The Chair in German-Canadian Studies was established in 1989 with a grant from the Secretary of State's Program for Canadian Ethnic Studies and with a grant from a group of private philanthropists within the German-Canadian community of Winnipeg. It is affiliated with the History Department at the University of Winnipeg.

The Chapman Museum, located near Rivers, Manitoba northwest of Brandon, operated from 1967 until 2014. Albert and Harriet Chapman's idea for a museum stemmed from a display they created to honour Canada's centennial in 1967. In an empty bunkhouse on their family farm, they showcased antique crockery jugs they had acquired earlier that decade. As they accumulated more items from auction sales and community donations, the original display grew to become the Chapman Museum, comprising 16 original historic buildings from southwestern Manitoba--all arranged as a village. They included a general store, Roseville Anglican Church, five one-room schoolhouses, a blacksmith shop, pioneer homes, railway buildings, and equipment from the early 20th century. The museum ran year-round, seven days a week, and was free of charge. Eventually, the couple's daughter and son-in-law, Lois and Gordon Allen took over operations. In 2014, the museum closed and its collections went to the Archives of Manitoba and various museums in the province.

Irene Isabelle Clements (nee Gill) was a schoolteacher and farmer in rural Manitoba. Born on August 24, 1905 in Rathwell to James and Jane Gill, she attended Brandon Normal School in 1925 and proceeded to teach school in Pratt, Tisdale (Killarney), Sanford, and Landerville (Lac de Bonnet). In 1932, she married farmer Cecil Burnett Clements (1901-1975) in Winnipeg. They lived in Killarney several years before returning to Rathwell, where they farmed and raised three children. Irene was a member of United Church Women and Women's Institute and a church organist and pianist. She died in Treherne on April 16, 2008.

Peter Dubois was born on August 3, 1843 at Kildonan in Red River (modern Winnipeg). His parents were the merchant John Dubois and Mary Sinclair. He was educated at the Anglican St. John's College. He was a member and Speaker of the first Legislative Council of Manitoba, a Rector's Warden at St. John's Cathedral, and Sheriff of Manitoba for 52 years. He died in 1934 and is buried in St. John's Cemenetary. Peter and his wife Ann Tait (1852-1925) had five children: Rupert Finleyson Dubois (1874-1930), Peter Robertson Sinclair Dubois (1876-1961), Myra Jane McMurray Dubois (1878-1938), Annie Sibyl McKay Dubois (1880-1974), and James Richard Hardisty Dubois (1886-1970). Rupert F. Dubois worked as a bank manager and immigration official before succeeding his father as Sheriff in 1928. Sibyl was the last family member to live in the family home, the Bleak House, which is now a historic site on 1637 Main Street, Winnipeg. The family also owned and farmed the Oxbow Woods area on Lake Manitoba in the early twentieth century.

Constance May "Connie" Howey (nee Davidson) was an educator and local historian in southwestern Manitoba. She was born in 1925 to Marjorie and David Davidson at their farm in the Lake Max district. In her graduating year at Boissevain Collegiate, she won a scholarship to attend Winnipeg Normal School for teacher training. Connie enjoyed a 33-year teaching career at schools in Mountainside, Killarney, Morden, and, finally, Brandon. Connie also served as principal of Rugby High School in Elton (1948-1949) and Lyleton School (1961-1964). For 2 1/2 years, she worked as a counsellor at Shingwauk Residential School in Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario before returning to Manitoba. In summer 1972, Connie taught at a teachers' college in Ethiopia, having been selected by the Canadian Teachers' Federation. During those years, she earned degrees from University of Manitoba and Brandon University. Connie married Richard James Howey in 1974 and farmed with him near Harding until 1989, when they returned to Brandon. She was a founder of the Assiniboine Historical Society in Brandon. She also wrote a history of Lyleton and co-edited the book, "Home to Harding, 1879-1981," which won an Honourable Mention Certificate of Merit from the Manitoba Historical Society. Connie died on January 29, 2012.

Richard James Howey was a farmer and amateur historian in southwestern Manitoba. He was born in 1924 at a farm north of Bradwardine, Manitoba, the youngest of three born to Clarence Howey and his wife Emma (Ardron) Howey. Richard graduated from Harding School and took over the farm after his father's death in 1944. He also worked at Metropolitan Securities and in public works before returning to full-time farming with his wife, Constance Davidson, after their marriage in 1974. As president of Harding Centennial Group, he led an initiative to erect cairns in honour of early settlers. He also spearheaded Harding School's 1981 reunion and, with Connie, co-edited "Home to Harding, 1879-1981," which received an Honorable Mention Certificate of Merit for local history by the Manitoba Historical Society. They continued farming near Harding until 1989, when they retired to Brandon. Richard died on November 28, 2004.

Founded in 1969, the Institute of Urban Studies (IUS) was established with the mandate of assessing government housing practices and suggesting innovations for Winnipeg’s inner-city housing. In later years the mandate was expanded into consulting services and academic publications and conferences. The IUS is an independently operating branch of the University of Winnipeg and received it’s funding from the Central Mortgage and Housing Corporation (now the Canadian Mortgage and Housing Corporation). The Institute has had a continuing focus over the years on Indigenous inner-city programs.

In Canada, Women's Institutes began as rural gatherings supporting education, community services, and the needs of rural girls and women. The first one formed in what is now Stoney Creek, Ontario in 1897. The first institute in Manitoba was established in Morris in 1910. Within a short time, provincial groups united to create the Federated Women's Institutes of Canada and began drawing in urban women. Kirkham's Bridge Women's Institute formed in 1950 in the municipality of Riverdale northwest of Brandon. Its name derives from the site where a steel truss bridge was built in 1906 over Little Saskatchewan River. (The bridge was moved to a new site in 1981.) Meeting at the home of Mrs. Albert Chapman, the institute's 15 members elected as officers Mrs. R.E. Leeson, Mrs. Edna E. Chapman, Mrs. Charles Evans, Mrs. A. Guild, and Mrs. H. Clammers. Monthly meetings featured speeches, lectures, demonstrations, and musical performances by members and outside guests. Lunches and teas were part of the regular program. The institute supported local and international aid projects; in 1950, it sponsored a fundraising concert and held a clothing drive for European communities recovering post-war. The institute compiled a community history book, "From Generations to Generations," in 1956, and added to it in 1987. Membership rapidly declined as more women joined the paid work force, resulting in less time for community work. The Kirkham's Bridge Women's Institute fell dormant in 1992, however a cairn it erected in 1970 near the site of Kirkham's Bridge pays tribute to its long history in the community.

Otto Lau was born in Ontario, Canada in 1858. He homesteaded the south half of 10-12-18 in the Rural Municipality of Elton, Manitoba in 1881. In 1885, he worked on the Grand Valley Ferry in the R.M. of Cornwallis, Manitoba. He married Georgina Augusta Reid (1869-1891) on July 27, 1888. They had a son Robert (1890-1941). Otto remarried on December 27, 1893 to Louisa Wiener (1869-1936). They had six children: John William (1894-1917); Frank Otto (1897-1918); Allan (1900-1975); Annie Louise (1902-1996); Gordon (1906-1964), and Ruby Florence (1909-1992). John and Frank Lau were killed while serving with the Canadian Expeditionary Forces during World War One. Otto continued to farm in the R.M. of Elton until 1935 when he sold his land to George Miller. Otto died in Vancouver, British Columbia in 1940.

Laura Paradoski née Wollwitsch was born c. 1927 to parents Fritz (1894-1963) and Frida (1899-1993). She was the youngest of two daughters and was born in the new settlement of Little Britain, shortly after her parents migrated to Canada in 1927. She later married Walter Paradoski (1921-2003) and the two raised five children: Helene (1951-), Gordon (1952-), Louise (1955-), Rick (1958-), and Ken (1964-).