Vignettes / The Exchange District / William
Massey-Harris Building
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By 1885, Portage Avenue and Main Street had become the centre of Winnipeg’s commercial district. As the value of downtown land increased, many nearby residential lots were taken over for commercial use. Grain companies, banks, and agricultural supply firms moved to be closer to the Winnipeg Grain Exchange, located in the basement of the City Hall.
Massey Manufacturing Company was established in Upper Canada in 1847, and became famous for its reapers just as Canadian agriculture was being mechanized. Although it opened a branch office in Winnipeg in 1881, the Massey Company did not build its own facility until 1885.
