Sunday, August 18, 2019

747 Wellington Avenue - Huddle House (R.I.P.)

© 2019, Christian Cassidy

Address:
747 Wellington Avenue
Place: Canadian Shoe Repair / Huddle House
Constructed: ca. 1923

The recently demolished 747 Wellington Avenue has been home to many neighbourhood services over its nearly century of existence. Initially it featured a small retail space with a living quarters in the rear.

The building first appears in local street directories in 1923 as the Canadian Shoe Repair Shop. The store was owned by George H Gurr, nicknamed Pop, who also lived there with his wife Mabel and their four children, George Edgar, Leslie, Dorothy and Constance. The couple were born and raised in England but came separately to Canada before meeting.

Prior to 747 Wellington, the Gurrs lived in an apartment on Sherbrook Street and George was a warehouse man with CN Express, the courier service located in one of the present-day market buildings at the Forks.

The shop closed around 1930. George Gurr worked various sales jobs, including for Modern Dairies and People's Credit Jewellers, before he and Mabel eventually retired to St. Vital.

The building had a brief stint as Quality Shoe Repair under John Lyons. In 1934, it was the barber shop of Albert Cook and in 1941 to Mary Robertson's Simcoe Hairdressing.


Thorun Johnson became the next resident in 1943. Born Thorun Sigurdson in Winnipeg in 1905, she grew up on a farm at Oakview, Manitoba. She married John Johnson in 1930 and the couple had three children; Kenneth, Barbara and Oddney. By the time she arrived here, Thorun was either separated from her husband or widowed as she is listed as the head of the household.

Johnson was a tailor and fur finisher, (adding fur trim to coats). For over a decade she worked at The Fur Clinic on Kennedy Street and in the late 1950s moved on to Silverman Furs on Main Street. She also did sewing projects from the little shop at the front of the house.


Johnson's oldest daughter, Barbara, was a skater with the Greater Winnipeg Figure Skating Club. In 1946, she and three others locals were hired by the newly-established, American-based,"Ice Cycles". It was a touring show that featured trick skating, comedy skits, show girl routines and more traditional performances. The cast included numerous past figure skating champions from around the world.

Barbara found herself in an embarrassing news story that made headlines around the United States in March 1947.

The Ice Cycles were playing for an extended period in New York City and Barbara caught the eye of ABC radio announcer Roger Krupp who was many years her senior. She spurned his advances and in March 1947, he shot himself at his office at Radio City in New York City in an apparent suicide attempt due to the rejection.

Krupp ended up with just a flesh wound and in some radio industry histories it is suggested that the gesture was more likely for dramatic effect than an actual attempt at taking his own life. (See below for more information.)

February 7, 1950, Winnipeg Free Press

Johnson found love with Kurt von Trostorff, a cast mate and former California figure skating champion. The two waited to get married until 1950 when Ice Cycles were in town to play a show at the Winnipeg Amphitheatr so that her mother could attend. The ceremony took place on February 9 at First Lutheran Church.

Around 1954, the couple moved from Ice Cycles to a competing troupe called Ice Follies.

Johnson spent another four or so years with Ice Follies. She then settled at Fort Lauderdale, Florida where she died in 1974 at the age of 44. In her obituary she went by her maiden name and there is no mention of Trostorff . he had retired from skating in 1958 and became the Los Angeles Angels' equipment manager in 1962.

In 1962, Thorun Johnson moved in with daughter Oddny at a rented house at 266 Queen Street for a few years.

June 22, 1963, Winnipeg Free Press

The next incarnation for 747 Wellington was Huddle House restaurant. The nip, fires and ice cream joint was opened in 1962 by, Louise De Leeuw. In June 1963 it was taken over by A. Prefontaine.

An application was made by R. Wlock in 1970 to convert the building into a coin operated laundromat named the Ole Wash Tub. It was managed by Mike Wolanyk, a retired farmer from Rossburn, until his death in 1981.


In 1981, both the laundromat and the adjacent house at 709 Simcoe Street were put up for sale as a single revenue property. They may have been joined as early as 1970 when the laundromat opened and the house on Simcoe Street began advertising itself as a boarding house run by Mrs. I. Friesen.

The last newspaper mention of a business at this location was 1990 for Honest Ed's new and used goods. For more than a decade it had been a storage shed for the adjacent house.

In the summer of 2019, extensive renovations began on the house and yard which included the demolition of 747 Wellington.

Related:
Thorun Johnson obituary: December 12, 1996, Winnipeg Free Press


March 22, 1947, Joplin News Herald


Barbara Johnson obituary, November 30, 1974, Winnipeg Free Press
 
Shortly before demolition

2 comments:

  1. Hi Christian:
    Thanks for the article. The home sitting on the same lot was also the abode of former City Councillor Harvey Smith for a short time.
    Sadly, shortly after his passing...his clothing/chattels were hung on the fence one weekend during a yard-sale.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Hi. Thanks for sharing. I remember it being Smith's house. Sad about his stuff.

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