History
Osborne Village is among Winnipeg's oldest neighbourhoods.
Osborne Village derives its name from Osborne Street (Winnipeg Route 62), which runs through the centre of the village area. Osborne Street was named after Lieutenant Colonel William Osborne Smith (1831–1887) the first commanding officer of Military District 10, which included the city of Winnipeg. The north part of Osborne street was adjacent to the first Fort Osborne Barracks, on the site of which is now the Provincial Legislature. It has changed greatly over the last hundred years but its rich history is still evident in the architectural details of many of its buildings, as well as in the overall pattern of settlement which has come to embody the neighbourhood.
Osborne Village is part of the original Fort Rouge area, which was amalgamated in to the city of Winnipeg as Ward 1 in 1882. The Fort Rouge area started with a population of only 150, but grew to a population of tens of thousands by 1994.
The Fort Rouge area was developed as Winnipeg's first suburb. In 1891, "The Parkline" became Winnipeg's first streetcar, and it ran down Osborne Street. A major factor in the development of the Village was the construction of the three bridges over the Assiniboine River: the Osborne Street Bridge (1882), the Maryland Bridge (1894), and the Main Street Bridge (1897).
The churches along Nassau street are evidence of the area's predominantly English and Protestant population at the time. The Victoria Hospital was built early in the century at the corner of Bole Street and River Avenue. The second public park in the City, Assiniboine Park (later to be renamed Fort Rouge Park) was situated along River Avenue in 1894.
During the post World War II years, Winnipeg was expanding and the Osborne area saw the development of large high-rise apartments on or near the riverfront.
The Midtown bridge was constructed in 1954. The Osborne Street bridge was built in 1882, reconstructed in 1977, and refurbished in 2011/2012. Each day, 42,000 vehicles travel over the Osborne Bridge.
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