 to 1948, he was resident architect for the federal government in Winnipeg, overseeing the construction of all federal buildings in Manitoba. He retired in 1948. He was a member of the Masons (Norwood Lodge No. 119).

He died at his Winnipeg home on 14 June 1953 and was buried in the Elmwood Cemetery.

Some of his architectural works in Manitoba included:

Building	Location	Year	Status
St. Joseph’s Hospital (expansion)	421 Pritchard Avenue, Winnipeg	1926
Crescent Garage and Auto Sales Building	791 Corydon Avenue, Winnipeg	1927-1928
Union Stockyards Office Building (expansion)	Marion Street, St. Boniface	1928	Demolished (?)
J. Gordon Fraser House	206 Handsart Boulevard, Winnipeg	1928
St. Philip’s Anglican Church (expansion)	240 Taché Avenue, Norwood	1928
Roman Catholic Church	St. Norbert	1929
Modern Dairy Building	738 St. Joseph Street, St. Boniface	1929
Rossmore Apartments	80 Roslyn Road, Winnipeg	1929
Bowyer House	12 West Gate, Winnipeg	1929-1930
St. Paul’s High School & College (expansion)	Ellice Avenue, Winnipeg	1932	Demolished (1964)

Sources:

1911 Canada census, Automated Genealogy.

“Architect, veteran Edward Parkinson dies at age 75,” Winnipeg Free Press, 16 June 1953, page 10.

Obituaries and burial transcriptions, Manitoba Genealogical Society.

We thank Jordan Makichuk for providing additional information used here.

This page was prepared by Robert Hill and Gordon Goldsborough.

Page revised: 14 October 2023

Memorable Manitobans This is a collection of noteworthy Manitobans from the past, compiled by the Manitoba Historical Society. We acknowledge that the collection contains both reputable and disreputable people. All are worth remembering as a lesson to future generations. Search the collection by word or phrase, name, place, occupation or other text: Custom Search Browse surnames beginning with: A | B | C | D | E | F | G | H | I | J | K | L | M | N | O | P | Q | R | S | T | U | V | W | Y | Z Browse deaths occurring in: 1980 | 1981 | 1982 | 1983 | 1984 | 1985 | 1986 | 1987 | 1988 | 1989 | 1990 | 1991 | 1992 | 1993 | 1994 | 1995 | 1996 | 1997 | 1998 | 1999 | 2000 | 2001 | 2002 | 2003 | 2004 | 2005 | 2006 | 2007 | 2008 | 2009 | 2010 | 2011 | 2012 | 2013 | 2014 | 2015 | 2016 | 2017 | 2018 | 2019 | 2020 | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 Send corrections and additions to this page to the Memorable Manitobans Administrator at biographies@mhs.mb.ca Criteria for Memorable Manitobans | Suggest a Memorable Manitoban | Firsts | Acknowledgements Help us keep history alive!