Continuing on from yesterday and our visit to St. Boniface Cathedral. It was a great tragedy when the last one No.5 burnt down in 1968, buts its re-incarnation No. 6 is quite something. I'm not a big fan of modern, much prefer the old but the way this has been done-building the new inside the walls of the old is quite something to see. Inside the Church it is so modern its stunning. This is a heritage building now! A must see, if you are within a couple of hundred kilometres of Winnipeg.
In the grounds surrounding the Cathedral and The Convent, there is a cemetery of course and some parks. Here are two monuments to La Verendrye a famous French Canadien Voyageur, he was one of the first europeans to set foot in Ruperts Land now called Manitoba.
Louis Riel. Not sure what to say about this gentleman, the founder of modern day Manitoba, at that time a very far sighted individual and would have made a great leader I think, unfortunately got on the wrong side of some orangemen from Ontario who can be or a very bigoted lot. In the end he was banished to Montana. In 1885 he came back to Canada to lead The Northwest Rebellion in Saskatchewan against the Canadian Government and was hanged in Regina- now somewhat of a hero, if you forget about the Saskatchewan episode.
These millstones are from the flower mill belonging the father of Louis Riel, situated on the River Seine south of Winnipeg.
In the museum there is a room dedicated to him his family and his struggles forming the new province of Manitoba.
The Convent which is now the ST. Boniface Museum
This is a shingle makers bench, the sign says a shingler could make around 1150 shingles a day, some going that.
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