One Great History

Alex and Sabrina get you ready to vote this week by talking about past elections, and we get a visit from Future Sabrina. Is this a time travel episode? Maybe ...   onegreathistory.com

Did you know that one of our nicest parks has kind of an evil backstory? We'll be talking about how Park officials expelled actual Indigenous residents while welcoming in a famous fraudster, and the many forms of semi-coerced labour that were used in the development of the park.

Winnipeg's K-Tel didn't just invent the compilation record or how we market products, but they maybe also inspired the Bluth family from Arrested Development? Come along as Producer Nick explains what K-Tel is (and was) to Sabrina and Alex. You may be surprised that K-Tel is still going strong today (just not in the way you'd expect).   Visit onegreathistory.com for more?

In 1905, Winnipeg built the first public library building with the words "Free to All" carved above the door. To get it built, though, there was a kerfuffle with the contractors, arguments with the architects, and a lot of posturing about a painting.    

Once, bison were ubiquitous in North America, roaming in massive herds and providing a way of life for the people who followed them across the plains. And then suddenly, the bison were gone - or nearly. This episode tells the story of how a few prescient ranchers and some hard working cowboys saved the bison from total destruction. Visit onegreathistory.com for more info! Our book, Portage and Mai...

In the 1930s, a group of leftists teamed up to prove that political plays could be both interesting and funny. In this quest, they would have run-ins with the police, feud with student columnist at The Manitoban, and venture to Ontario to win the Dominion Drama Festival. Visit onegreathistory.com for more info! Our book, Portage and Main, is available from Great Plains Publications! https://greatp...

This is it! This episode means our book is out! Tune in for a conversation about Winnipeg's most famous intersection and hear a bunch of stories that didn't make it into the book! Order it now https://greatplainspress.ca/books/portage-and-main/ Check out more fun stuff https://www.onegreathistory.com/ Get our zines https://www.inservicecomics.com/category/zines

Visit onegreathistory.com for more information! Order our book "Portage and Main" from Great Plains! https://greatplainspress.ca/books/portage-and-main/ Get our new zine, "A Guide to Big Things in Manitoba"! https://www.inservicecomics.com/product/a-guide-to-big-things-in-manitoba

... or the Laurier-Greenway Compromise ... part one!   Visit onegreathistory.com for more info!   Buy our book! "Portage & Main" is available from Great Plains Publications! https://greatplainspress.ca/books/portage-and-main/

We're trying something new! This is a special interview with Canadian History Ehx podcast host Craig Baird, author of the new book Canada's Main Street: The Epic Story of the Trans-Canada Highway.   If you have a book about Manitoba or Canadian history that you'd like to promote on the podcast, email us - onegreathistory@gmail.com    

It's a summer road trip with Alex and Sabrina as they hit up many of Manitoba's BIG roadside attractions! As an added bonus, they made an accompanying zine featuring beautiful watercolour paintings by Alex, which you can order here - inservicecomics.com/category/zines

The small mining town of Flin Flon, Manitoba has produced a lot of hockey players and exactly one Academy Award winner - Roger Avary. Learn all about the ups and downs of the man who co-wrote Pulp Fiction and became the poster boy for an Apple product in this exciting Nick's Pick episode! 

From the 1950s to the 1990s, Haynes Chicken Shack was one of the happening-est places in Winnipeg. Today we talk about the restaurant and the family behind it - their charisma, their cooking, and their musical talents! 

Alfred Elton Van Vogt was a science fiction writer with an unusual background: he was born in Gretna, and began writing while living in Winnipeg. His eclectic collection of short stories and novels would go on to inspire writers like Philip K Dyck, Harlen Ellison, and directly or indirectly influence the plot of the film Alien. 

How many people does it take to topple a streetcar? Where can a man hide from a mud-hurling mob? And just who is “the Big Swede,” anyway? Answers (sort of) to all these questions and more in this episode about the time Winnipeg went absolutely nuts over a labour dispute.   Visit onegreathistory.com to see images from this episode and more!

Hé-ho! Strap on your snowshoes and tie on your sash, we're delving into the history of Festival du Voyageur.    Thanks to Colin Mackie from Festival Du Voyageur.

It's January, which means we are busy working on new episodes for you! So until we're ready to get on mic again, here are two classic Patreon bonus episodes for your ears! If you don't subscribe to our Patreon, this is a taste of what we do over there. If you do, then you maybe heard these back in 2022! https://www.onegreathistory.com/ https://www.patreon.com/OneGreatHistory

Once upon a time, Deer Lodge Hotel had a resident pet black bear that loved drinking soda. He was called, at various times, Joe Chamberlain, Whiterock Pete, and Chad's Bear and in 1905 became a regular character in the Winnipeg Tribune. In the fiction of the Tribune, the bear had an ambitious life - he ran for office, was once a witness in a trial, was the subject of a lengthy biography and was a...

It’s 1924, and Winnipeg is 50 years old! Local businesses and community groups from Winnipeg Hydro to Calhoun Hats make elaborate floats to celebrate Winnipeg’s progress as a thriving, modern city - but who’s been left out?

In 1974, a new phenomenon was happening in Winnipeg: Phantom-Mania. Released on Boxing Day, 1974, Phantom of the Paradise became an instant hit in Winnipeg. And only in Winnipeg. In this episode, Sabrina unpacks the initial lengthy run of Phantom of the Paradise in Winnipeg and it's enduring legacy here and beyond. A warm thank you to those who shared their experiences with the movie! It is beyond...

Thomas Spence saw a problem: Portage la Prairie, isolated, lawless. He offered a solution: himself, as President. Thus was born the Republic of Manitoba, a short-lived and ill-advised attempt at creating a regional government. Join us as we fill in the details of this colourful episode in Manitoba history with surprise appearances from Louis Riel, John Christian Schultz, and "Dutch George" Emmerli...

In this episode, a rare "Nick's Pick", Producer Nick dives into Winnipeg's comic book history! Did you know Canada's first superhero was invented by a Winnipeg cartoonist? Or that the Winnipeg Morality Police arrested people for selling Dick Tracy comics? Or that digital comic colouring as we know it today originated in Winnipeg? Oh, and also Spider-man went to the "Winnipeg Mall" one time... Come...

For over 40 years, the intersection of Portage and Main has been closed to pedestrians. The story of how this happened is one of desperation, bad planning, and even worse ideas on how our cities should be designed.

Rooster Town aka Pakan Town aka Grant Park Mall and High School. Find out the history of this area in this month's episode!

Is it Bay Days? Coincidentally! But, also, this episode is all about the past, present and future of the historic Portage Avenue Hudson's Bay department store.