140 years of roller skating in Winnipeg Part 1 - Pre 1900

© 2022, Christian Cassidy

Part 1: Pre-1900
Part 2: The early 1900s
Part 3: The Depression and post-war years
Part 4: A 1970s explosion
Part 5: The people

Sept 7, 1979, Winnipeg Tribune (by Jon Thordarson)

Many think of roller skating as a 1970s pastime but its roots in our city go back 140 years! 

Researching the history of roller skating in the city is a little difficult as the earliest roller rinks were fairly temporary venues and not always listed in street directories. Nobody thought to take photos of them to use in their advertising the same way that banks or theatres might have with their more permanent structures.

Here's a look back at the history of roller skating venues in Winnipeg starting with the 1880s boom and bust. Additional parts will be added soon!


The Tabernacle - Notre Dame Avenue (ca. 1881? - 1882?)

April 18, 1881, Winnipeg Free Press

The first mention of roller skating in Winnipeg can be found in both the Winnipeg Daily Sun and Winnipeg Free Press on September 26, 1886 when they reported that Mr. Fred Coleman had plans to open Winnipeg's first roller rink.

The Free Press confirmed that Coleman had bought a venue called The Tabernacle "and intends to lay a smooth floor and convert it into a roller skating rink". He had also ordered 400 pairs of roller skates. The paper explained that "There is said to be just as much fun to be got out of a pair of roller skates as out of the slippery steel, and then they can be worked in an equable temperature and with the utmost comfort."

The Tabernacle was an 1870s-era covered ice skating rink located on Notre Dame Avenue at Arthur Street that had been turned into a hall for large Methodist church services by 1880. It was described in one article as a brightly lit hall that was well heated with bare timber walls.

Its size is unknown, but the Masons held their meeting there in November 1880 as it could hold "hundreds more" people than the city hall chambers where they usually met.

It is unclear if Coleman's roller rink ever got off the ground.

There is no newspaper mention of him or roller skating for the remainder of 1881 or through 1882. There are, however, numerous mentions of services being held at The Tabernacle and even the addition of a used pipe organ.

The building may have been sold off by the church and rebuilt in Portage la Prairie in late 1882. The congregation of  Grace Methodist Church approved the construction of a new church building on what once was part of the Tabernacle site in 1883.


Roller Skating Rink - Graham Avenue (May 1883 - December 1883)

May 8, 1883, Winnipeg Daily Sun

An ad for what was likely Winnipeg’s first roller rink appeared in the Winnipeg Daily Sun on Friday, May 4, 1883 announcing that it would open the following evening.

The venue, simply called Roller Skating Rink, was located at 12 Graham Street which is present-day Graham Avenue just off Main Street. The only physical description comes in a June newspaper article that noted it was "well ventilated and the only thing wanting is an extension of the floor."

A Free Press story on May 9, 1883 said that the rink would be open the following week for ladies and Mr. Smith, a recent arrival from England, would be on-hand to provide free lessons.

The manager, Mr. Pettengill, said that if things went well he would consider building a larger, more permanent facility. Unfortunately, no one of that last name or various spellings of it can be found in 1880s street directories suggesting that Pettengill may have been here just a short time.

The Free Press carried brief weekly updates about activities at the venue. On May 15 it noted that "The ladies seem to take an unusual interest in the art as they form the large part of the attendance.”

A brief entry in the November 30, 1883 Free Press carried said that "parties residing on Graham Street are complaining of the roller skating rink being a nuisance from the fact that it disturbs their slumber at night." That might have been the end of the roller rink as it is not mentioned again.

In January 1884, the 12 Graham Street address became home to the North West Excavating Co. Ltd.


The Pavilion Roller Rink - Lombard Avenue (October 1884 - January 1885)

October 8, 1884, Winnipeg Daily Sun

In October 1884, it was confirmed by the Free Press that Mr. C. E. Gill had leased 'the Pavilion' on Lombard Avenue, then called Post Office Street, for use as a roller rink. It seems the Pavilion was a former hall sometimes used for meetings and concerts.

Gill renovated the building for its new use, including painting the exterior, redecorating the lobby, and upgrading the men's and ladies waiting rooms. A new floor of seasoned tongue-in-groove birch was also laid. He described the facility as one of the largest and most comfortable roller rinks west of Chicago. 

The rink opened to great fanfare on October 7 and 8, 1884. Music was provided by the 90th Battalion band and Frank L. Crocker, a former U.S. ice and roller skating champion who owned a roller rink in Minneapolis, was the opening entertainment.

November 6, 1884, Winnipeg Free Press

It was a successful place by all accounts.

The November 5, 1884 Winnipeg Free Press noted that "The roller skating rink is fast becoming a popular place of amusement. There was a large and fashionable assembly there last evening and those who did not try the rollers amused themselves by looking on. The band was present and its sweet strains added greatly to the enjoyment of the evening."

Gill was a good promoter and held special events to attract people. There were masquerade balls, fancy dress carnivals, five-mile races, and obstacle course nights.

Gill's success allowed him to expand his skating empire. He took ownership of one of the city's main ice skating rinks on Market Street East in November 1884. In January 1885, he announced that a company had been created with the intention of building roller rinks at Portage la Prairie and Brandon in the spring.

The Pavilion closed in January 1885 when Gill opened he Royal Roller Rink (see below) and it reverted back to its old use as a concert hall for a time.


Royal Roller Rink I - Market Avenue East (January 1885 - November 1885)

January 18, 1885 Winnipeg Free Press

Gill quickly decided that based on the success of the Pavilion he would convert the Royal Ice Rink on Market Avenue East into a roller skating venue that would be larger than his Pavilion.

The Royal Roller Rink was described by a reporter as handsomely decorated with a floor of the best quality. It included a 500-seat gallery for people to watch down from.

Gill announced that a policy at the new rink would be that no men would be allowed on the floor unless accompanied by a lady in order to "do away with the annoyance ladies are subject to from mashers". (Mashers are described here as men who addressed a woman to whom he had not been formally introduced.)

The grand opening of the Royal Roller Rink took place on January 16, 1885. New stories note that about 400 people, "many of the leading citizens young and old" attended the event and that "the costumes of the ladies and gentlemen were rich and dazzling and were greatly admired by the audience."

Gill's programming of carnivals, fancy dress nights, and other special events continued.

April 1, 1885, Winnipeg Free Press

In late March 1885, the Royal was closed so that it could undergo another expansion and remodelling. It included a "greatly enlarged" skating floor encircled by a gallery from where patrons could look across the river to St. Boniface.

The improved Royal opened on April 4 billing itself as the "largest and most elegant rink in Canada" with a fancy dress carnival.

Visiting exhibition acts became a monthly occurrence at the Royal. In early April it was Miss Nellie Towers and W. P. Dolson, champion combination skaters of Minnesota. In early May, Mr. O'Rourke and Mr. Allison of Boston came for nearly a week to provide a show of trick skating and stunts.

The need to have these exhibitions was likely due to increased competition in the roller skating market. In early 1885, there were no less than THREE roller rinks in Winnipeg competing for patrons.

A major addition to the scene was a roller polo league created by Gill and others that held games and tournaments throughout the summer.

Mabel Davidson "first lady skater of the West" held a couple of exhibitions in late July and The Three Heine Brothers appeared in December.


Royal Roller Rink II - Main Street (November 1885 - ? 1887)

November 21, 1885, Winnipeg Free Press

A big change for the Royal Roller Rink came in November 1885 when it moved to a new location, likely a recently built curling rink, behind the McIntyre Block on Main Street. Though the bulk of the building would likely have been on Albert Street it used a Main Street address.

It was billed in ads as the largest roller rink in Canada and described as having a seamless floor and featuring gas lighting rather than smelly oil lamps. It had a house band, the City Band under the leadership of Mr. Goulding, that played each afternoon and evening.

The rink also hosted numerous non-skating events such as a concert to support the Winnipeg General Hospital in February 1886, a boxing match in April, and Prime Minister Sir John A Macdonald made a speech there on July 15th.

The number of ads and newspaper mentions of the rink and even roller skating in general waned through 1886. It is difficult to tell if this means the rink was not operating regularly or if people found other things to do. Gill's name stops appearing in newspapers after December 1885, so it could be that he left town taking his promotional talents with him and the media just moved on to other things.

There is only one mention of the rink in 1887: a hospital fundraising concert in April. In November 1887 it was announced that the Granite Curling Club had taken over the venue.

The building was demolished in the summer of 1890.


Gold Seal Roller Rink (March 1885 - April 1885)

March 30, 1885, Winnipeg Free Press

The Gold Seal Roller Rink opened in a building formerly known as Trinity Hall at Portage Avenue and Garry Street on March 14, 1885. Mr. T. H. Jones was the manager.

According to Winnipeg Daily Sun, it was "spacious and comfortably fitted up with well constructed galleries, a stage and a well arranged dressing room." As for the floor, it was carefully laid and "no sheet of glass could be smoother."

The venue got off to a great start with Jones emulating Gill's special events schedule of masquerade nights and contests, but it seems the market was just too saturated with three rinks operating in the city through early 1885.

A single sentence note in the Winnipeg Daily Sun of April 29 1885 declaring that "On account of poor attendance at the Gold Seal Roller Rink, it has been closed."


Grand Roller Rink - Princess Street (March 1885 - December? 1886)

June 3, 1885, Winnipeg Daily Sun

If there was someone who was going to give Gill a run for his money in the roller skating business it was Charles W. Sharpe, manager of the 1,300-seat theatre called the Princess Opera House at 96 Princess Street.

In March 1885, Sharpe returned from a trip to Chicago and Minneapolis. He was there to book some shows for his theatre and to visit roller skating venues. (He quipped to a reporter on his return that  "I did not see as many good skaters on average in either city as I have seen in Winnipeg.")

Sharpe also made a side trip to the Henley Roller Skate factory in Richmond, Illinois and purchased 1,000 pairs of roller skates for his new venture: The Grand Roller Rink.

The Grand, located at McWilliam Avenue (now Pacific Avenue) and Princess Street, opened on March 23, 1885 with a "monster carnival". The Winnipeg Daily Sun noted, "The rink and its appearances are excellent and although it is by far the largest rink in the city it was unable to accommodate the large crowd estimated to number over 2,000... The dressing rooms are well fitted and convenient and the decorations very fine."

Like the Gold Seal, despite getting off to a great start with carnivals and contests the amount of advertising and media interest in the Grand quickly waned. By the fall, there are few ads except for the odd special event such as a five-mile race or carnival night. In 1886, there was a roller skating carnival in January and roller races in February and November. There were also a number of ads for non-skating events such as foot races, meetings, and concerts.

The Grand is not mentioned in newspapers from late February 1887 to April 1889 when a notice appeared that the Knights Templars had rented the venue for its meetings and events.


River Park Roller Rink I (May 1895 - September 1895)

March 7, 1892, Winnipeg Tribune

After five years without a roller skating rink, a small article in the Winnipeg Tribune of March 7, 1892, noted that "A gentleman of experience in the management of roller skating rinks is looking about with a view of reintroducing this once popular past-time to Winnipeg." It didn’t identify the man and nothing came of the announcement.

The rumour mill started up again in early 1895 with various sites being mentioned. They were put to rest in early April when it was announced that a roller rink would be part of the attractions at River Park when it opened for the 1895 season.

River Park, undated. Photo by Gibson. (Martin  Berman Postcard Collection)

River Park was one of two private parks built circa 1890 near Jubilee Avenue and Osborne Street by Albert W. Austin, owner of Winnipeg's streetcar company. He wanted a reason for people to ride the Fort Rouge streetcar line down Osborne Street on evenings and Saturdays.

Elm Park, on the south side of the Assiniboine River, became a site for light recreation and camping featuring a huge dance hall. River Park, on the north bank, developed into a full-fledged amusement ground with a roller coaster, race track, ball diamonds, and pavilion.

In 1895, River Park was leased out to J. A. Darby and Charles Sharpe who revamped the space by providing new lighting and adding new attractions. (You'll remember Sharpe as the man who opened the Grand Roller Rink in 1895.)

July 20, 1895, Daily Nor'Wester

The rink, which began construction in April, was described as measuring 70 feet x 170 feet with a  concrete floor. The roof would be canvas as the park was seasonal. (There was ice skating but that was done on the Assiniboine River.)

The park and rink opened on Victoria Day, May 24, 1895 and like many roller skating venues before it, it lasted barely a season.

An article in a May 1896 edition of the Free Press noted, "Theatrical entertainments will probably be the attractions at River Park this summer. The roller rink will be utilized for the purpose." And that is what happened. Concerts and travelling novelty shows replaced regular roller skating sessions.

Roller skating would return to River Park decades later but in a different building.


Pre-1900s Conclusion

In a period of less than five years, roller skating was introduced the city and became so popular that three roller skating rinks were in operation at once.

Why did it come and go so quickly? The lack of media interest towards the end of the boom makes it difficult to pinpoint. years later, a Free Press article mentioned in passing that Winnipeg's roller skating scene of the 1880s "died a natural death". A Daily Nor'Wester article said it had been supplanted by other pastimes.

Three rinks. April 20, 1885, Winnipeg Daily Sun.

Some of this may have had to do with the investors themselves.

Mr. Gill, who was Winnipeg's "Mr. Roller Skating", seems to have faded out of the picture and maybe even from the city before the Royal's demise. Charlie Sharpe appears to have had little to do with the day-to-day running of his rink, preferring instead to concentrate on his theatre business.

After the brief River Park experiment in 1895, Winnipeggers would have to wait more than a decade for another roller skating venue to appear.