Issue link: http://publications.winnipegfreepress.com/i/352529
2 WINNIPEG FrEE PrESS, SATurDAY JulY 26, 2014 W i n n i p e g B e a c h 1 0 0 t h a n n i v e r s a r y The beach community looks back at a storied past this summer. Photos courtesy of Winnipeg Beach Centennial Committee & Linda Gunhouse In its heyday, it was hailed as the Coney Island of the West, a wildly popular beachfront resort that served as a summertime playground for families and hormonally-charged fun-seekers. P acked with attractions and amusements for all ages, Winnipeg Beach was the definition of a day-tripper's paradise — an intoxicating mix of sandy shores, pristine parkland and one of the busiest boardwalks in all of Canada. That storied blend of innocence and adventure will be on full display this August, as Winnipeg Beach marks its 100th anniversary with a weekend's worth of centennial celebrations — all aimed at helping visitors relive the region's glory days. running Aug. 15-17, the Centennial shindig is sure to induce nostalgia — whether via a tennis tournament and old-time tea party (complete with period-appropriate costumes), a festive flotilla of boats on parade through the marina, or a carefully-curated heritage display celebrating the town's status as a summer mecca. "Winnipeg Beach is where people from Winnipeg went to play, pure and simple," says Dale Barbour, author of the recent socio-cultural retrospective Winnipeg Beach: Leisure and Courtship in a Resort Town, 1900-1967. "For the kids, that meant romping and playing on the beach; for the adults, it meant kicking up their heels in the dancehall, roaring around on the rollercoaster, or holding hands and gazing at the stars on the pier." The town's iconic landmarks are by now the stuff of legend: a stretch of ritzy Main Street hotels with names like The Empress and The King Edward, a 14,000-square-foot dancehall (at the time, the biggest in Western Canada), and the Giant Dip, a 300-foot high wooden rollercoaster that was one of the tallest in the country. Just as legendary are the passenger trains that brought Winnipeggers to the beach in droves —among them, the "Daddy Trains" that carried commuters to and from the resort each Monday and Friday (and sometimes every morning and night), and the co-ed "Moonlight Specials," where amorous singles could pitch a little woo before they reached the beach. "I think people would be shocked by how big a deal Winnipeg Beach was at the beginning of the 20th century," says Barbour. "On a busy weekend, you could get 40,000 people coming out, on over a dozen trains a day, when the entire population of Winnipeg was only a few hundred thousand. It really was the place to be." Winnipeg Beach was discovered, developed and officially incorporated as a town by Canadian Pacific railway (just as neighbouring Grand Beach was later founded and developed by rival railway CN). The region's popularity began to wane in the 1960s, as automobiles replaced trains as people's preferred method of travel, and the sexual revolution paved the way for romantic overtures that Lakeshore MeMories Winnipeg Beach celebrates its first 100 years By David Schmeichel for the Free Press Continued on page 3 TOPSOIL SAND-GRAVEL LANDSCAPING FILL-STONE ����������� ���������� ��������� ��������� ���������� ���� � �������� ����������� ����� � ����� MAIN St. Winnipeg Beach 204-389-5086 P.O.BOX22 BROADVALLEY,MB R0C0K0CANADA PHONE:(204)372-6618 CELL:(204)739-3965 E-Mail:chibvc@mynetset.ca GIMLI 642-8501 TOLLFREE 1-888-642-8501 www.interlake.mb.ca www.interlake.mb.ca y "Where Manitoba Plays" For 100 years InterlakeGardenCenter SELECTEDPLANTSNOWONSALE! 10353Hwy#9WinnipegBeach (204)389-3200 www.interlakegardencenter.ca 10353Hw #9Winni Be h Comeseewhatyou'vebeenmissing Jumbo6packPerennials $ 15.99 BEACHHANDI-MART CONVENIENCE •VIDEOS•ATM •LOTTERYTICKETCENTRE •SOFT&HARDICECREAM •FIREWORKS WINNIPEGBEACH (204)389-2310