December 27: Hilda Blake hangs; Manitoba's first general election; Masonic Temple dedicated.

December 27, 1899 – Hilda Blake, a 21 year old housekeeper, is hanged in Brandon for the shooting death of the woman she worked for. She was the last woman to hang in Manitoba.

Morning Telegram, December 14, 1899

There was some sympathy for Blake. For such a young woman to commit a crime, it was assumed that she must have been attacked, suffered from a mental disease or had the assistance of an accomplice. Some newspapers were certain that she wouldn't actually hang. If there were extenuating circumstances, Hilda maintained her silence.

For Morning Telegraph coverage of the hanging. To read an excerpt from Walk Towards the Gallows: The Tragedy of Hilda Blake.

December 27, 1870 – Manitoba’s first general election is held. (For the results.)  The first chief minister of the cabinet, (the position was not technically a premier, yet), was Lower Canada / Quebec-born Marc-Amable Girard. He would later be appointed Senator for St. Boniface and serve in the Red Chamber for over 20 years.

December 27, 1895 - The former Masonic Temple on Donald Street at Ellice was dedicated by Grand Master Charles Napier Bell. The evening began with a number of ceremonies beginning in the "blue room" and ended with a supper in the banquet hall. For a history of the building.