37 Facts About Winnipeg

1.

In 1967, Winnipeg was the first Canadian host of the Pan American Games.

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2.

On 8 November 1873, Winnipeg was incorporated as a city, with the Selkirk settlement as its nucleus.

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3.

Winnipeg developed rapidly after the coming of the Canadian Pacific Railway in 1881.

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4.

In 1942, the Victory Loan Campaign staged a mock Nazi invasion of Winnipeg to promote awareness of the stakes of the war in Europe.

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5.

In 1960, the Metropolitan Corporation of Greater Winnipeg was established to co-ordinate service delivery in the metropolitan region.

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6.

In 2003, the City of Winnipeg Act was repealed and replaced with the City of Winnipeg Charter.

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7.

Winnipeg experienced a severe economic downturn in advance of the early 1980s recession, during which the city incurred closures of prominent businesses, including the Winnipeg Tribune, as well as the Swift's and Canada Packers meat packing plants.

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8.

Winnipeg is bordered by tallgrass prairie to the west and south and the aspen parkland to the northeast, although most of the native prairie grasses have been removed for agriculture and urbanization.

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9.

Winnipeg has North America's largest extant mature urban elm forest.

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10.

Winnipeg has four major rivers: the Red, Assiniboine, La Salle and Seine.

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11.

At the census metropolitan area level in the 2021 census, the Winnipeg CMA had a population of 834, 678 living in 330, 326 of its 347, 144 total private dwellings, a change of 6.

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12.

In 2006, Winnipeg ranked seventh of the Canadian cities for percentage of residents of a visible minority.

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13.

In 2012, Winnipeg was ranked by KPMG as the least expensive location to do business in western Canada.

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14.

Winnipeg was named the Cultural Capital of Canada in 2010 by Canadian Heritage.

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15.

The Winnipeg Public Library is a public library network with 20 branches throughout the city, including the main Millennium Library.

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16.

Winnipeg the Bear, which would become the inspiration for part of the name of Winnie-the-Pooh, was purchased in Ontario by Lieutenant Harry Colebourn of the Fort Garry Horse.

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17.

The series' illustrator, Ernest H Shepard, created the only known oil painting of Winnipeg's adopted fictional bear, displayed in Assiniboine Park.

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18.

Guy Maddin's My Winnipeg, an independent film released in 2008, is a comedic rumination on the city's history.

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19.

Winnipeg has a significant place in Canadian jazz history, being the location of Canada's first jazz concert in 1914 at the Pantages Playhouse Theatre.

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20.

Royal Winnipeg Ballet is Canada's oldest ballet company and the longest continuously operating ballet company in North America.

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21.

University of Manitoba Bisons and the University of Winnipeg Wesmen represent the city in university-level sports.

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22.

Winnipeg has been home to several professional baseball teams, most recently the Winnipeg Goldeyes since 1994.

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23.

Winnipeg was the first Canadian city to host the Pan American Games, and the second city to host the event twice, in 1967 and again in 1999.

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24.

Radio broadcasting in Winnipeg began in 1922; by 1923, government-owned CKY held a monopoly position that lasted until after the Second World War.

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25.

Since 1992, the city of Winnipeg has been represented by 15 city councillors and a mayor, both elected every four years.

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26.

The structure of the municipal government is set by the provincial legislature in the City of Winnipeg Charter Act, which replaced the old City of Winnipeg Act in 2003.

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27.

In provincial politics, Winnipeg is represented by 32 of the 57 provincial Members of the Legislative Assembly in the 42nd Manitoba Legislature.

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28.

In federal politics, as of 2019 Winnipeg is represented by eight Members of Parliament: four Liberals, two Conservatives and two New Democrat.

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29.

From 2007 to 2011, Winnipeg was the "murder capital" of Canada, with the highest per-capita rate of homicides; as of 2019 it is in second place, behind Thunder Bay.

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30.

Winnipeg was the "violent crime capital" of Canada in 2020 according to the Statistics Canada police-reported violent crime severity index.

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31.

Winnipeg has seven school divisions: Winnipeg School Division, St James-Assiniboia School Division, Pembina Trails School Division, Seven Oaks School Division, Division Scolaire Franco-Manitobaine, River East Transcona School Division, and Louis Riel School Division.

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32.

Winnipeg has two independent colleges: Red River College Polytechnic and Booth University College.

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33.

Winnipeg has had public transit since 1882, starting with horse-drawn streetcars.

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34.

Winnipeg is a railway hub and is served by Via Rail at Union Station for passenger rail, and Canadian National Railway, Canadian Pacific Railway, Burlington Northern Santa Fe Manitoba, and the Central Manitoba Railway for freight rail.

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35.

Winnipeg is the largest and best connected city within Manitoba, and has highways leading in all directions from the city.

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36.

Canadian Forces Base Winnipeg, co-located at the airport, is home to many flight operations support divisions and several training schools.

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37.

Many years, Winnipeg was the home of the Second Battalion of Princess Patricia's Canadian Light Infantry.

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