Archives West Finding Aid

Frank La Roche was born in Philadelphia in June 20, 1853. His parents, Aaron and Anna La Roche, of French and German ancestry, were among the first settlers of that area. He was educated in the schools of Philadelphia and at age 17 took a position in a photographic studio. After two years of study and practice, he engaged in business at Quaker City and in 1872 went to Mauch Chunk, PA to pursue a general photographic business and to take views of the Lehigh Valley Railroad.

Around 1873, La Roche moved with his family to Florida where he continued as a commercial photographer. It was in St. Augustine, Florida, that he took the longest time exposure on record - of one of the oldest extant buildings in the U.S., a Catholic church. He is said to have exposed a plate at 10 in the morning until 4 in the afternoon of the next day.

In 1876, he was engaged by Harper Bros. of New York City to travel the South Sea islands in search of illustrations, but on arrival in Honolulu his partner was taken sick and the trip was abandoned. Returning to the States, La Roche then opened a gallery in Salt Lake City and in 1878 was employed by the United State government to make 78 negatives of the transit of Mercury and 23 similar negatives for the French government. In the spring of 1888, he opened a gallery in Des Moines, Iowa and in competition at the state fair he secured six out of seven prizes for excellence in workmanship.

In July 1889, he came to Seattle bringing with him the necessary equipment for a first class gallery. Arriving just after the fire, he found the city in ashes, but at once he opened a gallery on 2nd Ave, subsequently moving to the top floor of the Downs Block and to other locations. He specialized in Alaska and Puget Sound scenery and high-class portrait photography.

During the years 1890 to 1902 and especially during the Gold Rush period, he made many trips to Alaska and the Yukon Territory to make photographs of Alaska scenery, mining camps and the trail. Each trip would have brought him back to Seattle to do developing and printing from a portable body of glass negatives. He sold mounted prints but preferred to reach a larger audience through his six part album entitled Enroute to the Klondike.

La Roche was also commissioned by the Alaska Yukon Pacific Exposition at Seattle in 1909 to take official photographs, and he was awarded gold medals for his pictures.

He was married in Seattle to Miss Ida M. Crary. He maintained his Seattle studio for 25 years after which he moved to Skagit County. When he retired, he passed on the business to his son, Frank La Roche Jr., who had assisted him in the studio as well as on the trails in Alaska.