heiminck was born in simcoe, ontario, and moved to winnipeg in 1870. there he married isabella green in 1873 and was involved in mercantilism before moving to edmonton in 1881. in 1883 he moved to fort saskatchewan for ten years, returning to edmonton in 1893. upon his return, he engaged in real estate, building among other things the so-called "heiminck block" in downtown edmonton.