Speer House
SW 30-11-15E,
Oakbank area

Designation Date: April 14, 1998
Designation Authority: The R.M. of Springfield
Present Owner: privately owned

This modest farmhouse is associated with a seminal event in Manitoba's history: the first shipment of wheat from Winnipeg to Ontario, in 1876, the harbinger of the province's growth as a major player in the country's agricultural economy. This house was built in 1882 by John Speer, who supplied 44 bushels for inclusion in that historic shipment. Speer had arrived in Manitoba in 1875 from Lindsay Ontario, accompanied by his wife and children, who helped in the construction. Built from locally milled lumber; the house is modest externally, but the interior is virtually intact, with fine period woodwork.