For more than a century, a tunnel ‘under the dome’ few have laid eyes on has been intriguing Winnipeggers.

The tunnel underneath the Manitoba Legislature, stretching under Broadway and over to the Manitoba Power House, is in the process of getting a facelift.

“The project underway on the grounds of the Legislative Building consists of repairing the more than 100-year-old underground tunnel to extend the current life of the tunnel another 100 years,” a provincial spokesperson told CTV News.

The tunnel’s history goes back roughly 109 years, when the province was in the process of constructing the New Parliament Buildings – now referred to as the Manitoba Legislative Building.

Historical photos from the time show the slow construction as the grand epicentre of Manitoba politics began rising from the ground in 1913.

Between a World War, a resignation of a premier, the Winnipeg General Strike, not to mention scandal – including one contractor who overcharged the province thousands before fleeing the country – the arduous project would take nearly seven years to complete.

Eventually, the Legislative Building opened in 1920, costing more than $9.3 million.

Below the feet of Manitoba’s politicians who were just settling into the newly minted chambers, there was the tunnel.

One roving columnist ventured into them nearly 100 years ago.

“Right under the dome there is the most delightful tunnel you ever saw in your life,” the writer, identified only as T.B.R., accounts in the Manitoba Free Press published on March 7, 1925.

Keep reading on winnipeg.ctvnews.ca

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