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Julia Clark School

615 Academy Road, Winnipeg, Manitoba, R3N, Canada

Formally Recognized: 1997/10/28

Primary elevation, from the south, of the Julia Clark School, Winnipeg, 2007; Historic Resources Branch, Manitoba Culture, Heritage, Tourism and Sport, 2007
Primary Elevation
Detail of the date stone on the Julia Clark School, Winnipeg, 2007; Historic Resources Branch, Manitoba Culture, Heritage, Tourism and Sport, 2007
Detail
Interior view of the Julia Clark School, Winnipeg, 2007; Historic Resources Branch, Manitoba Culture, Heritage, Tourism and Sport, 2007
Interior

Other Name(s)

Julia Clark School
Assiniboine Residential School for Indian Children
Children's Home of Winnipeg
Maison d'enfants de Winnipeg
École résidentielle Assiniboine pour les enfants indiens

Links and documents

Construction Date(s)

1918/01/01 to 1918/12/31

Listed on the Canadian Register: 2007/10/29

Statement of Significance

Description of Historic Place

The Julia Clark School is a two-storey brick structure erected in 1918 near the Assiniboine River in west Winnipeg. The City of Winnipeg designation applies to the building on its footprint and the interior stairwell, including banisters and railings.

Heritage Value

The Julia Clark School is significant as an educational institution linked to the development of Winnipeg's child welfare system; in particular, to the Children's Home of Winnipeg (CHW), one of the pioneer charities in the field. The agency began in the 1880s as a shelter for abandoned and destitute children, but soon was pressed to expand its services and facilities. This functional brick school was added to a large CHW residential complex on what was then the sparsely populated western periphery of Winnipeg. Planned by district architect J.B. Mitchell, the durable building, with its modest, classically inspired lines and details, and its many large windows, reflects the design and construction guidelines of its day. Now restored and in alternative use, the structure and its adjacent grounds recall the vital work of the CHW at the site (to the mid-1940s), followed by a veterans' hospital, then by a residential school for Aboriginal children (1950s to 1972).

Source: City of Winnipeg Committee on Planning and Community Services Minutes, October 28, 1997

Character-Defining Elements

Key elements that define the heritage character of the Julia Clark School site include:
- the location as part of a complex set back from Academy Road, with the Assiniboine River to the north

Key elements that define the school's restrained, classically influenced architecture include:
- the elongated rectangular massing formed by an exposed concrete foundation partially clad in rough-cut limestone, solid sand-coloured brick walls and a shallow hip roof
- the front (south) facade dominated by an asymmetrical window arrangement and a modestly ornamented entrance pavilion, including a large brick arch with keystone encompassing double wooden doors, transoms and a round-arched upper window, brick stringcourses, a dentilled cornice painted to contrast with the brick, a plain parapet, etc.
- the double-hung rectangular windows throughout, set between stone lug sills and brick heads, many with transoms, some in strip-like bands, others grouped, yet others single
- the details, including brick pilaster strips, panelling and wide offsets beneath main-floor windows, deep eaves, the main entrance's heavy stone lintel, the smooth-cut stone medallion in a decorative brick panel reading '1918' in a stylized font, etc.

Key elements that define the school's functional interior layout, finishes and details include:
- the largely intact configuration, with rooms coming off central halls
- the large staircase with metal balustrades and the details, including simple mouldings and trim, etc.

Recognition

Jurisdiction

Manitoba

Recognition Authority

City of Winnipeg

Recognition Statute

City of Winnipeg Act

Recognition Type

Winnipeg Landmark Heritage Structure

Recognition Date

1997/10/28

Historical Information

Significant Date(s)

n/a

Theme - Category and Type

Building Social and Community Life
Social Movements

Function - Category and Type

Current

Commerce / Commercial Services
Office or Office Building

Historic

Education
Composite School

Architect / Designer

J.B. Mitchell

Builder

n/a

Additional Information

Location of Supporting Documentation

15-30 Fort Street Winnipeg MB

Cross-Reference to Collection

Fed/Prov/Terr Identifier

W0179

Status

Published

Related Places

n/a

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