Charles H. Wheeler (1838-1917)

Born in Lutterworth, Leicestershire, he studied architecture and music in Birmingham. He continued his pursuit of his architectural career in England for around twenty years. He spent some time working for noted British architect George Edmund Street of London and for the well-known firm of William Martin and John Henry Chamberlain in Birmingham.

Early in the 1880s, he decided to seek his fortune in the Canadian West. Wheeler arrived in Winnipeg with his famoily in February 1882. Once here, he began to work for the architectural firm of James Chisholm. In 1883, he won an international competition to design Holy Trinity church and established his own firm. He was instrumental in the formalisation of architectural practice in Manitoba, serving in 1906 as a founding Vice-President of the Manitoba Association of Architects. In later life, he retired from his architectural career to devote himself to his love for music. e became the music and drama critic for The Winnipeg Tribune, a post that he held until his death.