Cole O.

Winnipeg, Manitoba

Red River Heritage Fair

How Streetcars Shaped Winnipeg

A look into the development of transportation in Winnipeg in an era defined by progress and prosperity.

 

 

 

What was the most interesting thing you learned about your topic?

The first entrepreneurs who came to Winnipeg were especially interesting to me. Anything was possible in Canada in the late 19th century, and the relatively young entrepreneurs like Albert Austin whose dreams laid a foundation for today's Canada are an inspiration for me.

What important lessons have you learned that you want to share with other Canadians?

I've learned that things we take for granted, like our transpiration system, shape Canada in more ways that we might expect.

How would you compare your life today to the lives of those studied in your project?

Working a minimum wage job has certainly changed. Before the days of workers rights and unions, the first horsecar drivers worked 10 hour days in the grueling cold. The comparison between working 100 years ago and working today is certainly a striking one, and we can thank people like the streetcar drivers for their advocacy for worker's rights.