© 2026, Christian Cassidy
I am working on a blog post about the 1880s house at 121 Kate Street. One of the residents I found there deserved a seperate blog post here!
Israel Bennetto was born in Hamilton, Ontario, in 1860 and came to Winnipeg in 1880. He soon opened Bennetto and Co. photography studio on Main Street and was one of just four or five five photography firms listed in the street directories of the early 1880s.
Bennetto married Anna Lauretta, and they had two young children, Litta and Israel Jr., when they moved to the house at 121 Kate Street in 1893. A third child, Marjory, was born in 1897.
Circa 1890s (EBay)
Bennetto's money was likely made in portrait photography. Surviving are images such as the above, a portrait of Mary Inkster, and images of Winnipeg city council and its officials in 1888.
When his studio moved to 436 Main Street around 1891, he also sold photography supplies and stock images of events and street scenes. This was a common practice for photographers as an additional income stream and a way to generate publicity for their services. For examples of his work, see here, here here, and here.
One of the most famous images attributed to Bennetto and Co. is this iconic portrait of Louis Riel that is still used today. It is unlikely that Bennetto took the photo himself, as the image is believed to be from the early 1870s and he was only born in 1860.
Perhaps, he purchased the rights to this image and others from an old-time photographer he came across? Another suggestion provided to me by a postcard collector is that he may have bought out an existing studio, and this was amongst its inventory.
Bennetto dabbled in property speculation, as many businessmen did back then. Likely finding it to be more lucrative than photography, he closed his studio in 1906 and spent most of his time in real estate.
It appears that in later years Bennetto subdivided parts of his Kate Street property and sold it off as residential lots. (See the 121 Kate blog post for more details.)
Assessment records show that all of the houses along the north side of Bannatyne between Kate and Juno streets, and a house next door to 120 Juno, were built in 1903. The large apartment at Bannatyne and Kate, famous for being on the cover of the Guess Who's So Long Bannatyne album cover, was built in 1910.
The Bennettos moved from Kate Street in 1911. By this time, he had a new career, their two eldest children were in their twenties and Marjorie was 12. They do not appear in Winnipeg street directories through the 19-teens. Perhaps Israel relocated further West to pursue his real estate ambitions.
Bennetto's new career did not keep him out of trouble. Plenty of money could be made in the land business in the West during colonisation as new railway lines turned brush or farmland into town sites, but there was also risk. Bennetto spent a lot of time in court being sued or suing others over land-relaed deals.
The Benettos were back in Winnipeg by 1920 and living at 100 Niagara Street. Marjorie got married later that year.
Mrs. Bennetto died in June 12, 1929 at the Niagara Street home, aged 68. Israel died on June 4, 1946 at the Maple Leaf Apartments, 915 Corydon Ave, aged 86.
Bennetto's new career did not keep him out of trouble. Plenty of money could be made in the land business in the West during colonisation as new railway lines turned brush or farmland into town sites, but there was also risk. Bennetto spent a lot of time in court being sued or suing others over land-relaed deals.
The Benettos were back in Winnipeg by 1920 and living at 100 Niagara Street. Marjorie got married later that year.
Mrs. Bennetto died in June 12, 1929 at the Niagara Street home, aged 68. Israel died on June 4, 1946 at the Maple Leaf Apartments, 915 Corydon Ave, aged 86.
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