EMERSON, MANITOBA, CANADA

The first settlement around what was to become Emerson dates back to the beginning of the 19th Century when a Hudson Bay fur trader, Thomas Miller, and eight Orkneymen established a fort on the east side of the Red River near the current Emerson. As trade and settlement across the United States and Canadian became more established, Emerson came to represent that important point separating British and American territory.

In 1871, Manitoba's first custom's house was established near the site that is now Emerson. By 1872 the log building also served as the telegraph, express, and post office. This building and the town's original jail remain today on Path 75 just south of the Travel Manitoba Information Centre. Named in 1874 after writer, and poet-philosopher, Ralph Waldo Emerson, the erstwhile fort became a thriving prairie town.

Transportation
The arrival of the first train in 1878 established Emerson as the commercial center for the region. In 1879 when the Pembina Branch of the Canadian Pacific Railway connected with the American Line to St. Paul, Emerson was the only direct rail link between Eastern Canada and the Northwest. Population soared to 5,000, businesses boomed and an era of prosperity and optimism dominated the region. Emerson was the gateway to the Northwest and for a time threatened to outstrip Winnipeg as Manitoba's major urban center.

Commerce
In 1883, the year Emerson incorporated as a city, its dreams of being the greatest railway center in the Northwest were crushed when the town faced bankruptcy. According to an article in the Winnipeg's Times, in 1885, a government audit revealed the financial predicament to be the result of "incompetence, bungling, recklessness, and fraud" driven by speculation and greed. In rebuilding the town and its government, caution became the key word. It was well into the twentieth century before Emerson fully recovered from the bitter and disappointing experiences of the 1880's.

While the railroads dominated commerce in the 1880's, the Red River did haul substantial cargo and was also noted for its passenger service. The fare from Emerson to Winnipeg was $2.50 and the trip downstream took 9 to 10 hours. The return trip against the flow of the river took 12 to 14 hours. The last passenger steamer completed its transport in 1909.

As well as a commercial site, throughout its history, Emerson has also been an agricultural site. Returns from cultivated land were more than satisfactory with some yields bordering on the incredible. Recorded yields boast of 553 bushels of wheat off ten acres, 100 bushels of oats to the acre and 60 bushels of potatoes per acre. Emerson's agricultural economy prospers to this day.

Present
Today Emerson is a pleasant and friendly town with a population of 750. Emerson is an oasis in the midst of the rich flat farmlands of southern Manitoba.

Visit Emerson's website.

View the Emerson Photo Gallery.