Historic Sites of Manitoba: White Horse Monument (RM of St. Francois Xavier)

This statue beside the Trans-Canada Highway in the Rural Municipality of St. Francois Xavier, created by Winnipeg sculptor George Barone, commemorates an Indigenous legend that is described in the article below. It was erected by the Manitoba Tourist Association, with financial support of the White Horse Distillers Limited of Glasgow, Scotland and unveiled on 10 September 1966.

Nearby are three plaques, erected in 1966 by the Historic Sites Advisory Board of Manitoba, that provide information on the Fort Ellice Trail, White Horse Plain, and the Assiniboine River. The Fort Ellice Trail, also known as the Carlton Trail or Saskatchewan Trail or Edmonton Trail, led across the western plans from Upper Fort Garry to Fort Edmonton (in what is now Alberta). A distance of more than 900 miles (1500 kilometers), the route was used by First Nations, fur traders, explorers, missionaries, surveyors, and settlers.

The Assiniboine River, chief tributary of the Red River which it joins in the City of Winnipeg, takes its name from the Assiniboine Indians through whose hunting grounds it flowed. The river rises in the province of Saskatchewan and is approximately 600 miles (1000 kilometers) in length. A number of trading posts were established along its banks by the North West Company, XY Company, and Hudson’s Bay Company. On its waters plied canoes, York boats, and steamboats. The first post along its banks was built in 1738 by La Verendrye who called it the St. Charles River.

White Horse monument (March 2010) Source: Gordon Goldsborough White Horse monument (March 2022) Source: Rose Kuzina Historic plaques near the White Horse monument (August 2013) Source: Gordon Goldsborough Site Coordinates (lat/long): N49.88848, W97.50588 denoted by symbol on the map above

See also:

Memorable Manitobans: Giorgio “George” Barone (1916-1992)

The Legend of the White Horse Plain by Margaret Arnett MacLeod
Manitoba Pageant, Volume 3, Number 2, January 1958

Historic Sites of Manitoba: Fort Ellice (RM of Ellice-Archie)

Historic Sites of Manitoba: Fort Ellice Cemetery (RM of Ellice-Archie)

Historic Sites of Manitoba: Fort Ellice Trail Marker (Lions River Bend Park, Neepawa)

Historic Sites of Manitoba: Fort Ellice Trail Marker (Birtle, Municipality of Prairie View)

Historic Sites of Manitoba: Fort Ellice Trail Marker (RM of Rosedale)

Historic Sites of Manitoba: Fort Ellice Trail Marker (RM of Wallace-Woodworth)

Historic Sites of Manitoba: Marshall-Chambers Park Monument (RM of Yellowhead)

Historic Sites of Manitoba: Glacial Lake Agassiz Plaque (Arden, Municipality of Glenella-Lansdowne)

Historic Sites of Manitoba: Tanner’s Crossing (Minnedosa)

Historic Sites of Manitoba: Third Crossing Monument (Gladstone)

Historic Sites of Manitoba: White Horse Monument (RM of St. Francois Xavier)

Carlton Trail - First Western Highway by Frank Hall
Manitoba Pageant, Volume 14, Number 3, Spring 1969.

Sources:

“New medium tops all says Winnipeg artist,” Winnipeg Free Press, 8 July 1966, page 10.

We thank Rose Kuzina for providing additional information used here.

This page was prepared by Gordon Goldsborough.

Page revised: 29 March 2022

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