My Top Blog Posts of 2015!

Over the holidays I like to take a look back at what blog posts generated the most interest in terms of page views. Because this blog has been on the go for about 8 years now, many of the "most read" in any given year were written in previous years.

Thanks to everyone who took the time to check in with my blogs over the year !

Here are my 10 most viewed blog posts for 2015, a combination of West End Dumplings (WED), Winnipeg Downtown Places (WDP) and This Was Manitoba (TWM).

1. Kenneth Leishman: The Flying Bandit (TWM 2008)
My most read post was written in 2008 and has been updated a few times since. Ken Leishman was “one of the most beloved of Canadian criminals” in the 1950s and 60s. His folk hero status obviously lives on to this day!

2. 335 Donald Street - Former Masonic Temple (WDP - 2009)
This was my most read Winnipeg Downtown Places post. Sadly, the curiosity about the stubbornly empty building has not led to it redevelopment.

3. 233 Kennedy Street - Medical Arts Building (WDP - 2011)
The Medical Arts Building made the news when Manitoba Liquor & Lotteries announced that they had purchased it for conversion into their corporate headquarters.

4. Troubled Sailing: A Look Back at the MS Lord Selkirk II (2012, 2014)
The MS Lord Selkirk II is no more, finally removed from its slough in Selkirk, Manitoba and shredded for scrap. this post looks back at the troubled history of the ship.

5. Lives Lived at 1021 Wellington Crescent (WED - 2014)
In February 2014 the stately home at 1021 Wellington Crescent burned down. This two part series is a look back at the man who built it and those who lived in it over the decades.

6. Winnipeg Downtown Places Street Index (WDP - 2011)
As the title says, this is a street index for my 300 or so WDT posts.

7. 44 Hargrave - Kenilworth Court (WDP - 2013)
This apartment block stood vacant for years and in 2015 its long, slow demolition was completed.

8. Budweiser's Clydesdales and their Winnipeg Origins (2012)
The story of these advertizing icons is rooted in brewer Pat Shea's love for Clydesdales. He amassed a stable of award winning horses to pull his delivery trucks, then sold them to the Busch family prior to his death.

9. 1 Lombard Place - Richardson Building (WDP - 2010)
A history of the city's oldest modern-era skyscraper.

10. A History of the Arlington Bridge (WED - 2011)
This is the first in a five part series looking back at the iconic bridge wiich will soon disappear form Winnipeg's skyline.



Yes, people did read some of the posts I wrote in 2015. Here are the top ones published this year.

1. Inside the Merchant's Hotel (WED - 2015)
This photo tour of the interior of the once notorious Selkirk Avenue hotel was popular. Watch for it to reopen soon as an education hub.

2. What's up with the Bathgate Block? (WED)
This is the last, intact Barber and Barber building left in the city and has been left to rot.

3. 342 Nairn - Chalmers' Blacksmiths (WDP)
The history of this nondescript building on Nairn Avenue generated a lot of interest.

4. 543 Sargent Avenue - The Hood Block (WDP)
A well intentioned renovation ended up being a nightmare for the owner of this West End building.

5. Vote Early, Vote Often (WED)
Getting into the federal election spirit, here were the rules for becoming a registered voter for the 1894 general election.