Description of Historic Place

Tanner's Crossing, a former toll ferry site on the Carlton Trail, encompasses a large area of gently rolling park land straddling the Little Saskatchewan River in Minnedosa. The municipal designation applies to two adjacent parcels of land (on either side of the river) totalling approximately 6,000 square metres.

Heritage Value

Tanner's Crossing, the birthplace of Minnedosa, a regional centre in the Parkland area, marks the point where Aboriginal peoples, fur traders and settlers crossed the Little Saskatchewan River along the Carlton Trail between Fort Garry (east) and Fort Edmonton (west) and where John and Catherine Tanner established a toll ferry, stopping house and post office beginning in 1872. These services spurred other settlement and economic activity in the area, eventually leading to the incorporation of the Town of Minnedosa in 1883. During Manitoba's centenary in 1970, the crossing site was celebrated and preserved through its inclusion in a municipal park.

Source: Town of Minnedosa By-law No. 2295, November 1, 1993

Character-Defining Elements

Key elements that define the site character of Tanner's Crossing include:
- its location on the site of John and Catherine Tanner's ferry crossing along a portion of the Little Saskatchewan River now surrounded by Minnedosa

Key elements that define the historical and archaeological character and commemorative function of Tanner's Crossing include:
- the more gently sloping sides of the riverbank at the point of the crossing compared with the relatively steeper sides along other riverbank areas nearby
- the presence at the point of the river crossing of a natural raised gravel bed in the river bottom
- the largely natural character of the gently rolling landforms, vegetation, river features, etc.
- all surface and/or subsurface remains associated with Native peoples, traders, settlers, the Tanners and other users of the crossing point
- the public access, including walking paths, monuments and other structures on the site related to public use and education, etc.