Festival du Voyageur
| Festival du Voyageur | |
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| Status | Active |
| Genre | Winter festival |
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| Festival du Voyageur | |
The Festival du Voyageur is an annual 10-day winter festival that takes place in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada. The event is held during each February in Winnipeg's French Quarter, Saint-Boniface, and is Western Canada's largest winter festival. It celebrates Canada's fur-trading past and unique French heritage and culture through entertainment, arts and crafts, music, exhibits, and displays.
The idea for a winter festival to celebrate Manitoba's Francophonie was first proposed by Georges Forest. He became the first official Voyageur. Voyageurs are people who promote the festival in 1967. The proposal was put forth to the city of St. Boniface, but the city's offer was insufficient.
In the summer of 1969, the mayor, Ed Turner, and the city council of Saint-Boniface granted their support under the condition that Festival became an incorporated organization. Judge Robert Trudel became the first president of Festival du/of the Voyageur. "Voyageur" refers to those who worked for a fur trading company and usually traveled by canoe. Festival du/of the Voyageur Inc. was incorporated under the Companies Act of Manitoba on December 18, 1969. It received a city grant of $35,000 but had to give back all profits up to $35,000.
At a press conference held January 13, 1970, Mayor Turner announced that the city of Saint-Boniface would present a festival honouring the Voyageur of the fur trading era, in celebration of Manitoba's centennial. The first Festival du/of the Voyageur took place February 26 to March 1, 1970, at Provencher Park, with an estimated attendance of 50,000 people. Georges Forest was in charge of promoting the event and did so by wearing clothing that represented the Voyageurs. This initiated the tradition of "Official Voyageurs," which continues to this day. The 1970 festival lasted four days and featured the walk down Provencher Boulevard, the Governor’s Bal and the Voyageur Trading Post.
The large number of attendees required an unforeseen level of expenditure by festival organizers; by the festival's conclusion, the organization had a debt in excess of C$40,000. To remedy their financial situation, the organizers held horse races as a fundraiser in conjunction with the 1971 festival. The 1971 festival was a success, drawing nearly 200,000 guests. However, instead of resolving the financial situation, the fundraiser pushed the organization further into debt.
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