The University of Manitoba Press is urging Manitobans to go through their attics and albums in search of lost photos — lost Foote photos, to be precise.

The U of M Press plans to publish a book this fall celebrating the work of Winnipeg’s most famous photographer, Lewis Benjamin Foote.

Of the many photos Foote took of Winnipeg and other parts of Manitoba, only a fraction currently reside at the Manitoba Archives. Foote took thousands upon thousands of photographs over five decades. The archives are in possession of only about 3,000 of them.

Some of Foote’s most well known shots are of Winnipeg beach in its prime, families skating on the Assiniboine River and the Winnipeg General Strike in 1919. His symbolic shot of workers rocking a streetcar on Bloody Sunday is especially recognizable.

“Many of us have seen Foote photographs, whether or not we are aware of their origins. For at least 30 years, since the creation of the Manitoba Archives in the early 1970s, these photographs have been used to tell the story of Winnipeg’s past,” says award winning historian Esyllt Jones, who is also preparing and introducing the new book.

Foote was born in Newfoundland in 1873 and arrived in Manitoba in 1902. His freelance career spanned decades and his photos tell a captivating story of Winnipeg’s history. The talented, self-taught photographer conducted his day-to-day work on commercial jobs, either from his downtown studio or his home on Gertrude Avenue. Often, he was hired to photograph graduating classes, military units, sports teams, company parties, conventions, parades, carnivals and theatrical casts as well as weddings, funerals and other shots of Winnipeg’s small businesses.

Foote was considered a master of the group portrait and was said to be happiest when photographing families. On the other end of the subject spectrum, Foote also shot photos of rugged, dangerous labor, sometimes climbing to great heights to get the shot he needed. A great example of his dedication is his iconic photo of construction workers on top of the Fort Garry hotel around 1915, the sprawling panorama of the city visible behind them.

If Foote’s photos of Winnipeg interest you, the Manitoba Archives’ reading room is open to the general public as is their collection of nearly 2,500 of Foote’s photographs. Despite the seemingly large number of Foote photographs already archived, many have long faded into obscurity.

So as you look through your old albums and dusty frames this year in times of your own reminiscence, the U of M Press asks that you keep an eye out for any photographs possibly taken by one of Winnipeg’s greats. Many of Foote’s photos have “FOOTE” stamped in the bottom corner. If you’re unsure about the origin, the U of M Press has a great blog (lostfootephotos.blogspot.com) that includes more ways to identify Foote photos. The textual record of Foote’s life is also lacking; any receipts from Foote’s services or any correspondence with Foote himself that are found are also appreciated.

Anyone with materials to share can contact the University of Manitoba Press for more details.