Portage and Main - by Sabrina Janke & Alex Judge (Paperback)

Book Synopsis

"For more than a generation, Winnipeg's famous intersection was hidden behind concrete walls, its significance slowly fading from our collective memory. Just as the physical place is being reintroduced to our city, this timely and compelling book reintroduces us to the people and stories that shaped its legacy." -- Brent Bellamy, Creative Director at Number TEN Architectural Group and columnist at Winnipeg Free Press

Portage and Main: How an iconic intersection shaped Winnipeg's history, politics, and urban life explores stories of Portage and Main throughout Winnipeg's history and the complicated relationship between the city's oldest intersection and culture of the urban environment that grew around it.

Fifty years ago, Portage and Main was closed to pedestrians as part of a downtown renewal project. This left an intersection void of pedestrians, and the promised vision of a revitalized city never came to fruition.

In 2025, Portage and Main will open to pedestrians once again. With a city struggling to balance the demands of its sprawling suburbs with its need to invest in downtown, the future of this iconic crossroad is in flux once again.

Winnipeg historians Alex Judge and Sabrina Janke, hosts of the One Great History podcast, describe how open, closed, or somewhere strange and in-between, the intersection's history reflects the ideas of what Winnipeg is, could be, and has been.

Whatever the case, one thing is clear: Portage and Main is far more than just an intersection.

Review Quotes

"For more than a generation, Winnipeg's famous intersection was hidden behind concrete walls, its significance slowly fading from our collective memory. Just as the physical place is being reintroduced to our city, this timely and compelling book reintroduces us to the people and stories that shaped its legacy.

For the first time, readers are taken on a complete journey through the intersection's rich and deeply rooted story. The authors skillfully weave together a captivating tapestry of memories, moments, and milestones that have cemented its place in both Winnipeg's and Canada's history. The book serves as a stepping off point to the future, leaving readers with a renewed sense of connection and an anticipation for the next chapters to be written in the Portage and Main story. " -- Brent Bellamy, Creative Director at Number TEN Architectural Group and columnist at the Winnipeg Free Press

"Portage and Main is the embodiment of anthropology of the west, yet the history of Canada's most iconic traffic intersection has only been told through a miscellanea of unrelated writings. Until now. History cannot be told without including a greater context and Jankie and Judge go beyond the intersection for a panoramic view that includes the mistreatment of Métis, rifts between the wealthy barons and workers, political conniving, protests and parades. The story of the intersection is interwoven with gun battles, both real and mock, royal visits, banking and theatre, lawsuits, identity crises, development and destruction. Sabrina Janke and Alex Judge offer a comprehensive compilation and present it in a highly readable, entertaining and illuminating manner." -- Darren Bernhardt, author of The Lesser Known and Prairie Oddities

About the Author

Sabrina Janke is a historian who lives in Winnipeg, Manitoba, whose work has appeared on the CBC, in the Winnipeg Free Press and Prairie History Magazine. She is the co-host of podcast One Great History, and a recipient of the Lieutenant Governor's Award for Heritage Conservation and Promotion. Sabrina spends her free time exploring Winnipeg, crafting, and has become a reluctant birder.

Alex Judge is a Winnipegger born and bred, except for a brief stint living in Montreal and a year in the Cabbagetown district of Toronto. In addition to her day job, Alex co-hosts the One Great History podcast, which presents the great, not-so-great, and just plain bizarre stories of Manitoba history. Alex was presented with a Winnipeg 150 medal in 2024 for her work on the show. When not at the archives, Alex enjoys crafting, mystery novels and a newfound interest in woodworking.