SCHOOL HISTORY

The "old school" which was situated at the corner of Sinclair and Selkirk was named after King Edward VII. King Edward No. 1 was built to meet the rapid growth in population of the district due to immigration. Construction was started in 1908 and was completed in 1909. This solid brick building had a first enrollment of 500 and was the show school of Winnipeg and the pride of the school board. It was the first fireproof school in Winnipeg, with a different style of architecture, an artificial ventilating system, iron and cement stairways, metal fireproof glass doors. Miss Edna Talbot was the first principal of King Edward and Mr. W.J. Gough succeeded her in September 1909 and remained so for 28 years.

In 1914 the erection of an additional building became necessary because of students seeking admission. A cornerstone was laid and King Edward No. 2 was constructed. On the occasion of his visit to Winnipeg, Earl Gray, then Governor General of Canada, visited the school. King Edward was the newest school in Winnipeg and the Governor General was surprised to see so many nationalities represented in a Canadian school. About 1919 the No. 1 school became a Junior High School. By 1922 the enrollment had reached almost 1500 students. The old building No. 1 remained as a Junior High School until 1957 when Sisler and Isaac Newton Schools were built. Once again, after many years, King Edward was again an elementary school.

Early in the 1970’s building inspectors became concerned about the structural integrity of the old King Edward No. 2 building. The Winnipeg School board were ready to replace the old building. New programs for pupils and teams of teachers were developing. So teaching staff, along with parents’ groups, were included in the building committee. A "new" building – our community school – was built on April 21, 1977.