Manitoba Communities: St. Boniface (Unincorporated City)Link to:
Population | Mayors / Reeves | Memorable Manitobans | Historic Sites | History Books | Maps | Contact Information | Sources
Home to western Canada’s largest French-speaking community, this municipality was named for Roman Catholic missionary St. Boniface (c675-754). In 1903, the southern-most portion was carved off to form the Rural Municipality of St. Vital and, in May 1908, the remainder became the City of St. Boniface. At that time, the title of its chief executive officer, which had heretofore been Reeve, changed to Mayor.
Present Status
City of Winnipeg (1 January 1972)
Incorporation History
Rural Municipality of St. Boniface (1880)
Town of St. Boniface (1883)
City of St. Boniface (May 1908)
Amalgamation of Assiniboia, Brooklands, Charleswood, East Kildonan, Fort Garry, North Kildonan, Old Kildonan, St. Boniface, St. James, St. Vital, Transcona, Tuxedo, West Kildonan, and Winnipeg (1 January 1972)Land Area (square km)
?
Year
Total
1871
817
1881
1283
1891
1553
1901
2019
1906
5119
1911
7483
1916
11021
1921
12821
1926
14187
1931
16305
1936
16275
1941
18157
1946
21613
1951
26342
1956
28851
1961
37600
1966
43214
1971
46714
Councillor
Term(s)
Georges A. Adie
1937-1942, 1946-1947
J. P. O. Allaire
1887, 1889
William R. Appleby
1956-1957, 1958-1959
Joseph Arpin
1951-1952
James E. Bailey (1873-1946)
1908-1910, 1912
G. H. Barefoot
1938-1940
M. C. F. Beaudry
1886
J. A. Beaupre
1914-1918
John Bedard
1888-1892
Hormisdas Beliveau (1860-1938)
1890
Thomas Berry (1859-1933)
1905-1906, 1911
Paul-Emile Berube
1929-1931
Louis Napoleon Bétournay (1863-1919)
1894-1896
F. X. Bissette
1883, 1885
Joseph Alfred Fereol Bleau (1856-1923)
1887, 1896-1901
Henri Boisselle
1949-1957
Gedeon Bordeau
1887-1888
Joseph Buron
1891-1892
R. Camirant Sr.
1882
Daniel Carriere
1880-1882
Sam Carson
1922-1929
Thomas Cassin
1886
Charbonneau
1885
Felix Chenier
1894-1895
G. Cinq-Mars
1903
V. Cloutier
1885-1886
Louis J. Collin
1902-1903, 1906-1909
Gedeon Couture
1906
Georges Couture
1881, 1883, 1903-1905
Jean Couture
1901-1902
Pierre Couture Jr.
1897, 1903-1905
Joseph Arthur Cusson (1873-1948)
1893-1894, 1903-1904, 1906-1921
Joseph Ernest Cyr (1854-1929)
1883
J. Dagg
1910-1911
Jean J. Daoust
1919-1923
Jules Decaigny
1956-1957
Alexis F. Degagne
1882
J. B. Demetrioff
1952-1955
H. D'Eschambault
1928, 1932-1934
P. D'Eschambault
1891-1892
1951-1954
H. F. Despars
1887, 1891
John R. Donnelly
1920-1921
A. J. Doucet
1923-1927, 1929-1931
Francis Robert “Frank” Dowse (1876-1948)
1922-1923
Dubor
1883
Eugene Dubuc
1888
J. T. Dumouchel
1905-1906
Rene Dussault
1952-1956
Georges Fortin
1889
S. Gaudour
1893-1895
John Gault
1917-1920, 1933-1945
Ernest Gauthier
1889
Antoine Gaspard Gauvin (1860-1928)
1888, 1893-1905, 1907-1922, 1924-1928
Adjutor Gauvreau
1880-1881
Elie Genthon
1890
Prosper Gevaert
1922-1925
Francois Gingras
1880, 1883
Joseph-Philippe Guay (1915-2001)
1956-1958
Edouard Guilbault
1912-1916
Georges Albert Guilbault (1918-1991)
1955-1958
E. A. Hansford
1932-1945
Joseph Hearn
1926-1929
Adelard Hebert
1899-1900
Felix Hebert
1894
Jean-Baptiste Theobald Hebert (1894-1972)
1921-1928, 1933-1936, 1942-1950
Bernard Holden
1923-1924
W. F. Houde
1889
John Power Howden (1879-1959)
1907-1908, 1912
R. A. Hughes
1946-1951
John H. Irwin
1933-1936
Stanilas M. Jean
1906-1911
Francois Jean
1884, 1898-1999, 1901-1904
David Joyal
1881
Joseph Joyal
1887-1888, 1890
W. Kenny
1911-1914, 1916-1919
Dr. F. Lachance
1910-1911
Dr. J. H. O. Lambert
1893
M. L. Lamontagne
1891-1893, 1895-1902
J. A. W. Lane
1912-1913
L. Langlement
1919
J. T. Latter
1910
Jean Baptiste Lauzon (1858-1944)
1887, 1889-1890, 1892-1893, 1896-1897
F. X. Lavoie
1920
J. Isaie Lavoie
1893-1896, 1900-1902
W. H. Leck
1915-1922
Joseph Lecomte
1883, 1887-1888, 1891-1892
Louis Leger
1948-1953
Walter A. Leslie
1927-1937, 1941-1948
L. J. A. Leveque
1881, 1883-1886
Louis Levreault
1885-1886, 1888
E. R. Lloyd
1893
F. E. Louder
1894-1895
Cleophas Marcoux
1886, 1904-1905
Edward Marcoux
1885
Joseph Alderic Marion (1864-1954)
1907-1922
Paul Marion
1937-1952
Roger Marion (1846-1920)
1880-1882, 1887
Joseph Mathieu
1932-1937
Daniel McAnnany
1891-1893, 1896, 1898
M. McDermott
1883-1884
Arthur Mitchell McFadyen (1891-1941)
1923-1926
Donald Charles McFee (1866-1947)
1913-1914
John Wilfred “Jack” McGurran (1916-1991)
1955-1958
Peter McKall
1958-1959
A. W. McKenzie
1920-1921
R. H. Metcalfe
1904-1907
John Milne
1949-1950
C. A. L. Murchison
1927-1936
Edmond Nadeau
1880
Samuel A. Nault
1935-1937
William Ormiston
1947-1952
J. A. A. Pambrun
1938-1950
David D. Parent
1958-1959
Romeo Pelletier
1927-1931, 1938-1941
Joseph Pelissier
1885-1886
T. Pelletier
1888-1890, 1893-1895, 1897-1918
Nicolas Pirotton (1882-1943)
1930-1943
L. A. Prud’homme
1882
Jules J. Pynoo
1942, 1957-1958
Maxime Rocan (1841-1912)
1892
Alan D. Ross
1943-1947
Georges Roy
1880
Joseph Côme Séraphin Royal (1858-1882)
1882
Jean A. Schimnowski
1953-1958
Joseph-Azarie Senecal (1841-1917)
1897-1900
Joseph Noe Senez
1884
Glad. P. Shearer
1952-1955
P. Fabien Soucy
1884
John Strutynski
1938-1942
Nicholas Suarez
1929-1932, 1938-1947
J. D. Suffield
1930-1931
H. M. Sutherland
1912-1919
I. N. Taillefer
1926-1927
Joseph Taylor
1917-1925
P. Thomas
1883-1886
Alex Toupin
1896-1897, 1898?
Edmond Trudel
1890
Joseph Turenne (1845-1920)
1883, 1886, 1889-1890, 1899-1902
Thomas Turnbull
1913-1915
Edward Christopher Turner (1917-1992)
1951-1954, 1960-1968
Charles A. Ursel
1954-1958
Joseph Gustave Van Belleghem (1901-1967)
1932-1937, 1944-1951
A. Van Eslander
1925-1937
Arthur Chadwick Waller (1870-1943)
1909-1912
Clifford S. Warman
1953-1958
F. H. Wilson
1920
T. H. Wilson
1922-1926
Term
Police Chief
1882-1883
L. Lafranchise
1883-1897
J. B. Joyal
1897-1899
L. Lafranchise
1900-1913
Ligouri Gagne
1913-1921
Leo Marcil
1921-1929
Thomas Gagnon
1929-1930
Victor Audette (1888-1930)
1930-1960
Joseph Henri [Harry / Henry] Baudry (1895-1972)
1960-1968
William Russell (?-1974)
1968-1971
Francois Aime Muller
Term
Fire Chief
1923-1932
William Thompson
Term
City Engineer
1906-1916
McCrea Parker Blair (1882-1958)
c1922
J. A. Meindl
Search the MHS collection of biographies for ones connected to St. Boniface:
Custom Search
Go here for a list of historic sites in St. Boniface.
Go here for a list of history books for St. Boniface.
Geographic Names of Manitoba, Manitoba Conservation, 2000.
“St. Boniface en fete,” Manitoba Free Press, 2 May 1908, page 32.
“Fire prevention week will open on Oct. 5,” Winnipeg Free Press, 17 September 1930, page 9.
“Thompson said to have confessed to theft charges,” Winnipeg Free Press, 3 October 1932, page 2.
Ville Cathedrale de Saint Boniface, The Cathedral City. Commemorative booklet published by the City of St. Boniface for its 50th anniversary, 1958.
Saint-Boniface, Manitoba, Canada Centennial Year 1967, by Robert C. Wilson, 1967. [Le Centre du patrimoine of La Société historique de Saint-Boniface]
“Deputy succeeds St. Boniface Police Chief Russell July 31,” Winnipeg Free Press, 16 July 1968, page 8.
“Multi-faceted past makes St. Boniface colorful,” Winnipeg Free Press, 31 December 1971, page 17.
Building Communities Initiative Community Profile report.
Municipality of St. Boniface – Pathways, City of Winnipeg Archives.
We thank Anthony Wlock for providing additional information used here.
This page was prepared by Gordon Goldsborough, Christian Cassidy, and Nathan Kramer.
Page revised: 15 May 2023
