'Madge' Edith Marjorie Smith, 1898-1974, was a photographer and art dealer, and a friend of many Canadian artists. She was born in England but spent most of her life in Fredericton, New Brunswick. Her love of photography and other art forms began as a young girl. This interest in photography led her to spend six years working with Frank Pridham, who had bought Harvey Studio in 1918 from its founder John Harvey. Interested in the city of Fredericton and in life in New Brunswick, the Smith photos date from the late 1930's. Her camera captures open-air markets, ice-cutting on the St. John River, the Indians of New Brunswick, and various local ceremonies and celebrations. Bill and Doll, identified as 'famous Fredericton fire horses' are pictured in full regalia. Her series 'The Fredericton Exhibition and Racetrack, Sept. 16, 1937 depicts life in the stable area. Made Smith sought subjects which may have appeared unconventional at the time. The more formal subjects are there - the Cathedral, the Odell Estate, private and public buildings, portraits - but so are the others - angling on the Southwest Miramichi, art classes in Fredericton, camps in the Fredericton area. The Madge Smith series on the building of the railway bridge and the flood of March 19 and 20, 1936 provide visual documentation of the history of the city in which she lived. Madge Smith opened her art shop at 610 Queen Street in the late 1930s. She kept a register from 1939 to 1943 of shop visitors, and in it the signatures of prominent and lesser known Canadians and visitors from other countries appear. Her correspondence reveals that many friends needing a gift for an occasion would ask her to send something appropriate on their behalf. These requests came from various parts of Canada and the United States, and she helped New Brunswick and Maritime crafts to become widely known and appreciated. Deichmann pottery, woven goods from Madawaska weavers, and stone and silver jewelry from Nova Scotia were sent to many parts of Canada and the United States. Madge Smith also received requests for her own photographs; a letter from Calgary asks for one of her tinted photographs of the Queen; a fellow photographer refers to that 'lovely tinted work of yours'. One of Madge Smiths' tinted photographs of the Cathedral sold for $45.00. Her many artist friends, whose work she sold, received her pictures. Her correspondence with artists such as Molly and Bruno Bobak, Miller Brittain, Jack Humphrey, Fritz Brandtner, Ted Campbell, Pegi Nicol McLeod, Ghitta Caissermann, and others suggests affectionate relationships. The Madge Smith Collection of 1275 negatives is arranged in 23 subject categories at the Provincial Archives. Her letters, scrapbooks, souvenir books, shop registers, and numerous printed items are also there. Some of her photographs have been exhibited, and the first exhibition, arranged jointly by the University of New Brunswick and the Provincial Archives, was held in October 1970. Another exhibition entitled 'Fredericton - The Early Years' opened April 2, 1974, not long after her death.