Selo Ukraina

Heritage Village – Selo Ukraina

The name Selo Ukraina derived from the Ukrainian language meaning “Ukrainian Village.” Selo Ukraina is a cultural Centre unique in North America, incorporated as Ukrainian Folk Arts Centre and Museum Inc. It is located ten kilometres south of Dauphin on the escarpment of the north slope of Riding Mountain National Park. It consists of 144 acres of an ideal blend of mountain, valley, river, woods, and farmland that closely resembles areas of the Ukraine from where our early pioneers came.

The mission of Selo Ukraina is to provide an environment for the awareness and preservation of Ukrainian heritage and culture through a self-sufficient community organization. Selo Ukraina is the permanent home of Canada’s National Ukrainian Festival.

You are invited to tour the Ukrainian Heritage Village to see the collection of heritage structures and artifacts. You will see the pioneer homes of the Trush and Matuta families, which were built in 1897 and 1902 in the Sifton and Ukraina area; St. Mary’s Ukrainian Orthodox Church from the Boyan area near Ethelbert, constructed in 1927; the Drifting River School, which was built in 1912 in the Drifting River area; the municipal building of Mossey River from the Village of Fork River, which is now housing the tools of Paul’s Shoe Repair shop, donated by the family of the late Paul Sydor of Dauphin and the Rhodes Community Hall which was built in 1933 to serve the needs of the community of Rhodes, which is located within the R.M. of Ethelbert, Officially opened in 2015 is the addition of the Hyas General Store: which was relocated to our village from Hyas, Saskatchewan. This general store will provide you with an opportunity to see where groceries and merchandise were purchased in the time of our pioneers.

These heritage structures, along with a variety of farm buildings, pioneer equipment and tools are being preserved as a dedication to the Ukrainian history of settlement in Northwestern Manitoba during the 1900’s.

During the festival, clay bake ovens are fired up in the Ukrainian Heritage Village to demonstrate the traditional baking of fresh homemade bread.In addition, you will see demonstrations on the use of some of the pioneer equipment including threshing in the Dauphin area.

As an addition to the village is the Ukrainian Musicians Hall of Fame, which is located in the Rhodes Hall. The Ukrainian Folk Arts Centre and Museum has partnered with the Ukrainian Musicians Association to establish their Hall of Fame at the Selo Ukraina site. You are invited to visit the Rhodes Hall in the village to check out the memorabilia from many of our favourite musicians over the years such as Tommy Buick, Peter Hnatiuk, Jim Gregrash, Peter Lamb and many more!

All visitors to Canada’s National Ukrainian Festival are invited as part of your gate admission to visit the Ukrainian Heritage Village museum during the festival.

Congratulations to the organizers of Canada’s National Ukrainian Festival over the past 58 years in showcasing our vibrant Ukrainian culture and heritage.