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The Canadian Prairies have seen six waves of migration spanning more than 13,000 years. The original Asian migration laid the foundation for Canada’s Indigenous population, and it wasn’t until the mid-1600s fur traders ventured west, followed by a small group of British settlers responsible for the Red River Colony at the confluence of the Red and Assiniboine Rivers, the heart of modern-day Winnipeg. The fourth and largest wave began in 1897, drawing new Canadians from all over Europe.
The plains of Manitoba, Saskatchewan, and Alberta were at the bottom of several inland seas through various points of prehistory, laying the groundwork, so to speak, for the fertile prairie soil that later drew settlers. The first wave of Prairie architecture suited these agrarian roots. This meant sod huts and peasant cottages of Eastern European styles, originally. The more affluent could order plans and materials through the Eaton’s catalogue for delivery by train, since wood was a rare commodity. Later generations tended to follow local styles for their homes, though onion-domed churches remained common.
The Victorian Era
From the mid-1800s to the First World War, Victorian styles dominated coast to coast and the Prairies were no different, particularly in the affluent neighbourhoods of emerging towns and cities. The post-war era saw the introduction of Gothic Revival, particularly in churches, universities and banks. A distinct Canadian spin on this was Chateau style, sometimes called Railway Gothic, embodied by the Fairmont Banff Springs Hotel.
Toward the modern age
While the Prairie style is a decidedly American trend, it’s one that suited the Canadian heartland. Canadian architect Francis C. Sullivan studied under Frank Lloyd Wright before returning to Ottawa in 1908 and introduced the style there. While many of his designs centred around upper Canada, Sullivan had some significant works in the Western provinces as well, including the Banff National Park Pavillion and the Stonewall Post Office in Stonewall, Manitoba.
As Mid-Century Modern captured the imaginations of our southern neighbours, the emerging technology of television romanticised the influences of American style, while suppressing the drive toward uniquely Canadian designs.
On the Prairies, though, construction-grade lumber was still in short supply. Few clapboard or board and batten styles emerged, since they were too costly for the average resident. So, too, was brick construction limited by supply. If you would have told a Winnipeg resident you lived in a brick house in Toronto, you might have heard the astonished reply, “all four sides?”
Instead, stucco is often the medium of choice for residential exteriors in the absence of wood and brick. If these elements are present at all, it’s usually only on the facade.
The influence of commerce
Architecture embraces more than just the homes in which people reside. Railroads were perhaps the earliest influence on public and commercial architecture. The steam engines of the day required stops every 13 kilometres to top off the water tanks. Stations had several basic designs, around which towns often grew. Grain elevators then began to dominate the Prairie skylines, a scaled down facsimile of the big city skyscrapers.
Winnipeg, Regina, Saskatoon, Calgary, and Edmonton emerged as the financial and urban centres for the Prairies and, like bigger cities elsewhere in North America, building started to climb downtown—though the spread-out nature of the southern Prairie made this less urgent than cities pressed against major waterways.
Today, each of these cities has its own distinctive flair and notable public and commercial structures. It’s a long way between a Doukhobor dugout house to The Bow in Calgary, but it’s a time period of less than 200 years.
Notable Prairie buildings
Manitoba
- Union Bank Tower: an example of why Winnipeg is often portrayed as Chicago in movie productions.
- St. Boniface Museum: Winnipeg’s oldest building and the largest oak log structure in North America.
- Esplanade Riel: a pedestrian bridge across the Red River, it has become the iconic image of Winnipeg.
- Lower Fort Garry: a recreation of 19th-century living.
- The Canadian Museum for Human Rights: a stunning building made from alabaster, basalt rock, glass, Tyndall limestone, and steel, and serving as a resource where the public can enhance their knowledge of human rights.
Saskatchewan
- Saskatchewan Power Corporation Building: emulating the colour and shape of undulating wheat fields, its plan was inspired by Brazilian modernism.
- The Weyburn Court House: a colonial revival style building built in the optimism of the last good harvest before the Great Depression.
- Diefenbaker Canada Centre: Saskatoon is called the Paris of the Prairies, and the modernist museum is a worthy showpiece on the University of Saskatchewan grounds.
Alberta
- The Royal Alberta Museum: the environmentally responsible steel and glass building houses a human and natural history museum
- The Peace Bridge: a controversial project in origin, the bridge is now a centrepiece for cycling and pedestrian infrastructure
- Muttart Conservatory: its four pyramids echo both ancient Egypt and the contemporary entrance to the Louvre, housing more than800 botanical species
- The Calgary Central Library: the city’s dramatic setting east of the Rockies seems imbued in its architecture, and the library is representative of Calgary’s new wave
Differing lifestyles and histories influence how buildings are designed, which is why Canada’s architectural identity changes as you move across the country. The buildings you find in the Prairies won’t resemble those in the Maritimes, but that’s what makes Canada so unique and beautiful.
