Events mark settlement’s 200th anniversary

Opinion

Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 28/04/2012 (4661 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

THIS year marks the bicentenary of the Red River Selkirk Settlement — 1812 to 2012.

Here are some events to commemorate the momentous occasion.

— WEDNESDAY, MAY 16, 9 A.M. TO 5 P.M.: The Manitoba Historical Society is holding a symposium, The Selkirk Settlement Revisited: 1812, As Seen From 2012, at the Dalnavert Visitors Centre, 61 Carlton St.

— SATURDAY, AUG. 18: Seven Oaks Historical Society is organizing a concert in St. John’s Park at Main Street and Mountain Avenue.

— LABOUR DAY WEEKEND (FRIDAY, AUG. 31 TO SUNDAY, SEPT. 2): Gathering at The Forks, the kickoff to a week of activities to mark the bicentennial.

— TUESDAY, SEPT. 4: The Manitoba Living History Society is holding a re-enactment of the day, exactly 200 years ago, when Miles Macdonell took possession of the tract of land known as Assiniboia, granted by the Hudson’s Bay Company to the Earl of Selkirk.Macdonell was the first governor. In La Verendrye Park, along Taché Avenue from Dollard Boulevard to Rue Despins.

— WEDNESDAY, SEPT. 5: Manitoba Lt.-Gov. Philip Lee is hosting a reception that will include direct descendants of the settlers and the current-day Lord Selkirk.

— SATURDAY, SEPT. 8: St. Andrew’s Society formal dinner on behalf of the Bicentenary of the Red River Selkirk Settlement Committee. It will accommodate up to 1,000 guests at the Winnipeg Convention Centre.

— SUNDAY, SEPT. 9: Service of Thanksgiving at St. John’s Cathedral, 135 Anderson Ave., where the early settlers worshipped and where many were buried.

— THURSDAY, OCT. 18: Seven Oaks Historical Society is organizing a concert at St. John’s Cathedral, 135 Anderson Ave., to mark the bicentennial.

— FRIDAY, NOV. 9 AND SATURDAY, NOV. 10: The Winnipeg Symphony Orchestra will perform Red River, a composition by renowned Winnipeg composer Sid Robinovitch, commissioned by the Seven Oaks Historical Society. The concerts are at the Centennial Concert Hall.

— SUNDAY, NOV. 11: The WSO will perform Red River in Brandon’s Western Manitoba Centennial Auditorium.

— The Manitoba Museum and the Manitoba Legislative Building each plan to host special exhibits on the Red River Settlement.

— A People’s History of Seven Oaks, a book based on the videotape archive and interviews conducted among the Seven Oaks population, will be published later this year. The Seven Oaks Historical Society compiled this multi-year project.

For more information, contact Lawrence Prout and Phyllis Fraser, co-chairs of the Bicentenary of the Red River Selkirk Settlement Committee, at www.redriver200.ca or (204) 945-2752.

— Martin Zeilig