Description of Historic Place

The VIA Rail/Canadian National Railways Station at Gillam is a one-and-a-half storey, wood-frame, railway station, built in 1930. It is prominently located on the southern edge of the town of Gillam. The formal recognition is confined to the railway station building.

Heritage Value

The VIA Rail/Canadian National Railways Station at Gillam illustrates the importance of the section of Canadian National Railways (CNR) track known as the Hudson Bay Railway (HBR) to the development of northern Manitoba. It reflects the central importance of the railway to the life of the town of Gillam between 1930 and 1967, when an airstrip was built.

The Gillam railway station is one of the few remaining examples of a Second Class railway station in Manitoba. Its large scale is unusual for its remote setting.

The Gillam station retains its relationship to the railway tracks and continues to serve as a landmark within the community.

Sources: Heritage Character Statement, VIA Rail/Canadian National Railways Station, Gillam, Manitoba, October 1992; and Murray Peterson, Railway Station Report 085, VIA Rail/Canadian National Railways Station, Gillam, Manitoba.

Character-Defining Elements

Character-defining elements of the VIA Rail/Canadian National Railways Station at Gillam include:
- its low, horizontal massing, in which a simple, rectangular form is topped with a massive bellcast hipped roof, enlivened by a series of gables and dormers;
- its roof line, consisting of a massive bellcast hipped roof, interrupted on the track side by a large projecting gable over the stationmaster’s bay, and on the town side by a cross gable over the entrance, and enlivened by a series of dormers with small, bellcast hipped roofs;
- its materials and detailing, including: a concrete foundation extending up to ground floor window sill level; horizontal wood siding covering the upper wall; large, curved wood brackets supporting deep wood eaves and soffits on all four sides; and decorative brackets and false half-timbering in the gables;
- its original door and window openings;
- its adaptation of space and materials to a colder climate.