Dauphin is a town in the far north of western Manitoba. A French explorer toured the region in 1871 and gave the area its name. Settlers first arrived there around 1883 and gradually two villages were formed, Gartmore and Old Dauphin. The Canadian railway companies worked diligently to build the north-south rail line which angled west and supported the government’s policy to heavily promote settlement in western Canada. It was in 1896 that a railway was laid across the district between the two villages and where a train station and post office were opened on April 1, 1897. It was on July 11, 1898 that the new village was granted full rights and whose first mayor was British. Most of the settlers were immigrants from Ukraine and the United Kingdom. The town soon became a center of transportation and freight. Icelanders were never many in Dauphin; those who went there worked for the CNR railway company or for trade. Quite a few Icelanders settled in the fishing village of Winnipegosis 60 km (37 miles) north as well as in the surrounding countryside.
The main street in Dauphin in the early 20th century. Photo: Prairie Towns